The numbers for the NISM Series V-D Mutual Fund – Specialized Investment Fund Distributors examination, as published in NISM's assessment structure. One of them is unusual.
Passing marks and pattern
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total marks | 150 |
| Passing marks | 90 (60%) |
| Number of questions | 150 |
| Marks per question | 1 |
| Negative marking | 10% of the marks assigned to a question |
| Duration | 3 hours |
Negative marking of 10% — and what it does to guessing
Most NISM exams either have no negative marking (V-A, V-B, XII) or deduct 25% (VIII, XV). V-D deducts 10%: a wrong answer costs 0.1 mark.
Run the arithmetic on a four-option question you know nothing about: a quarter chance of +1, three-quarters chance of −0.1. Expected value +0.175. Eliminate one option and it rises to +0.267. So unlike VIII, where a blind guess is worth only +0.0625 and a cautious candidate can reasonably leave blanks, on V-D you should answer every question — the penalty is too small to matter and the paper is too long to leave marks on the table.
Three hours, 150 questions
72 seconds a question. Most V-D questions are single-fact items that take twenty seconds; the numerical ones — futures pricing, hedge ratios, NAV arithmetic, option payoffs — take two or three minutes. Move fast through the facts and bank the time.
Exam fee and registration
The fee is per attempt with payment gateway charges extra; check the current amount on the NISM portal when you register.
- Create an account on the NISM certification portal.
- Complete your profile, including PAN.
- Select NISM-Series-V-D: Mutual Fund – Specialized Investment Fund Distributors Certification Examination.
- Pick a test centre and slot; the workstation has Excel or Calc for numericals.
- Pay and download your admit card.
Certificate validity
3 years from the date of the examination.
Who takes it
Anyone who will distribute Specialized Investment Funds — SEBI's new category between mutual funds and PMS, whose strategies may take limited short positions through derivatives. The syllabus is the whole Mutual Fund Distributors curriculum plus equity and interest rate derivatives, which is why the paper is 150 questions long.
Practise free on ScoreSetu: 850+ NISM V-D questions across all 22 chapters, plus 150-question timed mocks built to the official weightages.
Quick recap
- Pass: 90 of 150 (60%).
- Pattern: 150 questions, 1 mark each, 3 hours.
- Negative marking: 10% — answer everything.
- Validity: 3 years.