Anil Ambani-led Reliance Capital to acquire Goldman Sachs mutual fund business in India for Rs 243 crore

What marks the latest exit of yet another foreign player from the Indian market, Reliance Capital Asset Management will acquire global giant Goldman Sachs' mutual fund business in India for Rs 243 crore in all-cash deal.

In its first ever buyout, RCAM will acquire all 12 onshore mutual fund (MF) schemes of Goldman Sachs Asset Management India with total assets base of Rs 7,132 crore. The deal will make Reliance MF the exclusive fund manager for government's ambitious Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSE) Exchange Traded Fund.

The transaction has been approved by the boards of the two companies and is expected to be completed in the current fiscal, RCAM's parent firm Reliance Capital said in a statement.

Reliance Capital is the financial services arm of Anil Ambani-led business conglomerate Reliance Group and is also present in insurance, brokerage and wealth management among other areas.

"This acquisition by RCAM is an important first step in our overall strategy to strengthen our businesses through selective inorganic growth. GSAM India has a strong bouquet of schemes and a talented team. We are confident that together they will complement and enhance RCAM's overall offerings to our investors," said Sam Ghosh, Executive Director, Reliance Capital.

RCAM CEO Sundeep Sikka said the deal will add over half a per cent to its market share.

The deal marks yet another exit by a foreign player from the Rs 13 lakh crore Indian mutual fund industry. In last few years, a number of global players have exited the Indian mutual fund business. Standard Chartered sold its mutual fund business in India to IDFC in 2008, Fidelity sold its mutual fund to L&T Finance in 2012, while last year HDFC MF acquired Morgan Stanley's fund business here.

Besides, Birla Sunlife has acquired ING Mutual Fund, Kotak MF has bought PineBridge Mutual Fund and Pramerica has taken over Deutsche Bank's mutual fund business in India.

(Image credit: Economic Times)