Birla Sun Life MF begins process of merging ING MF schemes

Taking forward its deal to acquire the assets of ING Investment Management India, Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund has begun the process of merging all the schemes of the target entity with its own portfolios.

Birla Sun Life MF, part of Aditya Birla Financial Services Group firm, will merge all the 26 schemes offered by ING MF with its own funds, according to a public notice.

Besides, Birla Sun Life MF has given an exit option to the unit holders of ING MF.

"The option to exit the schemes without any exit load can be exercised from September 8 and is valid up to October 9...The option to exit is available to all unit holders except for unit holders who have pledged their units," as per the notice.

The Board of ING Investment Management India, ING Trustee, Birla AMC and Birla Trustee have approved the merger and the market regulator Sebi has also given its nod to the proposed deal.

In May this year, Birla Sun Life MF had announced that it would acquire the assets of ING Investment Management India for an undisclosed sum. This would mark yet another exit by a foreign fund house from the domestic market.

Earlier, US-based Fidelity and Morgan Stanley had exited the domestic market after selling assets to L&T MF and HDFC MF respectively.

As per data available with Amfi, ING Investment Management had average assets under management of Rs 563.82 crore by the end of last financial year, while Birla Sunlife MF has an asset size of Rs 101,000 crore as on July 31, 2014.