Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund
Direct Plan, Growth option · Data as on 30-10-2026
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund is an Arbitrage fund and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund is an Index fund. In the year to 30-10-2026, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) returned 6.3% and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) returned −10.3%. Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund charges 1.15% a year and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund 0.28% (Direct plans). Their portfolios overlap 40.3%: they hold 23 of the same securities.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund
Arbitrage
- 1 year return
- 6.3%
- Expense ratio
- 1.15%
- NAV
- ₹13.90
Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund
Index
- 1 year return
- −10.3%
- Expense ratio
- 0.28%
- NAV
- ₹9.24
Which is better, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage or Zerodha Nifty 50 Index? Key differences
It depends on what you want from the fund. These are the differences in numbers, from the data on this page.
- Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage returned more over 1 year: 6.3% against −10.3%.
- Zerodha Nifty 50 Index costs less: 0.28% a year against 1.15% (Direct plans).
- Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage fell less in its worst fall since 17-10-2025: −0.5% against −15.2%.
- Zerodha Nifty 50 Index holds more in large companies: 99.2% of the fund in large caps against 59.3%.
- Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage is the larger fund: ₹138 Cr against ₹75 Cr.
- Their portfolios overlap 40.3%: 23 of the same holdings.
Past returns do not promise future returns. This page is information, not investment advice.
Key facts
From each fund's scheme summary document and AMFI
| Fact | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund |
|---|---|---|
| Fund house | Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund | Zerodha Mutual Fund |
| Category | Arbitrage | Index |
| AUM | ₹138 Cr (30-09-2026) | ₹75 Cr (30-09-2026) |
| NAV | ₹13.90 (Direct) | ₹9.24 (Direct) |
| Expense ratio (Direct) | 1.15% | 0.28% |
| Expense ratio (Regular) | 1.91% | Not available |
| Riskometer | Low | Very High |
| Benchmark | Nifty 50 Arbitrage TRI | Nifty 50 TRI |
| Launch date | 24-08-2020 | 14-10-2025 |
| Minimum investment | ₹1,000 | ₹100 |
| Lock in | None | None |
| Fund managers | Mitul Doshi, Navin Matta, Rahul Pal | Kedarnath Mirajkar |
| Exit load | Exit load of 0.25%, if redeemed within 30 days. | Nil |
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Returns Comparison
Returns as on 30-10-2026. Up to one year they are absolute returns. Longer periods are a rate per year.
| Fund | 1M | 3M | 6M | 1Y | 3Y | 5Y | 10Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | +0.56% | +1.45% | +3.03% | +6.26% | +6.42% | +5.89% | -- |
| Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) | +1.95% | −5.00% | −3.12% | −10.25% | -- | -- | -- |
| Arbitrage average | +0.56% | +1.52% | +3.20% | +6.62% | +7.18% | +6.68% | -- |
Category average: the average of the 39 Arbitrage funds, same plan type.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Year-wise Returns
| Year | Mahindra Manulife ArbitrageMahindra Manulife Arbitrage | Zerodha Nifty 50 IndexZerodha Nifty 50 Index |
|---|---|---|
| 2026to date | +5.07% | −11.01% |
| 2025 | +6.20% | -- |
| 2024 | +6.97% | -- |
| 2023 | +6.65% | -- |
| 2022 | +4.04% | -- |
| 2021 | +3.67% | -- |
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Rolling Returns
Every holding period of both funds, against Nifty 50 TRI, the benchmark of Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: SIP and Lumpsum Returns
What the same monthly or one-time investment would be worth in each fund today, from their own NAV history
Growth of an investment
₹10,000 on the first trading day of every month, from 01-10-2025 to 30-10-2026: 13 instalments, ₹1,30,000 in all.
| Investment | Invested | Value now | Gain | Return a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahindra Manulife ArbitrageMahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | ₹1,30,000 | ₹1,34,533 | ₹4,533 | 6.1% |
| Zerodha Nifty 50 IndexZerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) | ₹1,30,000 | ₹1,23,091 | −₹6,909 | −9.1% |
Mahindra Manulife ArbitrageMahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct)
Zerodha Nifty 50 IndexZerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct)
Amount invested
From each plan's published NAV (Growth option), over the same days. Return a year: XIRR for a SIP, CAGR for a lumpsum, shown for a year or more. It does not include exit load, stamp duty or tax. Past returns do not promise future returns.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Risk and Drawdowns
How much each fund swings, and the worst fall over the same days
Risk and return
| Measure | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) |
|---|---|---|
| Return (CAGR) | +6.26% | −10.25% |
| Standard deviation | 1.45% | 13.60% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.70 | -1.14 |
| Sortino ratio | 1.06 | -1.52 |
| Maximum drawdown | −0.5% (06-08-2026) | −15.2% (30-03-2026) |
| Beta | -- | 1.00 |
| Alpha | -- | −0.28% |
From daily NAVs, 30-10-2025 to 30-10-2026. Standard deviation: how much the daily value swings, scaled to a year. Sharpe: return above the risk-free rate (NSE's overnight rate index) per unit of swing. Sortino: the same, counting only the falls. Beta and alpha compare each fund with its own benchmark's TRI.
| Measure | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) |
|---|---|---|
| Return (CAGR) | +5.47% | −9.31% |
| Standard deviation | 1.05% | 13.43% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.16 | -1.08 |
| Sortino ratio | 0.23 | -1.45 |
| Maximum drawdown | −0.5% (06-08-2026) | −15.2% (30-03-2026) |
| Beta | -- | 1.00 |
| Alpha | -- | −0.29% |
From daily NAVs, 25-08-2020 to 30-10-2026. Standard deviation: how much the daily value swings, scaled to a year. Sharpe: return above the risk-free rate (NSE's overnight rate index) per unit of swing. Sortino: the same, counting only the falls. Beta and alpha compare each fund with its own benchmark's TRI.
Drawdowns
How far below its previous high each one was on every day: the falls an investor had to sit through. 0% means it was at a new high.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct)
Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct)
Nifty 50 TRI
| Fund | Worst fall | High before it | Bottom | Back at the high | Time to climb back | Below its high today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | −0.5% | 03-08-2026 | 06-08-2026 | 01-09-2026 | 26 days | 0.0% |
| Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) | −15.2% | 02-01-2026 | 30-03-2026 | Not yet | -- | −11.7% |
| Nifty 50 TRI | −15.1% | 02-01-2026 | 30-03-2026 | Not yet | -- | −11.6% |
From daily values since 17-10-2025, the first day every fund has.
Rolling standard deviation
Whether the swings have grown or calmed over time: the standard deviation of daily changes over every 1-year window, scaled to a year, plotted on the window's last day. Higher means a bumpier ride.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct)
Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct)
Nifty 50 TRI
Against Nifty 50 TRI
| Fund | Up capture | Down capture | Tracking error |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund (Direct) | 20% | -13% | 16.22% |
| Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund (Direct) | 99% | 100% | 0.15% |
From month-end values since 17-10-2025. Up capture: a fund's average month when the benchmark rose, as % of the benchmark's; above 100% it gained more. Down capture: the same for months the benchmark fell; below 100% it fell less. Tracking error: how far the monthly returns strayed from the benchmark's, a year; an index fund aims near 0.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Portfolio Overlap
From each fund's latest monthly portfolio: Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund, September 2026; Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund, September 2026
Holdings in common
- Overlap
- 40.3%
- Held by both
- 23
- Only in Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage
- 14
- Only in Zerodha Nifty 50 Index
- 27
| Security | % of Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage | % of Zerodha Nifty 50 Index |
|---|---|---|
| ICICI Bank Limited | 5.99% | 9.10% |
| HDFC Bank Limited | 5.53% | 10.44% |
| Axis Bank Limited | 4.68% | 3.39% |
| Bharti Airtel Limited | 3.28% | 5.13% |
| Reliance Industries Limited | 2.98% | 7.63% |
| Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd | 3.40% | 2.95% |
| Larsen & Toubro Limited | 2.68% | 4.23% |
| Bajaj Finance Ltd | 4.81% | 2.52% |
| State Bank of India | 1.88% | 3.81% |
| Tata Steel Limited | 2.80% | 1.47% |
| Hindalco Industries Limited | 4.22% | 1.31% |
| ITC Limited | 1.02% | 2.43% |
| UltraTech Cement Limited | 1.00% | 1.25% |
| Bharat Electronics Limited | 0.76% | 1.34% |
| Bajaj Finserv Limited | 0.72% | 0.97% |
| NTPC Limited | 0.70% | 1.47% |
| Jio Financial Services Limited | 1.59% | 0.68% |
| Asian Paints Limited | 0.61% | 1.04% |
| Titan Company Limited | 0.23% | 1.82% |
| InterGlobe Aviation Limited | 0.22% | 1.08% |
| HDFC Life Insurance Company Limited | 0.21% | 0.54% |
| Infosys Limited | 0.14% | 3.37% |
| JSW Steel Limited | 0.06% | 1.16% |
Overlap: for each holding both funds own, the smaller of its two weights, added up. 40.3% means 40.3% of each fund's money sits in positions the other also holds. Matched by ISIN. Cash and hedged positions are left out.
Largest holdings only in Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund
| Security | % of fund |
|---|---|
| Mahindra Manulife Utra Short to Short Term Fund Direct Plan -Growth | 14.76% |
| Mahindra Manulife Liquid Fund -Direct Plan -Growth | 10.48% |
| Tata Power Company Limited | 4.09% |
| IDFC First Bank Limited | 2.97% |
| Canara Bank | 2.70% |
Largest holdings only in Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund
| Security | % of fund |
|---|---|
| Mahindra & Mahindra Limited | 2.53% |
| Eternal Limited | 2.23% |
| Tata Consultancy Services Limited | 2.01% |
| Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Limited | 1.85% |
| Hindustan Unilever Limited | 1.60% |
Asset and sector split
Share of each fund, from its latest monthly portfolio
Asset allocation
| Asset | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index |
|---|---|---|
| Equity | 67.0% | 100.6% |
| Debt | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Cash and others | 33.0% | -0.6% |
Market cap of stocks
| Market cap | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index |
|---|---|---|
| Large Cap | 59.3% | 99.2% |
| Mid Cap | 6.2% | 1.4% |
| Small Cap | 1.5% | 0.0% |
Share of the whole fund. Groups follow AMFI's latest list: Large Cap is the 100 largest companies, Mid Cap the next 150, Small Cap the rest.
Largest sectors
| Sector | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index |
|---|---|---|
| Banks | 28.4% | 29.7% |
| Finance | 8.6% | 5.5% |
| Petroleum Products | 3.0% | 7.6% |
| IT - Software | 0.1% | 7.6% |
| Automobiles | 0.0% | 6.7% |
| Telecom - Services | 4.4% | 5.1% |
| Power | 4.8% | 2.6% |
| Non - Ferrous Metals | 4.2% | 1.3% |
The six largest sectors of each fund's stocks, % of the fund.
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index: Expense Ratio
What each plan charges a year, from AMFI's expense ratio file
| Charge | Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund | Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund |
|---|---|---|
| Total expense ratio (Direct) | 1.15% | 0.28% |
| Base expense ratio (Direct) | 0.30% | 0.10% |
| Total expense ratio (Regular) | 1.91% | Not available |
| Base expense ratio (Regular) | 0.95% | 0.00% |
The expense ratio comes out of the fund's assets every day, so every return on this page is already after it. Base expense ratio: the fund house's own fee. The total adds brokerage, transaction costs, and levies with GST.
More comparisons
Each fund against the others of its category
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund vs Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund: Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund is an Arbitrage fund, Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund is an Index fund, run by Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund and Zerodha Mutual Fund. Their portfolios overlap 40.3%. Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund charges 1.15% a year and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund 0.28%.
Which has given higher returns, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund or Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
Over 1 year: Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund +6.26%, Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund −10.25%. As on 30-10-2026. Past returns do not promise future returns.
Which has the lower expense ratio, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund or Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund charges less: 0.28% a year against 1.15%. These are the Direct plans' total expense ratios reported to AMFI.
How much do Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund overlap?
40.3%. They hold 23 of the same securities, the largest shared ones being ICICIBANK, HDFCBANK, AXISBANK. From each fund's latest monthly portfolio.
Which is riskier, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund or Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
On SEBI's riskometer, Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund is rated Low and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund Very High. Over 1 years, the standard deviation of daily returns was 1.45% and 13.60% a year.
Can I invest in both Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
Yes. 40.3% of each fund's money sits in the same holdings, so a large part of the two investments would move together.
Who manages Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund and Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund?
Mahindra Manulife Arbitrage Fund: Mitul Doshi, Navin Matta, Rahul Pal. Zerodha Nifty 50 Index Fund: Kedarnath Mirajkar.
Sources: NAV and expense ratio from AMFI. Holdings from each fund house's monthly portfolio statement. Fund facts from each scheme summary document.
This page is information, not investment advice. Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks; read all scheme related documents carefully. Past returns do not promise future returns. Figures come from AMFI, NSE, BSE and each fund house's own documents.