Five Questions to Ask Before You Trust Any Mutual Fund Distributor

Choosing who guides your money matters as much as choosing what to invest in. Here are five questions worth asking anyone — including me — before you hand over that trust.

1. Are they actually AMFI-registered?

Every legitimate mutual fund distributor in India carries an AMFI Registration Number (ARN) and, for individual representatives, an Employee Unique Identification Number (EUIN). Ask for both, and don't be shy about it — a distributor with nothing to hide will give you these numbers without hesitation. Mine are ARN-144642 and EUIN-E127993, both displayed openly on my website for exactly this reason.

2. Do they explain risk as clearly as opportunity?

If every conversation is about upside and none about what could go wrong, that's worth noticing. Mutual funds carry market risk — no legitimate distributor can promise or guarantee returns, and anyone who does is telling you something that isn't true.

3. Do they ask about your goals before recommending anything?

A distributor who leads with a product before understanding what you're actually trying to achieve — a home, retirement, a child's education — is selling, not advising. The order of the conversation tells you a lot.

4. Can they explain what you're invested in, in plain language?

If an explanation only makes sense with jargon, ask them to try again without it. Anyone who genuinely understands what they're recommending should be able to explain it to you in the same words they'd use with a family member.

5. Are they available for an actual conversation, not just a transaction?

Investing is not a one-time event — it needs revisiting as your income, goals, and life change. Whether a distributor is reachable for that ongoing conversation, or disappears after the paperwork is done, tells you what kind of relationship you're actually signing up for.