Jio BlackRock Plans Big Shake-Up With Low-Cost Strategy

JIO BLACKROCK ASSET Management plans to introduce nearly a dozen equity and debt funds by the year-end, focusing on small-ticket investments and bypassing distributors to reduce costs, sources familiar with the firm's strategy said.

- JAYSHREE P UPADHYAY & IRA DUGAL

The joint venture between Jio Financial Services and BlackRock enters India's ₹72.2 lakh-crore funds market with a business structure that threatens to shake up the sector, as it leverages its large digital network to bypass traditional distributors used by the rest of the industry.

Jio BlackRock plans to leverage Jio, India's largest telecom network, and BlackRock's investment management platform Aladdin to offer differentiated products, two sources said. The asset manager has applied to SEBI to launch eight funds, they said. The company launched three funds last month. The funds will allow for investments as low as ₹500.