| name | research-guide |
| description | Use when researching any Indian financial topic that requires fetching live, authoritative data — fund expense ratios, NAV history, returns, SEBI regulations, tax rules, broker comparisons, insurance products, market instruments (EGR, SGBs, NPS, etc.). Defines which sources to trust, how to cross-verify numbers, and citation standards. Always read sources_india.md before fetching data. |
Research Guide — Indian Finance
Source Reference
All authoritative sources, API endpoints, and trusted domains are in sources_india.md.
Read that file first before fetching any data.
Core Principles (Non-negotiable)
Always recommend Direct plans over Regular plans.
Same fund, same portfolio, same manager — only difference is cost. Regular plans pay ~1% annual commission to distributors from your returns. Over 20 years on ₹10L at 12% CAGR: Direct → ₹89L, Regular → ₹76L.
Always recommend Growth over IDCW.
IDCW is not free income — it is your own money returned to you. NAV drops by the payout amount. Each distribution is taxed at slab rate. Use Growth + SWP if the user needs regular income.
Research Workflow
- Check sources_india.md — find the right source for the data type needed
- Use MCP tools first (
mf_search, mf_analyze) for fund data
- Use APIs directly when MCP tools are insufficient:
GET https://mfdata.in/api/v1/schemes/{amfi_code} — expense ratio, AUM, categoryGET https://api.mfapi.in/mf/{amfi_code}/latest — current NAV
- Use web_search with allowed_domains from sources_india.md for research
- Cross-verify — get data from at least 2 sources before stating a number
Never estimate or approximate. No "~0.80% (est.)" when APIs exist. Fetch the exact number.
Citation Rule
Embed references inline where the fact appears. Link to the exact document (circular number, section, date) — not the homepage.
Bad: "SEBI capped TER at 0.5%." (Source: sebi.gov.in)
Good: "SEBI capped TER for passive funds at 0.5%" (SEBI Circular SEBI/HO/IMD/IMD-I/DOF5/P/CIR/2024/95, Section 3.2)
