Jio BlackRock appoints George Heber Joseph as 1st chief investment officer

Company insider George Heber Joseph will be the first chief investment officer (CIO) of the newly- incorporated joint venture firm Jio BlackRock Asset Management Company (AMC).

 

Joseph has been associated with Jio Financial Services since March 2023 as Head of Special Projects, according to his LinkedIn profile. The announcement was made by him in a social media post.

 

Joseph is former CEO and CIO of ITI MF. Prior to his three-year stint at ITI MF, which ended in August 2022, he was a fund manager with ICICI Prudential MF for more than a decade.

 

Joseph’s appointment is among the first in the key positions of the AMC. The company is yet to announce a chief executive officer (CEO).

 

Jio BlackRock AMC is expected to launch mutual fund (MF) business soon. The 50:50 joint venture between Jio Financial Services and US leading asset manager BlackRock received the in-principle approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to start MF business in October 2024, almost a year after it filed its application.

 

The final approval generally takes another six months to a year, subject to the applicant fulfilling the requirements, which also includes appointment of an experienced CIO. There are now 46 players in the ~68-trillion MF industry.

 

The AMC is likely to offer products across active and passive space.

 

Jio Financial recently announced that it has invested ~82.9 crore for a 50 per cent stake in Jio BlackRock AMC and Jio BlackRock Trustee. The two entities were incorporated on October 28, 2024 to carry on the primary business of mutual funds.