The Hindu Business Line : SBI Funds plans global product

Kolkata May 14 In what will be another instance of an Indian fund house leveraging the strengths of its overseas partner, SBI Funds Management aims to work out a product for international investors that will be distributed abroad by Societe Generale (SG).

SG, which holds 37 per cent in the Indian asset management company, will be responsible for marketing the fund, which will be managed in India.

Mr Sanjay Sinha, Head of Equity, SBI MF, indicated the product will be devised keeping in mind the capabilities of SG, which is a large player in major markets.

"It is on the drawing board. However, at the moment we are testing some of the inputs we have sourced from SG for internal use," he said, referring to the SBI-SG partnership that has been in place for the last three years or so.

SG's asset management business - which has about 370 billion euros under management - operates in several important regions.

Created in 1996, when SG spun off the business into a separate outfit, it is now the fourth-largest bank-owned asset manager in Europe.

Mr Sinha, who will take over as Chief Investment Officer next month, said that the proposed fund, if and when it is launched, will not be the first of its kind. There have been a few stray examples - among the most recent ones is a similar structure rolled out by UTI MF in association with Shinsei of Japan.

SBI MF is of the view that a fund like this will have sufficient potential, considering the demand for Indian equities among international investors.