Japan's Nissay to launch new India-focused funds

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Japan's Nissay Asset Management, part of Nippon Life Insurance, is launching two India-focused funds that will invest in equity and debt markets, the fund manager said in a statement on Monday.

Reliance Capital will provide advisory services for the two funds, which will raise money from Japanese retail investors and from within Nippon Life Insurance's general account.

The announcement comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in the middle of a visit to Japan to strengthen security and business ties among the two countries.

Japanese institutional investments into India have surged by $1 billion to $4.93 billion in the year to August, according to Thomson Reuters Lipper data, just as Indian shares have scored a string of record highs on the back of optimism that Modi will help revive economic growth.

Nippon Life Insurance owns a 26 percent stake in Reliance Capital's fund management business and life insurance businesses in India.

The two companies also reiterated their plans to launch a bank in India should they gain approval from the central bank.

Reliance Capital had applied for a banking license last year and said it would sell about 4-5 percent stake in the new business to Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and Nippon Life Insurance.

(Reporting by Himank Sharma and Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)