Amundi and State Bank of India Funds Management launch India Equity Contra fund​

Amundi, the largest European asset manager, and State Bank of India Funds Management (SBI FM), the leading and largest mutual fund player in India, announce the launch of a new sub-fund of Amundi Funds (the "SICAV") Amundi Funds – India Equity Contra fund.

This new fund by Amundi and SBI FM reflects their long-term commitment to the Indian market and will combine the strength of Amundi’s disciplined top-down approach with SBI FM’s extensive bottom-up analysis of the Indian equity market.

With this Fund, Amundi and SBI FM offer a unique, contrarian Indian equity strategy targeting Indian value stocks, with a focus on companies trading below their intrinsic value. The unbiased equity strategy offers the portfolio management team the flexibility to invest in overlooked opportunities, including stocks that are neither part of the main indices nor covered by sell-side research. This high conviction Indian equity fund complements the existing Amundi Funds SBI FM India Equity strategy, providing investors with access to a unique, value-driven Indian equity strategy to gain exposure to the rapidly growing Indian equity market.

SBI FM have been managing the same strategy since 1999, and the assets under management of which exceed $4.5 billion. However, it has historically only been available to local investors in the Indian market. The new fund launch provides international investors with access to this compelling investment strategy.

The fund has secured seed capital commitments from two prominent institutional investors, the Bahrain-based Yusuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo family, and the Corporate pension fund of a major Japanese financial group, underscoring strong market confidence in the firm’s investment strategy and expertise. Amundi also provided seed capital, demonstrating commitment and alignment with our investors. With the backing of these anchor investors, the fund is well-positioned to capitalise on emerging opportunities and generate attractive returns for its investors.

Ziad Sikias, CEO Middle East, Africa and Central Europe from Amundi said, "The joint venture between Amundi and State Bank of India, SBI FM, manage over $300 billion in assets under management. We are delighted to be working with SBI FM to provide investment opportunities to both retail and professional investors in India and internationally. State Bank of India is the largest commercial bank in the country, serving over 500 million clients through a vast network of over 22,500 branches, with a focus on innovation and customer centricity.

Amundi Funds – India Equity Contra fund will be managed jointly by Thomas Yeung, senior portfolio manager at Amundi, Gwendolen Tsui, senior portfolio manager at Amundi, and advised by Dinesh Balachandran, head of equity at SBI FM. The portfolio management team is built on the combined resources of Amundi’s successful Emerging Markets platform and SBI FM’s dedicated Indian investment team, one of the largest in the country.

Re-disseminated by  Wealth and Society