Open-End Fund

An open-end fund is a mutual fund that continuously issues new units to investors and redeems existing units at the prevailing Net Asset Value (NAV) on any business day — meaning there is no fixed number of units outstanding and no fixed maturity date. The vast majority of mutual funds in India are open-ended — including equity funds, debt funds, hybrid funds, and liquid funds — providing investors with the flexibility to invest and redeem at any time based on their financial needs. This distinguishes open-end funds from closed-end funds (which issue a fixed number of units at launch, listed on exchanges, and redeemable only at maturity or in the secondary market) and interval funds (which allow redemption only during specific periods). The daily NAV of open-end funds is calculated and published after the close of market hours based on the market value of the fund's underlying portfolio. SEBI mandates that open-end equity funds process redemption requests within two to three business days, ensuring investor liquidity.