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Kotak Mahindra MF to focus on retail

Rukmini Priyadarshini

BANGALORE, Aug. 9

KOTAK Mahindra Mutual Fund is wooing the retail investor in pursuit of stable, long-term funds. Retail customers would form 60 per cent of its customers by the year-end, said Mr Sandesh Kirkire, Vice-President, Fixed Income Securities.

Speaking to Business Line, Mr Kirkire said Kotak Mahindra also expects to launch an index fund in the next three months. Right now, high networth individuals and corporates constituted 60 per cent of KM MF's customers, said Mr Prakash Dalal, Chief Market ing Officer.

Of its Rs 1,650-crore assets under management, Rs 1,500 crore are in the debt market and the company expects it to increase to about Rs 2,000 crore for the year.

KM MF is targeting those investors scared off by the UTI issue and hopes to get more new investors. ``Private mutual funds regularly publish performance parameters and outline portfolios,'' according to the company. It was aiming to rope in some of the b ig UTI agents and had also converted about 150 VRS optees into agents, said Mr Dalal.

KM MF is also looking to improve service levels and accessibility in an attempt to penetrate the retail market and has also tied up with banks for electronic clearing facility.

``The growth in retail base will happen by an increase in the total, but not at the expense of the corporate or high networth investors,'' Mr Dalal clarifies.

While the returns were very high last year in a rate-cut scenario, this year's may not be as high, Mr Kirkire said. But that still left healthy 10 per cent returns if there were no interest rate blips this year, he said.