NISM Series XIX E : Category III Alternative Investment Fund Managers Certification Examination

NISM Series XIX-E Mock Test

(Free Demo & Premium)

AIF Managers 19E
Free Demo Buy Premium

It's Series 19E. 'XIX' is Roman Numeral for 19.

Official name is NISM Series XIX-E: Category III Alternative Investment Fund Managers Certification Examination. Also known as NISM 19E, NISM XIX-E, AIF Manager (Cat 3) exam, etc.

This exam creates a common minimum knowledge benchmark for Category III AIF Managers and their investment teams. It focuses on features of AIF products, valuation norms, governance, performance measurement, taxation, and regulations specific to Category III AIFs.

An AIF Manager is a person or entity responsible for managing AIFs (funds investing in assets outside traditional stocks/bonds like PE, VC, Real Estate, etc.).

  • Fund Managers and Investment Professionals of Cat III AIFs.
  • Investment Advisors advising on Cat III AIFs.
  • Compliance Officers and Legal Advisors.
  • Senior Management of AIF/PMS firms.
  • Aspiring AIF Managers.

Assessment Structure

Total Marks 100
Total Questions Multiple Choice [60 x 1 = 60]
Case-based [4 cases x 5 marks = 40]
Total Duration 2 Hours
Passing Score 60%
Negative Marking 25% (0.25 mark)

Syllabus & Weightage

Chapter No. Chapter Name Weightage
1, 2, 3 Inv. Landscape, Types, Modern Portfolio Theory 3%
4 AIFs in India & its Suitability 3%
5 AIF Ecosystem 5%
6 AIF Structuring 10%
7 Fee Structure and Fund Performance 10%
8 Indices and Benchmarking 4%
9 Legal Documentations and Negotiations 8%
10 Investment Strategies 12%
11 Governance of Funds and Due Diligence 7%
12 Valuation 10%
13 Fund Monitoring, Reporting and Exit 10%
14 Taxation 8%
15 Regulatory Framework 10%

Detailed Syllabus

Section A: Basics of Investments

Chapter 1: Investments Landscape
  • *Define Investment vs Speculation
  • *Risk Types: Business, Financial, Liquidity, Market, Reg Risk
  • *Risk vs Return relationship
  • *Indian Securities Markets Overview
Chapter 3: Modern Portfolio Theory
  • *MPT Framework, Assumptions, Efficiency Frontier
  • *Capital Market Theory, CAPM, Beta
Chapter 2: Types of Investments
  • *Traditional vs Alternate Investments
  • *Types: VC, PE, Hedge Funds, Real Estate, Distressed
  • *Channels: Direct / MF / PMS / AIF

Section B: Understanding the AIF Ecosystem

Chapter 4: AIF in India & Suitability
  • *Categories I, II, III; Suitability
  • *Portfolio Diversification, Alpha/Beta Management
Chapter 5: AIF Ecosystem
  • *Players: Investors, Sponsors, Trustees, Managers
  • *Providers: Admins, Custodians, Valuers
  • *Concepts: Drawdown, Waterfall, Hurdle Rate, Carry
Chapter 6: AIF Structuring
  • *Pooling, Jurisdiction, Trust/LLP/Company
  • *Unified, Master-Feeder Structures
Chapter 7: Fee & Performance
  • *Management/Incentive Fees, High Watermark
  • *Risk: Standard Deviation, Drawdown, VaR
  • *Returns: IRR, TVPI, DPI, KS-PME, MOIC, Sharpe
Chapter 8: Indices & Benchmarking
  • *Index Types, Methodologies
  • *Stock/Bond Indices, Benchmarking for AIFs
Chapter 9: Legal Documents
  • *PPM, Trust Indenture, Subscription Agreement
  • *Support Service Agreements

Section C: Managing AIF Investments - Cat III

Chapter 10: Investment Strategies
  • *Long-only, Long/Short, Market Neutral
  • *Global Macro, Arbitrage, Event Driven
  • *Using Derivatives for Hedging/Leverage
Chapter 12: Valuation
  • *Approaches, NAV, Third Party Valuers
Chapter 11: Governance & DD
  • *Investee Company DD, Manager Selection DD
  • *Fund Governance, Investor Rights, Conflicts of Interest
Chapter 13: Monitoring & Exit
  • *Periodic Reporting, Exit Options, Winding up

Section D: Taxation & Regulatory

Chapter 14: Taxation
  • *Tax Pass-through, Trust/LLP Taxation
  • *Categories I/II vs III Tax treatment
Chapter 15: Regulatory Framework
  • *SEBI (AIF) Regulations 2012 key provisions