Axis Mutual Fund, one of India's leading asset management companies, today announced the launch of the Axis Services Opportunities Fund, an open-ended equity scheme following the services theme. The New Fund Offer (NFO) will open for subscription on July 4, 2025, and close on July 18, 2025. The Axis Services Opportunities Fund is designed to offer investors access to a carefully curated portfolio of companies that are at the forefront of India's services-led economic transformation. The fund aims to generate long-term capital appreciation by investing in scalable, capital-efficient, and competitively advantaged businesses that derive their core revenues from service-based offerings. The fund will be managed by Mr. Shreyash Devalkar (Head - Equity), Mr. Sachin Relekar (Senior Fund Manager), and Ms. Krishnaa Narayan (for overseas investments).
"India's future growth is expected to be increasingly service-led, and the structural tailwinds for this segment are both deep and durable," said B. Gopkumar, MD & CEO, Axis AMC. "With the Axis Services Opportunities Fund, we are offering investors an actively managed vehicle that is built to tap into this long-term transformation. From legacy sectors like banking to emerging models in e-commerce, fintech and healthcare, the fund aims to curate the best of India's services story. It aligns with our long-term investment philosophy - identifying quality, capital-efficient businesses that can thrive through cycles and deliver superior risk-adjusted returns."
India's Services Economy: The Engine of Growth
Accounting for 55% of India's GDP in FY24 and contributing to 41% of employment, the services sector is the single largest pillar of the Indian economy. From banking and insurance to IT services, e- commerce, logistics, healthcare, and digital platforms, the services domain has witnessed a wave of formalization and digital transformation that is reshaping consumer experiences and business models alike.
With a strong policy push, rapid urbanisation, increasing disposable incomes, and rising digital penetration, India's services economy is expected to maintain its leadership in GDP contribution and job creation through 2047 and beyond. Over the past few years, sectors such as telecom, healthcare, quick commerce, and logistics have seen significant profit acceleration, while fintech, media, and hospitality continue to scale rapidly.
About Axis Services Opportunities Fund
The Axis Services Opportunities Fund is positioned to capture this structural shift. The fund will invest at least 80% of its assets in equities of companies that are part of the services theme, across 48 industries as defined by the benchmark NIFTY Services Sector Index. These include financial services, IT, telecom, power, e-commerce, transport, healthcare services, fintech, entertainment, and more. The fund will maintain a high active share and adopt a bottom-up stock selection approach. The investment strategy will focus on identifying quality businesses with consistent earnings, strong return on capital employed (ROCE), and the ability to scale sustainably over the long term.
Mr. Ashish Gupta, CIO, Axis AMC says, "As the services sector becomes the cornerstone of India's economic growth, our approach with the Axis Services Opportunities Fund is to rigorously identify companies that demonstrate not just scale but sustainable competitive advantages and efficient capital allocation. We believe that a disciplined, bottom-up stock selection process focusing on quality earnings and strong return ratios will enable us to capture the nuanced opportunities within this diverse and evolving sector. This fund is aims to deliver consistent, risk-adjusted returns by investing across a broad spectrum of service industries, reflecting our conviction in the long-term structural shift towards a services-driven economy." |
