Mark Mobius was an icon, a brand in his own capacity, says Raamdeo Agrawal

Veteran investor Mark Mobius, who put emerging markets on the global map, has passed away-here's how Raamdeo Agrawal remembers him and the key lessons for investors.

Mark Mobius, the veteran emerging market guru passed away on Wednesday. Raamdeo Agrawal, chairman & co-founder at Motilal Oswal Financial Services had met the legendary investor at a forum a few years ago. He shares his experience of meeting and listening to the late market guru at the forum and over the years with Puneet Wadhwa over a telephonic chat. Edited excerpts:

 

How do you remember Mark Mobius and what is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear about him?

Mark Mobius was a very iconic investor, especially with his Yul Brynner hairstyle. I met him at a forum a few years ago. He was a brand in in his own in his own capacity. But more importantly, he was the ‘emerging market’ guru who put emerging markets on investor’s radar. Mark Mobius was way ahead of time. He could see the rise of India, Brazil, etc. much ahead of other investors. I don't remember any other person who dedicated his life only to the emerging markets.

 

 

What about his investing style? Did you incorporate any of his investing habits into your stock picking?

He was more of a mutual fund investor. That said, firstly, he believed in meeting companies personally—visiting plants, understanding operations firsthand. That's something I also strongly believe in.

 

Second, he had a very independent mindset. He would invest based on his own conviction—buying during crises, investing in unpopular or ignored stocks. He wasn’t driven by market sentiment but by his own assessment of value. That independence of thought was probably his biggest strength.

 

Do you see any similarities or differences between investors such as late Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Mark Mobius and Warren Buffett?

I think Mark Mobius was more like Peter Lynch. However, there’s a structural difference between Rakesh, Mark and Buffet. Mobius was a mutual fund manager handling public money, while Buffett and Jhunjhunwala were proprietary investors. That gave them the flexibility to hold investments for very long periods.

 

In mutual funds, once a stock performs, there’s often a need to book profits and redeploy capital. That’s why Mobius was such a prolific traveler—constantly searching for new opportunities across geographies. His life was dedicated to investing.

Mark Mobius once said that if you see the light at the end of the tunnel, it's too late to buy. How do you interpret this?

Well, that’s correct. It means you should buy when a stock is ignored, hated, or unpopular. Once it becomes widely accepted and popular, most of the gains are already behind you.

Do you think that investors have forgotten the magic of compounding and picking long-term winners as they chase instant gratification?

No, I would not say that. There are still many investors who believe deeply in long-term investing. However, the problem is noise. The conversation today is dominated by short-term thinking—what I call the “10-month dialogue.” The “10-year dialogue” still exists, but it’s much quieter. In reality, meaningful wealth creation happens over 10 years, not 10 months.

How do you evaluate the current market situation? Is the worst behind us, especially given the West Asia turmoil?

Many excesses have already corrected, and some are still correcting at the stock level. At around 20–21x P/E multiples, the market looks more reasonably priced than it did a couple of years ago. It’s not a “bet the house” market, but it’s certainly more balanced. That said, geopolitical risks—especially oil prices—remain a key variable.

Are the markets yet to price in the possible effects of high oil prices on the economy and Indian earnings?

Not entirely. But I personally believe oil prices will moderate over time because the global economy cannot sustain $100 oil for long. At such high levels, consumption drops, economies slow, and inflation rises sharply. Many industries—especially petrochemicals—face cost pressures. In the short term (next 12 months), this can be inflationary and disruptive. But over time, economies adjust—even to higher oil prices. And, that’s not the end of the world.