Navi MF to launch passive funds; use tech to cut costs
PremiumSachin Bansal-owned Navi Mutual Fund is all set to launch its first few mutual fund schemes in the next few months
Sachin Bansal-owned Navi Mutual Fund is all set to launch its first few mutual fund schemes in the next few months. Bansal had acquired Essel Mutual Fund from the Subhash Chandra-owned Essel Group in February and renamed it.
It is part of Bansal’s Navi Group, which offers digital personal loans, home loans and health insurance.
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Navi Mutual Fund had average assets of ₹698 crore in the last quarter of FY21, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India. This money is primarily the legacy assets of Essel Mutual Fund.
According to Saurabh Jain, managing director and CEO, Navi Mutual Fund, the new fund house will focus on reducing the cost of investments for investors with the help of technology.
“Investor-first approach and technology are the core strengths of Navi, and we will leverage this to the fullest to drive value for our investors," Jain said.
Navi is planning to launch a Nifty 50 Index fund in the coming months, subject to Sebi approvals.
“As we already have 10 active equity and debt schemes, the immediate focus is to add passive funds to the mix," Jain added.
According to Jain, the fund house will bring in people with a varied set of skills in the fintech space and not just those with asset management backgrounds.
The headquarters of Navi Mutual Fund will be moving to Bengaluru from its current base in Mumbai to be closer to the group headquarters. This will make it the first Bengaluru-headquartered asset management company (AMC), an indicator of the growing role of tech companies and clusters in traditional finance.
Incidentally, NJ Asset Management, in a recent interview with Mint, also indicated a strong focus on smart-beta funds. Passive investing (whether purely passive or a hybrid with active) is emerging as a focus area for AMCs.
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