Top Asset Management Companies(AMCs) In India

An asset management company (AMC) is a company that invests the funds received from its clients into securities that match actual financial objectives of the company itself.  With asset management companies, individual investors are fed with more diversification and investing options than they would have otherwise been able to avail by themselves. AMCs manage pension plans, mutual funds, hedge funds and these companies earn income by charging set fees/service fees or commissions or say charge a percentage of the total assets under management (AUM).

AMCs pool up the assets together and pay out proportional returns and allow the investors to avoid minimum investment requirements, which may be quite high when purchased individually. AMCs also allow investors to invest in a larger set of securities with a smaller investment.

Categories of Asset Management Companies:

All the asset management companies are listed under Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI).  In India, they are categorized into three types:

1. Bank-sponsored mutual funds
2. Mutual fund institutions
3. Private sector mutual funds

The assets managed by the mutual fund companies is called Assets under Management (AUM) and it sums up the total market value of all assets managed by the entity.  A large AUM size of the company implies that the company is performing well and public has some faith in the performance of the AMC. Here is a list of top 10 AMCs in India and the assets they manage.

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund

It is top and largest asset management company in India with AUM size of approximately 3 lakh crore and offers over 1400+ funds. It was started in 1993 with headquarters in Mumbai.  This AMC is a joint venture between ICICI Bank of India (one of the largest private banks in India) and Prudential Plc of UK (one of the largest financial services sectors in UK).  Diversification is the best part of their services, all of which carry excellent ratings and are affordable also enabling retail investors chip their money in them. Some noteworthy ICICI Prudential Mutual Funds are:

• ICICI Prudential Balanced Advantage Fund
• ICICI Prudential Long Term Plan
• ICICI Prudential Banking & Financial Services Fund

HDFC Mutual Fund:

After ICICI Prudential comes the HDFC Mutual Funds which takes the second place on the list with an AUM of nearly 3 lakh crore and has been one of the India’s leading providers of financial services. HDFC AMC started in 1999 and launched its first product in the year 2000 and has never looked back since and is amongst the top AMCs in the country. It acquired eight funds from Zurich India Mutual Fund.  Top HDFC mutual funds include:

• HDFC Small Cap Fund
• HDFC Short-Term Debt Fund
• HDFC Balanced Fund

Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund

It ranks third amongst the largest asset management company in India with AUM size of approximately 2,41,107 crore with over 600 fund schemes ranging from equity schemes to sector-specific schemes. It was started in 1994 and is a joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group (India) and Sun Life Financial Inc. (Canada). Top ABSL mutual funds include:

• Aditya Birla Sun Life tax relief 96
• Aditya Birla Sun Life Advantage Fund
• Aditya Birla Sun Life Small & Midcap Fund
• Aditya Birla Sun Life balanced 95
• Aditya Birla Sun Life Banking & Financial Services Fund

Reliance Mutual Fund

It is a part of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (ADA) Group with Assets under Management of approximately 2.5 lakh crore. It was launched in 1995 with headquarters in Mumbai.  It is a joint venture of Nippon Life Insurance (Japan) and Reliance Capital (India). There are over 200 schemes belonging to this AMC. Top ones include:

• Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund
• Reliance Regular Savings Fund – Balanced
• Reliance Top 200 Fund
• Reliance Small Cap Fund

SBI Mutual Fund

SBI Funds Management Pvt Limited the oldest fund management company and is a joint venture between the State Bank of India (SBI) and financial services company Amundi (a European Asset Management company) in France. It was started in 1987.  It is the most popular mutual fund company with assets over Rs 2,05,273 crore.  Top mutual funds include:

• SBI Gold Fund
• SBI Small Cap Fund
• SBI Bluechip Fund

UTI Mutual Fund

UTI was launched in 1963 and is one of the oldest asset management companies in India. The AMC, UTI Mutual Fund is promoted by SBI, LIC, Bank of Baroda and PNB.  It is a part of UTI (Unit Trust of India).  It owns assets of over Rs 1,53,364 crore in AUM with over 1400 funds.  Top UTI mutual funds include:

• UTI Nifty Fund
• UTI Transportation & Logistics Fund

Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund

It was established in 1998 with its headquarters in Bandra and Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund is a part of Kotak Group. It has AUM of over Rs 1,19,800 crore.  The schemes offered by Kotak Mahindra Mutual Funds have gathered good credit ratings.  Top mutual funds include:

• Kotak Low Duration Fund
• Kotak Emerging Equity Scheme
• Kotak Equity Arbitrage Fund

Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund

Franklin Templeton is an American company and Indian office was set up in 1996 under the name Templeton Asset Management India Pvt. Limited. The company manages on short-term market fluctuations, cash flows, revenues, etc.  Top mutual funds include:

• Franklin India Low Duration Fund
• Franklin India STIP
• Franklin Build India Fund

DSP Blackrock Mutual Fund

It is a joint venture between DSP group (150 – year old) and BlackRock Group (world’s largest investment management firm).  It has an AUM of over Rs 86,255 crore and over 250 schemes.  Top mutual funds include:

• DSP BlackRock Opportunities Fund
• DSP BlackRock Natural Resources & New Energy Fund
• DSP BlackRock Tax Saver Fund

Note: The two groups have parted ways recently.

IDFC Mutual Fund

This is managed by IDFC Asset Management Company Ltd and was launched by government of India in 1997.  It is strongly connected to government as well as private sector with AUM of over Rs 71,388 crore.  Top funds include:

• IDFC Super Saver Income Fund
• IDFC Large Cap Fund

Note: The schemes mentioned ’top’ must no be considered as recommendations for investments. The popularity has been conferred based on AUM, external review & general investor interest.