Rajaraman Kumbeswaran who has lived overseas for 16 years took the decision to become an IFA after the entry load was banned by SEBI as he was confident that he could be able to charges his clients for his services
Rajaraman Kumbeswaran, an engineer by profession has worked in Singapore and USA for MNCs like Texas Instruments for many years. He decided to change his profession after returning to India in 2006. His dad was from a banking profession and wanted his son to follow his footsteps but fate had some other plans.
So, when he returned to India he wanted to initiate his own business in finance. After a lot of research, he decided to be an IFA in 2009 and launched RRK Financial services. He was aware of the ban of entry load but was confident of being paid for his service.
“Before initiating my business, one of my well-wishers suggested me to pursue an appropriate qualification for this profession so that when clients question me about my credentials I can back it up with my degree. Moreover, such qualification will help me to gain more knowledge about investments. So, I decided to do CFA,” says Rajaraman.
After completing his CFA, he was ready to offer his services and started advising his close friend. His friend was satisfied with his services and referred him to others. This kick-started Rajaraman’s career and he started building his clientele. But now the only issue was asking for payment. Being a salaried employee for 16 years, he was a little hesitant to ask for a cheque. But as he provided complete asset allocation service to his clients, they were willing to pay him.
“I was not sure about deciding the price for my service and moreover, I was hesitant to ask for a fee. Somehow I asked my clients for fee and they were more than willing to pay,” reveals Rajaraman.
He has a mix of HNIs, NRI clients, numbering 150 in all. He keeps updating himself with knowledge about various markets because he serves a number of NRIs.
When questioned about a memorable incident, he promptly narrates an interesting incident. “I did not have much knowledge on European Market and while offering my services I came across a NRI client who lives in Germany. To offer proper asset allocation to him, I studied the financial instruments and mutual funds available in Germany and combined it with Indian products. This unique combination was appreciated by the client,” says Rajaraman.
The entrepreneur believes that each client is unique and it is important to study and understand their circumstances fully before providing advisory services. He usually provides a new client with a spread sheet where he is supposed to fill-in details about his financial goals, early investments and risk appetite. After carefully going through the information, he puts forward his suggestion and recommendation to the client. It is not compulsory for clients to invest through him; he mainly suggests asset allocation for them.
According to Rajaraman, expansion means providing quality service to his existing clients and not adding clients. “I don’t want hundreds of clients who receive mediocre service. I only want few clients who are genuinely happy with my service,” claims Rajaraman.
He believes that there is tremendous scope in this sector if advisors offer quality service. He started his career in this profession when most of them were exiting from it. He suggests upcoming IFAs to be honest and open to clients. “While providing solutions to clients, put yourself in his shoes. Don’t let the commission and other payouts influencing your solution. Some time if you don’t have a product that will work for the client, tell him about that and guide him to get the right product. Once the client realizes, that you are serving him with his best interest in mind, there is no way for anyone to take this client from you,” says Rajaraman.