The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has expanded the National Pension System (NPS) investment framework, allowing allocations to gold and silver ETFs, REITs, InvITs, select AIFs, and IPOs/FPOs/OFS. This diversification aims to boost long-term returns, hedge inflation, and provide subscribers with broader exposure to real assets and markets.
India’s retirement savings landscape is evolving with the PFRDA’s latest reforms to the National Pension System (NPS). Subscribers can now diversify beyond traditional equity and debt by investing in precious metals, real estate, infrastructure trusts, and primary market offerings.
The new framework consolidates earlier rules into a master circular, ensuring clarity across NPS, Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), and Atal Pension Yojana (APY). By introducing exposure caps and eligibility criteria, the regulator aims to balance growth opportunities with risk management.
This move is expected to enhance portfolio resilience, offering inflation hedges through gold and silver ETFs, steady income streams via REITs/InvITs, and growth potential through IPO participation.
Major Takeaways
Precious Metals Access: Gold and silver ETFs now part of NPS portfolios.
Real Assets: REITs and InvITs provide exposure to property and infrastructure income.
Market Participation: IPOs, FPOs, and OFS included for equity diversification.
Alternative Funds: Select AIFs permitted under strict eligibility and exposure limits.
Unified Rules: Master circular streamlines compliance across NPS, UPS, and APY.
Conclusion
By widening investment choices, the NPS is becoming a smarter retirement vehicle, blending safety with growth. For subscribers, this means a more balanced portfolio that can withstand market volatility while tapping into new wealth-building opportunities.
Sources: Business Standard, Financial Express, News18