Invesco Mutual Fund has announced a new fund offer (NFO) for the Invesco India Small Cap Fund from 10th October to 24th October 2018. Units of this new open ended small cap equity fund will be available for purchase/redemption on all business days after the scheme opens for continuous sale/repurchase subsequent to conclusion of the NFO. In the past couple of months, the small cap mutual fund space has been abuzz. Recent developments in this regard include SEBI filings for the Tata Small Cap Fund, BOI AXA Small Cap Fund, BNP Paribas Small Cap Fund as well as the recent decision by DSP Mutual Fund to allow fresh SIP inflows into the DSP Small Cap Fund.
At least 65% of total assets managed by Invesco India Small Cap Fund will be allocated towards equity/equity derivatives of small cap companies. The scheme also retains the flexibility to invest all of the remaining 35% of assets in equities/equity-related instruments of companies other than small cap companies. Additionally, this small cap fund may also allocate up to 35% of its assets to various debt/money market instruments including but not limited to securitized debt. This small cap fund’s exposure to equity derivatives will be capped at 50% of assets.
The S&P BSE 250 Smallcap Index has been chosen as benchmark for Invesco India Small Cap Fund. This index features decent medium and long term returns of 8.96% and 18.81% for the 3 year and 5 year periods respectively. However, in the past year, this index has witnessed significant correction with 1 year returns of the S&P BSE 250 Smallcap Index recorded at -12.22% as on 28th September 2018. This is a diversified small cap index and securities with maximum weight on this index include Cyient, Bata India, Fortis Healthcare, Atul, IDFC, NIIT Technologies and Astral Polytechnik.
Invesco India Small Cap Fund will be managed by Taher Badshah. He is currently also involved in managing other schemes of Invesco MF including Invesco India Multicap Fund, Invesco India Dynamic Equity Fund, Invesco India Contra Fund and Invesco India Growth Opportunities Fund. Among these, the Invesco India Contra Fund has emerged as one of the top performers in its chosen category with 3 year and 5 year returns of 14.12% and 24.44% respectively (as of 9th October 2018).
The following are key details about the Invesco India Small Cap Fund NFO:
| NFO Period | 10th October to 24th October 2018 |
| Minimum Initial Investment | Rs. 5000 |
| Benchmark | S&P BSE 250 Smallcap Index |
| Fund Manager | Taher Badshah |
| Plans and Options | Direct/Regular Plans and Growth/Dividend (Reinvestment/Payout) options |
Other Funds by Invesco Asset Management
| Fund Name | 3-Year Returns (%) | AUM (Rs. Cr.) |
| Invesco India Gold Fund Direct-Growth | 13.71 | 13.27 |
| Invesco India Ultra Short Term Fund Direct-Growth | 7.68 | 1135.74 |
| Invesco India Treasury Advantage Fund Direct-Growth | 7.68 | 1731.58 |
| Invesco India Short Term Fund Direct-Growth | 7.63 | 2885.82 |
| Invesco India Banking & PSU Debt Fund Direct-Growth | 7.47 | 38.75 |
| Invesco India Financial Services Fund Direct-Growth | 7.34 | 124.62 |
| Invesco India Money Market Fund Direct-Growth | 7.23 | 465.26 |
| Invesco India Gilt Fund Direct- Growth | 7.03 | 35.65 |
| Invesco India Corporate Bond Fund Direct-Growth | 6.92 | 163.37 |
| Invesco India Liquid Fund Direct-Growth | 6.82 | 10162.63 |
| Invesco India Arbitrage Fund Direct-Growth | 6.63 | 351.46 |
| Invesco India Mid Cap Fund Direct-Growth | 5.59 | 184.25 |
| Invesco India Growth Opportunities Fund Direct-Growth | 5.34 | 483.87 |
| Invesco India Tax Plan Direct-Growth | 4.63 | 550.14 |
| Invesco India Contra Fund Direct-Growth | 3.73 | 1441.87 |
| Invesco India Dynamic Equity Fund Direct-Growth | 3.68 | 1008.28 |
| Invesco India Infrastructure Fund Direct-Growth | 3.11 | 44.63 |
| Invesco India Credit Risk Fund Direct-Growth | 2.84 | 415.13 |
| Invesco India Largecap Fund Direct-Growth | 2.72 | 141.76 |
| Invesco India Multicap Fund Direct-Growth | 1.2 | 555.49 |
{Data as on March 17, 2020; Source: Value Research}