Nippon India Mutual Fund (Formerly known as Reliance Small Cap Fund) and SBI Small Cap Fund both belong to the small-cap category of Mutual Funds. Small cap funds form the bottom of the pyramid when Equity Funds are classified on the basis of market capitalization. These schemes invest their corpus in shares of companies having a market capitalization of less than INR 500 crores. Small cap stocks are defined as stocks whose market capitalization is below top 250 companies in terms of full market capitalization.
Small cap companies are generally in the nascent stages and have good potential to grow. Though small-cap funds have a higher level of risk yet; they earn high returns. Also, these schemes help individuals to diversify their Portfolio. Though both Nippon India/Reliance Small Cap Fund and SBI Small Cap Fund belong to the same category, nevertheless; there still exists a difference between them. So, let us understand the differences between both the schemes based on numerous parameters.
Nippon India Mutual Fund (Reliance Small Cap Fund) was launched in the year 2010 with an aim to generate long-term capital appreciation by Investing predominantly in equity and related instruments of small cap companies. The fund also invests a portion of the portfolio in debt and money market securities in order to generate consistent returns. Nippon India Small Cap Fund is currently managed by Samir Rachh and Dhrumil Shah. Some of the top holdings of the scheme as on 30th June 2018 are Zydus Wellness Ltd, VIP Industries Ltd, Cyient Ltd, etc.
SBI Small Cap Fund (earlier known as SBI Small & Midcap Fund) was launched in the year 2013. The fund seeks to provide investors with a long-term capital growth along with the liquidity of an open-ended scheme by investing in a well-diversified basket of equity stocks of small cap companies. As an investment strategy, the SBI Small Cap Fund follows a blend of growth and value style of investing. The current fund manager of the scheme is R Srinivasan. Some of the top holdings of the scheme as on 31/05/2018 are CCIL-Clearing Corporation of India Ltd (CBLO), Westlife Development LTD, Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd, Hawkins Cookers Ltd, etc.
Though these schemes belong to the same category, yet these schemes differ on various parameters. So, let us understand the parameters which are divided into four sections, namely, Basics Section, Performance Report, Yearly Performance Report, and Other Details Section.
This section compares the various elements such as Current NAV, Scheme Category, and Fincash Rating. To begin with the scheme category, it can be said that both the schemes Nippon India Small Cap Fund and SBI Small Cap Fund belong to the same category Equity Mutual Fund. With respect to the next parameter, that is, Fincash Rating, it can be said that Nippon India Small Cap Fund is rated as 4-Star and SBI Small Cap Fund is rated as 5-Star. In case of Net Asset Value, Nippon India Small Cap Fund's NAV as on 16th July 2018 is INR 40.1166, whereas the NAV of SBI Small Cap Fund is INR 50.6851. The table given below summarizes the details of basics section.
Parameters Basics NAV Net Assets (Cr) Launch Date Rating Category Sub Cat. Category Rank Risk Expense Ratio Sharpe Ratio Information Ratio Alpha Ratio Benchmark Exit Load Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details ₹172.973 ↑ 4.06 (2.40 %) ₹72,673 on 30 Apr 26 16 Sep 10 ☆☆☆☆ Equity Small Cap 6 Moderately High 1.44 0.29 -0.16 0.91 Not Available 0-1 Years (1%),1 Years and above(NIL) SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details ₹170.508 ↑ 3.37 (2.01 %) ₹37,141 on 30 Apr 26 9 Sep 09 ☆☆☆☆☆ Equity Small Cap 4 Moderately High 1.58 0.08 0 0 Not Available 0-1 Years (1%),1 Years and above(NIL)
The performance section compares the Compounded Annual Growth Rate or CAGR returns between both the schemes at different time periods. With respect to performance, it can be said there is not much difference in the performance of both the schemes. However, in many instances, SBI Small Cap Fund leads the race. The performance of both the schemes at different time periods is shown below as follows.
Parameters Performance 1 Month 3 Month 6 Month 1 Year 3 Year 5 Year Since launch Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details 1.6% 10.8% 4.6% 2.7% 17.9% 19.5% 19.9% SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details 3% 10.2% 1.8% 0.3% 12.4% 13.4% 18.4%
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This section deals with the absolute returns generated by both the funds in each year. In this case, we can see that there is a difference in the performance of both the schemes. In certain situations, Nippon India Small Cap Fund has performed better than SBI Small Cap Fund. While in some situations, the other scheme has performed better. The yearly performance of both the funds is tabulated as follows.
Parameters Yearly Performance 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details -4.7% 26.1% 48.9% 6.5% 74.3% SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details -4.9% 24.1% 25.3% 8.1% 47.6%
This is the last section in the comparison of both the funds. In this section, the parameters such as AUM, Minimum SIP and Lumpsum Investment, and Exit Load are compared. To begin with the minimum SIP investment, both the schemes have different monthly SIP amounts. In case of Nippon India Small Cap Fund it is INR 100 while in case of SBI Small Cap Fund it is INR 500. But, in case of Minimum Lumpsum Investment, the amount is same for both the funds, i.e., INR 5,000. The AUM of both the schemes are also different. As on 31st May, 2018, the AUM of Nippon India Small Cap Fund was INR 6,944 crores, while of SBI Small Cap Fund it was INR 809 crores. The table given below summarizes the other details for both the schemes.
Parameters Other Details Min SIP Investment Min Investment Fund Manager Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details ₹100 ₹5,000 Samir Rachh - 9.42 Yr. SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details ₹500 ₹5,000 R. Srinivasan - 12.55 Yr.
Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 31 May 21 ₹10,000 31 May 22 ₹11,954 31 May 23 ₹15,166 31 May 24 ₹23,187 31 May 25 ₹24,609 31 May 26 ₹25,719 SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 31 May 21 ₹10,000 31 May 22 ₹11,320 31 May 23 ₹13,302 31 May 24 ₹18,277 31 May 25 ₹19,016 31 May 26 ₹18,959
Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 2.95% Equity 97.05% Equity Sector Allocation
Sector Value Industrials 24.39% Financial Services 15.49% Consumer Cyclical 14.32% Basic Materials 10.99% Consumer Defensive 9.84% Health Care 8.84% Technology 6.74% Utility 3.53% Communication Services 1.13% Real Estate 0.88% Energy 0.45% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity HDFC Bank Ltd (Financial Services)
Equity, Since 30 Apr 22 | HDFCBANK2% ₹1,370 Cr 17,754,929
↑ 2,454,929 Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (Financial Services)
Equity, Since 28 Feb 21 | MCX2% ₹1,278 Cr 4,300,000
↓ -1,050,645 Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 30 Sep 22 | 5001032% ₹1,216 Cr 34,507,422
↑ 2,000,000 TD Power Systems Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 31 Dec 15 | TDPOWERSYS2% ₹1,116 Cr 9,680,747
↓ -72,529 Apar Industries Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 31 Mar 17 | APARINDS1% ₹1,085 Cr 879,502 Karur Vysya Bank Ltd (Financial Services)
Equity, Since 28 Feb 17 | 5900031% ₹936 Cr 31,907,252 Zydus Wellness Ltd (Consumer Defensive)
Equity, Since 31 Aug 16 | ZYDUSWELL1% ₹878 Cr 17,273,570
↑ 129,481 State Bank of India (Financial Services)
Equity, Since 31 Oct 19 | SBIN1% ₹855 Cr 8,000,000 NLC India Ltd (Utilities)
Equity, Since 31 Oct 22 | NLCINDIA1% ₹855 Cr 26,990,331 Kirloskar Brothers Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 31 Oct 12 | KIRLOSBROS1% ₹783 Cr 4,525,148 SBI Small Cap Fund
Growth
Fund Details Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 9.58% Equity 90.25% Debt 0.17% Equity Sector Allocation
Sector Value Consumer Cyclical 25.24% Industrials 22.04% Basic Materials 13.49% Financial Services 13.35% Technology 5.75% Consumer Defensive 3.54% Health Care 2.21% Real Estate 0.94% Communication Services 0.43% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity Ather Energy Ltd (Consumer Cyclical)
Equity, Since 30 Apr 25 | ATHERENERG5% ₹1,879 Cr 20,096,960 Nifty Index 26-05-2026
Derivatives, Since 30 Apr 26 | -3% ₹1,205 Cr 500,175
↑ 500,175 Navin Fluorine International Ltd (Basic Materials)
Equity, Since 31 Mar 20 | NAVINFLUOR3% ₹1,073 Cr 1,573,579
↑ 73,579 City Union Bank Ltd (Financial Services)
Equity, Since 30 Jun 20 | CUB3% ₹1,062 Cr 39,314,614 ZF Commercial Vehicle Control Systems India Ltd (Consumer Cyclical)
Equity, Since 31 Mar 21 | ZFCVINDIA3% ₹1,029 Cr 700,000 Kalpataru Projects International Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 31 May 20 | KPIL3% ₹988 Cr 7,900,000 Belrise Industries Ltd (Consumer Cyclical)
Equity, Since 31 Dec 25 | BELRISE2% ₹926 Cr 43,542,092 Honeywell Automation India Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 31 Dec 25 | HONAUT2% ₹925 Cr 298,145 Sundaram Fasteners Ltd (Consumer Cyclical)
Equity, Since 28 Feb 25 | SUNDRMFAST2% ₹846 Cr 10,000,000 Kajaria Ceramics Ltd (Industrials)
Equity, Since 30 Apr 25 | 5002332% ₹831 Cr 7,000,000
Therefore, from the above pointers, it can be said that both the schemes exhibit different attributes with respect to different parameters. However, when it comes to investing, it is always advisable that people should go through the scheme’s modalities completely before doing the actual investment. Additionally, they should also check whether the scheme’s approach is in-line with your investment objective. To get further clarification, you can even consult a financial advisor. This will help you ensure that your investment is safe as well as it paves way for wealth creation.