NFO Update: Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund launches services fund

Economic Times

19-05-2025

ETMarkets.com Motilal Oswal's new services sector fund seeks long-term growth by investing in companies benefiting from India's expanding services economy. NFO runs from May 20 to June 3.
Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund has announced the launch of its latest new fund offer Motilal Oswal Services Fund, an open-ended equity scheme investing in the services sector.
The new fund offer or NFO of the scheme will open for subscription on May 20 and will close on June 3.
The primary objective of the scheme is to generate long-term capital appreciation by investing in equity or equity related instruments across market capitalization of companies deriving the majority of their income from business in the services sector of the economy.
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The scheme will be benchmarked against Nifty Services Sector Total Return Index and will be managed by Bhalachandra Shinde, Ajay Khandelwal, Atul Mehra, Rakesh Shetty, and Sunil Sawant.
The scheme aims to generate long-term capital appreciation by investing in equity or equity related investments of companies that are engaged directly or indirectly or expected to benefit from the growth and development of the services sector in India.According to MOAMCs internal research, India's services sector has emerged as the most consistent and resilient contributor to the country's Gross Value Added (GVA), reflecting stable performance. Between FY23 and FY25, the sector achieved growth of 8.3%, underpinned by a surge in services exports, which accelerated to 12.8% in April–November FY25 from 5.7% in FY24. The sector's significance is further highlighted by its massive 109-fold increase in contribution to total GVA since FY14, according to a release by the fund house.As a share of total GVA, the sector grew from 52% in FY16 to 55% in FY24, peaking at 56% in FY23. This highlights the services sector's growing role in India's economic output and its contribution to employment, currently supporting nearly 30% of the workforce. On the global stage, India ranks 7th in services exports, with 4.3% share. Notably, the sector has remained in the expansionary zone for 41 consecutive months since August 2021, underscoring its stability and long-term growth potential, the release said.
'India's services sector has consistently demonstrated strong and resilient growth, emerging as a key driver of the country's economic development. With its rising contribution to GDP, robust export potential, and growing digital and consumer-driven demand, we believe the sector may offer compelling long-term investment opportunities. Our new sectoral fund is designed to tap into this structural growth story and enable investors to gain exposure to the services-led transformation of India's economy,' said Prateek Agrawal, MD & CEO, Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company.
Also Read | BSE and Adani Enterprises among stocks that HDFC Mutual Fund bought and sold in April 'Services sector encompasses a wide range of industries—benefiting from rising incomes, urbanization and digital adoption. With structural tailwinds and improving export competitiveness, we see long-term potential across this sector. The fund will be benchmarked against Nifty Services Sector Total Return Index (TRI) which has shown an upward trend over the 11-year,' said Bhalachandra Shinde, Associate Fund Manager, Motilal Oswal Mutual Fund.'From an initial level around 1000 in April 2014, the index has steadily increased, reaching a level of 4518 by April 2025. Our investment approach will focus on identifying quality businesses with scalable models and strong fundamentals that are well-positioned to benefit from this sector,' he said.