Shriram AMC wants to take the top spot in 5-7 years

Banking on its strong credentials in the financial sector, Shriram Asset Management Company (AMC) is working on a plan to become the leader of the pack in the mutual fund space in the next 5-7 years.
"We believe we have all the right ingredients to become a large player. In fact, we are looking at attaining a leadership position in mutual fund business in the next 5-7 years," Shriram AMC Head, Sales & Marketing, D Ramanathan told PTI during an interaction.
Ramanathan thinks that the insignificant share of mutual funds in household savings -- at about nearly 2-2.5 per cent -- offers a "humongous opportunity" to the company.

"At Shriram investment base, we have investors of fixed deposits, life insurance and NCDs... It also gives us an opportunity to potentially to reach across to these investors. What is important is the ability to create a meaningful differentiation in terms of products, performance and customer experience," he said.
The company, he maintained, is open to inorganic growth for expansion.
"We are also open to inorganic growth. So, if we see something coming out which we believe is a strategic thing to our kind of things, yes... We are open to that," he added.

The fund house is looking to offer two more products by the end of this fiscal.

"We are working on two product offerings. One will be pure equity, the other one will be a hybrid one. This should happen in the next 4-5 months," Ramanathan said.
The company offers only one product in the AMC space -- the Shriram Equity & Debt Opportunities Fund, a large cap equity-oriented asset allocation fund that offers flexibility to choose 65-85 per cent in the equity category.
"So, when the markets are in a very choppy mode, nothing stops us from reducing our equity participation to 65 per cent," he added.
The company lends to customers who are not bankable and intends to reach out to beyond (top) 15 cities (B-15) to push growth.

"Our strategy in Shriram Transport is very different from others. We have been lending to customers who are not bankable. We went to the lower end of the pyramid. So, we created a niche for ourselves. We are reaching out to B-15 locations where we are growing," Ramanathan said.