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Rahul Goswami, who is presently the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) – Fixed Income at ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, will soon become the Head of Fixed Income at Franklin Templeton India Mutual Fund. This is one of the most significant actions the Rs 40 trillion Indian mutual funds (MF) industry has experienced so far.
At the moment, Santosh Kamath is the Head of Fixed Income in Franklin Templeton India Mutual Fund. Although rumour circulating is that Santosh Kamath will lead the fund house's high-risk credit strategy within its PMS (Portfolio Management Services) or AIF (Alternative Investment Funds) division, it is still unclear where Mr. Kamath would be heading next.
The addition of Rahul Goswami to Franklin Templeton India highlights the fund house's dedication to the Indian business. Also, it shows that the AMC is letting go of the past.
Franklin India Short Term Income Plan (FISTIP) participants received a payment from the fund house of Rs 39.27 crore earlier this week. Additionally, it paid Franklin India Credit Risk Fund (FICRF) investors Rs. 138.79 crore. Franklin Templeton has so far paid a total of Rs 27,109 crore, including the most recent payout.
[Read: Wait is Over! Franklin Templeton India Mutual Fund to Repay Investors of 2 Debt Funds]
Goswami’s addition to Franklin Templeton MF also signals a shift in its debt fund strategies. Rahul Goswami is conservative and is renowned for choosing high credit rated securities, in contrast to Mr Kamath, who was used to managing many debt funds using the credit strategy (a high-risk fixed-income strategy where the fund manager invests in low-rated but hopefully well-managed companies in an attempt to gain when credit ratings get upgraded).
Rahul Goswami holds years of expertise in the Indian fixed-income market. He was associated with Franklin Templeton in the past between October 2002 to July 2004. He further joined ICICI Prudential AMC, where he worked from July 2004 until November 2009. He left the fund house to work for three years at Standard Chartered Bank before returning to ICICI Prudential AMC near the end of 2012, where he is still working.
It will be interesting to observe how the new head of debt funds manages to oversee the fixed income department at Franklin Templeton India Mutual Fund.