新规落地，公募基金业绩比较基准迎来全面规范

Core Viewpoint - The new guidelines and rules for public fund performance benchmarks aim to address long-standing issues in the industry, such as "ambiguous benchmarks," "style drift," and "fund blind boxes," by enhancing the anchoring role of performance benchmarks and improving investor experience [2][3]. Group 1: Regulatory Framework - The new regulations establish a comprehensive regulatory framework covering the entire lifecycle of performance benchmarks, including selection, internal control, external constraints, and self-regulation [2]. - The guidelines and rules will officially take effect on March 1, 2026, with a transition period of 6 months to 1 year for certain provisions to ensure a smooth industry transition [2]. Group 2: Benchmark Selection Standards - The guidelines impose strict requirements on the selection of performance benchmarks, ensuring they reflect the investment style of fund products and align with the fund contract's investment objectives, scope, strategies, and restrictions [3]. - The rules further detail the criteria for index selection, emphasizing representativeness, reasonable compilation schemes, continuous operation, and good liquidity of constituent securities [4]. Group 3: Internal Control and Supervision - The new regulations extend the focus on performance benchmarks to the internal control systems of fund managers, requiring them to establish comprehensive management systems covering benchmark selection, disclosure, monitoring, evaluation, and accountability [5]. - Fund custodians' supervisory roles are strengthened, with requirements to establish mechanisms for evaluating benchmark-related contract terms, investment supervision, and information disclosure review [5]. Group 4: Information Disclosure and Evaluation - The new rules enhance information disclosure requirements, mandating that fund reports include comparative data on returns and volatility against benchmarks over multiple time periods [6]. - The guidelines specify that fund managers and sales institutions must present past performance alongside benchmark performance in a standardized manner, ensuring clarity for investors [6]. Group 5: Industry Development - The introduction of these new regulations signifies a shift towards high-quality development in the public fund industry, moving beyond traditional scale competition to a more comprehensive focus on governance, research capabilities, and compliance risk management [7].