Kotak Bank plans to offer estate services

With an aim to leverage emerging asset classes and to offer customers a varied product base, Kotak Mahindra Bank is launching investment services in alternative investments such as commodities and real estate.

C Jayaram, executive director, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said, "While we have fairly large expertise in various spheres, the challenge now is to integrate all these businesses and become the country's largest wealth management firm."

"There are lot of synergies among our various businesses. Keeping these in mind, we are working out our strategies to enter new areas."

On the entree into commodities and real estate investment services, he said the two were the emerging asset classes and had tremendous potential.

"We have already launched a firm, Kotak Commodity Services, to deal in commodities and have signed up with a commodities exchange," Jayaram said.

"As far as real estate investments are concerned, we are planning to launch mutual funds that invest in realty sector, to begin with."

Jayaram said, "We will be strengthening our New York office, as the US is perhaps the biggest market for both foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and high networth individuals (HNIs) seeking to invest in India." Kotak Mahindra Bank has three overseas offices in New York, London and Dubai.

"The interest now being generated by India as a preferable investment destination is tremendous. With a wider product base and expertise, we have an edge to offer services to the FIIs and HNIs," Jayaram said.