Nearly half of the equity PMS strategies tracked outperformed the BSE 500 in November.
At PMS AIF World's latest Alpha Investment Summit, speakers on the panel, Pawan Bharaddia and Arun Subramanyam, said this disconnect became sharper in the first half of FY25 and is now a key driver of short-term underperformance across parts of the PMS-AIF space.
Total PMS AUM grew 1.3% month-on-month to Rs 41 lakh crore, a modest rise that emphasises how October’s momentum stemmed from real money rather than mark-to-market optics.
With more fund managers securing IFSC approvals and global products being redomiciled through GIFT, wealth managers anticipate annual outbound deployments crossing $3-4 billion in the coming years.
Sundaram Alternates’ Rising Stars emerged as the strongest performer with 10.5% gains
Singhania cautioned that the record supply of equity in the form of IPOs, promoter selling and private equity exits “should restrict sharp up moves” in the markets.
PMS assets have exceeded Rs 40 lakh crore, but they are concentrated among a few large players, the association said, adding that operational friction is a key bottleneck despite the investor appetite.
Data from PMS Bazaar indicates that Aequitas India Opportunities PMS led the one-month performance tables with a 9.3% gain, followed by Moat UpperCrust Wealth PMS, which rose 6.8% in the same period.
Nearly half of all new PMS launches in 2025 are quant or factor-based, signalling growing HNI appetite for algorithmic investing.
InCred Asset Management’s Healthcare Portfolio delivered the highest return at 11.96 percent, followed by Valcreate’s Lifesciences and Specialty Opportunities strategy, which gained 8.48 percent, followed by Green Portfolio’s MNC Advantage at 6.89 percent.
While speaking at an event organised by industry body Association of Portfolio Managers of India (APMI), SEBI chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said that portfolio managers should ask themselves how they are strengthening the trust level with their clients.
Trivantage Capital Management takes the lead at 9.86% returns, followed by Qode Advisors Tactical Fund and All Weather PMS.
The PMS and AIF performance from April reflect continued overweight stance on BFSI, pharma, and engineering sectors, while reducing exposure to chemicals.
ASK Investment Managers makes it to the March snapshot of portfolio management schemes top 10 performers with two of its schemes. Following closely is Moat Financial Services' UpperCrust Wealth Fund at 14.89%. Tulsian PMS recorded a return of 13.80%.
Wave Asset – Bloom leads the list, followed by Aequitas Investment Consultancy - India Opportunities Product. All other listed strategies recorded negative performances.
Only 22,709 new investors – a mere 12 percent - have joined the PMS bandwagon during last five years, implying that it is the existing investor pouring in more money, and the industry has not able to attract fresh capital.
The regulator noted that the PMS had not met the minimum networth requirement of Rs 5 crore
The PMS named DGS Capital Management failed to meet the minimum networth requirement of Rs 5 crore for two years, among other things
PMS AIF World hosted a discussion on investment styles between fund managers who delivered exceptional returns in 2024, ranging between 40 and 80 percent.
As per an analysis by Moneycontrol, around 73 percent of the total PMS schemes, which categorised themselves as ‘mid-cap’ schemes have underperformed their true benchmark in CY24.
Some of the issues portfolio managers highlighted were requirement to store client data backups physically, a mandatory vulnerability test, and provision for a separate dealing room.
Year-ender 2024: Investments into PMS funds have grown steadily over the past one year and assets of the industry has grown 20 per cent year-on-year to Rs 36 lakh crore as of October 31, 2024, data shows.
Khemani said that much of the reallocation to China is behind us and with new capital flows into emerging markets, India is well positioned to continue attracting positive inflows.
Khemani currently favours sectors like private banks, select NBFCs, insurance companies, IT, cybersecurity, pharma, chemicals, CDMO, and others.
The volatility in the capital markets gives fund managers a golden opportunity to identify and buy undervalued, high-quality stocks.