Two more fund houses have joined the race to provide a global taste to investors. Unlike country or region specific funds, fund houses are now trying to provide a broader geographical diversification through funds which have the mandate to invest in different countries.
Mirae Asset Mutual Fund has filed an offer document with SEBI for its Mirae Asset Global Great Consumer Fund. The fund will invest in Mirae Asset Global Discovery Fund (underlying fund) which invests in in emerging and developed markets. Benchmarked against S&P Global Consumer Enterprises Index, the fund invests in sectors that can benefit from increasing consumption. “Region specific fund is akin to a sector fund whereas global funds are like diversified funds which have a wider investment mandate. Usually in a region specific fund the returns are generated through stock specific calls. Our Mirae Asset Global Great Consumer Fund will allocate assets through bottom up approach. A diversified global portfolio has a better place in investor’s portfolio as compared to a region specific fund,” said Swarup Mohanty, Head of Sales, Mirae Asset Mutual Fund.
Similarly, IIFL Mutual Fund plans to launch IIFL Global Equity Fund. Its underlying fund will be Wellington MP Global Opportunities Equity Portfolio which invests in companies operating in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and UK. The fund will be benchmarked against MSCI All Country World Index.
DSP BlackRock too is planning to bring one of its largest funds - BlackRock Global Asset Allocation Fund to India. This fund has exposure to US, emerging and developed Europe, Japan, Asia, Latin America, Canada, and Africa/Middle East.
“Certain markets might look attractive at this juncture but they may go out of favour two years down the line. We believe that an international fund offering, which has a built-in advice and is a go-anywhere and flexible investment solution will be an ideal product for Indian investors. Instead of investing in flavour of the season products, it is better to have allocation in a fund, which can straddle geographies and between fixed income and equity markets. We have already filed an offer document with SEBI to launch DSP BlackRock Global Allocation Fund, which will invest in BlackRock’s Global Allocation Fund. It is the largest fund in its category and has delivered returns in excess of global stocks and bonds with one-third less volatility than global equity markets, providing investors a long history of protecting on the downside and rewarding on the upside. This fund has recently completed 25 years,” said Pankaj Sharma, EVP & Head of Business Development and Risk Management, DSP BlackRock Investment Managers.
Religare Mutual Fund is also planning to launch Religare Invesco Global Equity Income Fund which has a mandate to invest in countries like US, UK, Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Hong Kong, among others.
“The interest for international funds has increased due to the significant returns generated by this category last year due to better market performance coupled with a weaker rupee. We are also seeing opportunities in international markets,” said Vishal Kapoor, Head, Wealth Management, Standard Chartered Bank.
Some AMCs are bullish on Europe economy. After JP Morgan, Deutsche and Religare Invesco, Franklin Templeton is planning to launch its Franklin European Growth Fund. The fund house has filed an offer document with SEBI. Launched in December 2000, the underlying fund invests in securities of issuers incorporated or having their principal business activities in European countries.
Religare Invesco Pan European Equity Fund which closed for subscription recently collected Rs. 111 crore while DWS Top Euroland Offshore Fund mopped up Rs. 65 crore. “The European economy is showing signs of a pickup and the valuations are also attractive. We are contemplating bringing some more of our flagship global funds to India,” said Suresh Soni, Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Mutual Fund.
