NFO review: BNP Paribas Focused 25 Equity Fund

BNP Paribas Asset Management has launched BNP Paribas Focused 25 Equity Fund. The new fund offer (NFO) is currently open and it will close for subscription on 29 September.

The BNP Paribas Focused 25 Equity Fund is an open-ended equity scheme that will invest in a concentrated multicap stock portfolio. The scheme will invest at least 65 per cent in large cap companies and up to 35 per cent in small and mid-sized companies.

Sharad Sharma, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, BNP Paribas Asset Management said, “We think that financialisation of savings, formalisation of Indian economy, rise in farm income and fiscal spending are a few structural opportunities which could drive earnings recovery albeit in selected sectors and sub-sectors. We think sectors and companies which are positioned towards the domestic side of the economy could potentially stand to benefit from these opportunities.”


“Market earnings growth has been lacklustre in the last three years and valuations have become richer. Select sector leaders and companies that are at the cusp of a turnaround are likely to outperform and help alpha creation. This alpha generation opportunity is likely to be higher in a concentrated portfolio as the conviction and size of bets remain high,” said Anand Shah, Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Head of Investments, BNP Paribas Asset Management India Pvt Ltd.

Should you invest?
“Investing in a new fund with no previous track record is not advisable. A concentrated portfolio strategy can yield great returns or go for a toss if the call goes wrong. The scheme has chosen sectors that might benefit from the current changes in India like GST and demonetisation in the long run,” says Vivekh Pathak, a Certified Financial Planner based in Delhi. “Even though it is risky to put your money in a scheme that doesn’t have a previous track record to back its performance, investing in this NFO is not a bad idea. I would advise investors who have an investment horizon of 10-15 years to go for it,” Pathak adds.

Scheme at a glance:
Issue Open: Sep 15, 2017
Issue Close: Sep 29, 2017
Category: Equity- multicap
Plans: Growth, Dividend
Benchmark: Nifty 100
Type: Open-ended
Minimum Investment: Rs 5,000