Jefferies to rope in veteran financier Keki Mistry for its AMC arm  

Keki Mistry

Global investment banking and capital markets firm Jefferies is in talks with finance industry veteran Keki Mistry to onboard him in its soon to be launched asset management company (AMC). Mistry is likely to join Jefferies India’s AMC business as its chairman, said four bankers aware of the conversations.

Mistry could not be contacted immediately.

Jefferies declined to offer comments when contacted by Moneycontrol.

With India’s asset management business experiencing rapid growth thanks to steadily buoyant capital markets, several global banks and investors are eyeing a pie of the domestic mutual funds business. It is gathered that Jefferies had approached the capital markets regulator around September this year for an AMC license. Anticipating a go-ahead from Sebi in the next 2 – 3 months, sources say Jefferies has started work on putting together a team in India for its AMC business.

Milind Bharve, the former CEO of HDFC AMC, is currently engaged with the New York headquartered investment banking outfit in the capacity of an advisor.

Prior to the merger of HDFC Limited — India’s then largest housing financier — with HDFC Bank, Mistry, aged about 68 years, was the vice chairman and CEO of HDFC Limited. Being the parent entity till 2022, HDFC Limited housed the bank, the insurance arms and HDFC AMC among other entities. Mistry is presently the chairman of HDFC Life Insurance Company and HDFC ERGO General Insurance and is a director on the board of HDFC Bank and HDFC Capital Advisors.

He is also a independent, non-executive director at TCS, apart from being an advisor to Cyrus Poonawalla group’s financial services ventures including Poonawalla Finance.