Reliance Capital Asset Management has signed an agreement with its South Korean counterpart Samsung Asset Management that allows both companies to explore business opportunities and launch funds in each other’s turf.

In a filing made with stock exchanges, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Capital said the memorandum of understanding had been signed between Sundeep Sikka, CEO, Reliance Capital AMC, and Sung Hoon Koo, CEO, Samsung AMC in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday. The filing said: “As part of the MoU, both Samsung AMC and Reliance Capital AMC will use their expertise to explore areas for developing, managing, marketing and distributing each other’s investment products in India and Korea.”

‘Tremendous potential’ Samsung’s asset management arm, a subsidiary of its life insurance business, is among Korea’s leading AMCs.

It manages assets of $125.7 billion and controls about half the Korean market in equities and exchange-traded funds. “The Indian asset management market has grown by around 12 per cent a year since 2008 to $190 billion and offers tremendous potential to overseas investors.

Samsung’s leadership experience in Korea, with over 51 per cent market share in ETFs, and our complementary expertise in investment strategies will help us expand the market for Indian funds globally,” Sikka said in the official statement.

RCap-Nissay pact Last year, Reliance Capital signed a similar agreement with Japanese financial services firm Nissay Asset Management (part of Nippon Life Insurance). Reliance launched the India Equity Selection Fund and the Short-Term Indian Bond Fund for Japanese investors to invest in the Indian capital markets. Both these funds are managed by Nissay, while Reliance Capital is the investment advisor.

Indian investors can access Japanese equity through the Japanese Equity fund offered by Reliance.

As of March 2015, Reliance Capital has ₹1.37 lakh crore of assets under management.

It manages and advises offshore assets of over $1.5 billion, bringing total assets under its control to ₹2.44 lakh as of March, across mutual funds, government-sponsored public funds, managed accounts, alternative investment funds and offshore funds.

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