Edelweiss to start NBFC

Mumbai-based financial services company Edelweiss today announced foray into asset management and non-banking financial company (NBFC) businesses by investing a total of Rs 400 crore in the new ventures.

The company plans to offer a whole range of products to investors, said Rashesh Shah, CEO & managing director of Edelweiss.

Edelweiss would invest Rs 300 crore for the NBFC business and another Rs 100 crore for the asset management business and this follows the realisation that there was fast segmentation of the capital markets businesses, he said.

The NBFC would be looking at mortgage business and other credit instruments. The company feels there was a big market for mutual funds in India, Shah said, adding that Edelweiss had received in-principal approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for the Asset Management Company.

Edelweiss also announced the appointment of senior executives for its new business of NBFC and AMC businesses. R Balakrishnan, who will head the NBFC business, has been appointed executive vice-president of Edelweiss.

Balakrishnan, who earlier worked as Senior VP & Head of Equity Research at DSP-Merrill Lynch, was an independent consultant and part of senior management team at credit rating agency Crisil, prior to joining Edelweiss.

For its AMC business, Edelweiss appointed Jimmy Patel as the CEO. Patel's earlier stints include CEO & COO of JM Financial Mutual Fund and with the Principal Group, where he was in-charge of their pension initiative in India.

Edelweiss also took on board Peeyoosh Chadda as co-head of the AMC business.