"THE ALTERNATIVES SPACE CAN GROW 3X IN FIVE YEARS"

Vikaas M. Sachdeva, MD of Sundaram Alternates, talks about where India's alternative investment industry is headed

- RAHUL OBEROI

THE DEMAND FOR big-ticket investment options, such as portfolio management services (PMS) or alternative investment funds (AIFS), has grown with the rising number of high net-worth individuals (HNIS). In conversation with Business Today, 53-year-old Vikaas M. Sachdeva, Managing Director of Sundaram Alternates, talks about where the domestic alternative investment industry is headed. Edited excerpts:

With India seeing a manifold rise in HNIs, how do you see the investment landscape for the PMS industry?

As India's per capita GDP crossed the tipping point of $2,000 in 2020, discretionary spending has seen a major shift and is expected to increase manifold. Quite like what has happened in the rest of the world, as the number of wealthy individuals grow in India, there has been a change in how they invest. Investors are more inclined towards investing in unlisted equity, alternatives, and international assets. This is completely in line with the global alternative assets industry, which is set to reach $24.5 trillion by CY2028 compared to $16 trillion in CY2023.

In the realm of alternative investments, which asset classes can gain prominence over the next three to five years?

Significant momentum has been seen over the past seven years with PMS growing at 20% CAGR, [and] category (CAT) II and CAT III AIFs seeing a CAGR of 55% and 44%, respectively. The Indian alternatives industry overall is expected to grow over 3x in the next five years.