iShares India 50 ETF

iShares India 50 ETF (INDY) is a BlackRock index fund that tracks the Nifty 50 Index, which covers about 50 of the largest Indian companies by free-float market value. Its 0.65% expense ratio is close to the 0.67% average for similar India funds but well above Franklin FTSE India ETF's 0.19%. It leans heavily on banks: HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank lead a top 10 that held about 53% of assets as of June 30, 2026.

• Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, INDY returned -16.3%, 6th of 7 among similar funds.
• Its 5-year annualized return was -1.0% and its 10-year +5.7%.
• In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 41.7% and regained its old high 7.6 months after the low.
• Its worst full calendar year was 2011 (-36.7%); its best was 2017 (+36.1%).
• The deepest fall in its price history was 44.7% (Nov 5, 2010 to Aug 28, 2013), recovered by Jan 20, 2015.

As of Jun 30, 2026, the fund held 51 securities; the ten largest made up 53.41% of assets. It also reported 3.57% in a money-market fund, most likely cash collateral from lending out shares rather than uninvested money.

• Over the three months to Jun 30, 2026, investors withdrew a net $25.4M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
• Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +5.17%, -2.23%, +2.14%.

INDY tracks the Nifty 50 Index from NSE Indices Ltd., which is independent of BlackRock. The index holds the 50 largest companies trading in Indian markets, ranked by free-float market capitalization. Free float counts only shares that public investors can trade, so stakes held by founders or governments count for less. The index provider decides which companies are in the index and how much each one weighs. As of March 31, 2026, consumer goods and services companies and financial companies made up a large share of the index. The fund concentrates in an industry to the same degree the index does.

BlackRock uses representative sampling. That means it buys a group of securities chosen to match the index's overall profile, rather than promising to hold every stock. It must keep at least 80% of net assets in index components, and it may use derivatives. As of June 30, 2026, the fund held 51 stocks and one Nifty 50 futures contract with a near-zero weight. About 3.6% was in cash, much of it likely collateral from lending out shares.

Two mechanics matter. First, the fund usually creates and redeems shares for cash rather than by handing over stocks. So it may have to sell holdings to pay investors who leave, and those sales can create capital gains that are paid out to all shareholders. Second, the fund is valued in US dollars, so a weaker rupee can cut returns even when Indian stocks rise.

• INDY charges 0.65% a year, versus an average of 0.67% for the similar funds below (3rd of 7, cheapest first).
• Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $66 in the first year and $810 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).

It is a single-country emerging-market stock fund concentrated in large Indian banks, and it has fallen more than 40% twice.

INDY may add exposure to India's largest companies, but its swings have been steep. It launched in 2009, after the 2008 crisis. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 41.7% and got back to its peak 7.6 months after the low. In 2022 it dropped 20% and took 17.9 months after the low to recover. Its worst calendar year was 2011, when it fell 36.7%. Its deepest drop, 44.7% from November 2010 to August 2013, was not fully recovered until January 2015. Anyone who had to sell during stretches like these would have locked in large losses.

The fund pays distributions twice a year. Its trailing 12-month yield was 9.89% as of October 27, 2026, a figure that may include one-time payouts and is a poor guide to future income. In the SEC's standard example, costs on $10,000 come to $66 in the first year. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.

Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.