Mirae Asset No. 1 among overseas asset managers in India

MUMBAI – South Korea’s Mirae Asset Global Investments Co., managing 22 trillion won ($16.7 billion) in India, ranks No. 1 among overseas investment firms there and is the ninth-largest asset manager as of August of this year. The firm is expanding its presence in the South Asian country, achieving 30 billion to 40 billion won in net profit each year.  

The asset management arm of Mirae Asset Financial Group founded its Mumbai office in 2006. Some global investors were questioning the growth potential of the country at the time, when power outages were frequent and many people turned on their mobile phones only when making calls, to save money, Indian finance industry sources said.

The Mumbai affiliate gained momentum in 2014 when India inaugurated Narendra Modi as prime minister. Under his helm, the world’s fourth-largest economy rapidly expanded its financial infrastructure. Mirae Asset today has about 6 million customers in India.

The firm has focused on increasing its sales network in India through local employees. The Mumbai affiliate is led by Swarup Mohanty, head of the Indian business employing 240 local workers. Only two Korean employees dispatched from the Seoul headquarters work there.

The Seoul headquarters shapes core strategies for the Indian business, such as exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Among others, the firm promotes its ETFs by posting ads in Mumbai’s international airport.

“Not many people in India invest in ETFs yet, but the firm believes the funds will become key financial products in the country,” a Mirae Asset official said.

Mirae Asset Global Investments also manages India-related ETFs in Korea. It listed Mirae Asset Tiger Synth-India Leverage ETF on the Korea Exchange in 2016 and launched a sister fund Tiger India Nifty 50 ETF this past April, targeting blue-chip companies in one of the world's fastest-growing countries.

The firm predicts India’s finance industry will post huge growth over the long term.

At the Mumbai affiliate’s 15th-anniversary celebration event in January 2023, Mirae Asset Financial Group founder and Global Strategy Officer Hyeon Joo Park said the country has enormous growth potential given its enthusiasm for education, top global academic institutions and English fluency.

The group seeks to enhance its presence in India by acquiring Sharekhan, the country’s ninth-largest brokerage firm, sources familiar with the matter said last week. Among the shortlisted bidders, Mirae Asset has begun due diligence on the Indian brokerage firm, they said.

Write to Eui-Myung Park at uimyung@hankyung.com
 
Jihyun Kim edited this article.