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Helios Mutual Fund has unrolled its third fund - Helios Balanced Advantage Fund. The NFO (new fund offer) is open for subscription until March 20, 2024.
Here's all you need to know about the fund.
NFO snapshot
| Fund name | Helios Balanced Advantage Fund |
| SEBI category | Hybrid: Balanced Advantage Fund |
| NFO period | March 11 to March 20, 2024 |
| Investment objective | To benefit from the potential upside of equity and protect the downside through dynamic allocation between equity and debt. |
| Where will the fund invest | 0-100 per cent in equity0-100 per cent in debt |
| Benchmark | CRISIL Hybrid 50+50 - Moderate Total Return Index (TRI) |
| Fund managers | Alok Bahl, Pratik Singh, Utsav Modi |
| Exit load | For units in excess of 10 per cent, 1 per cent of the applicable NAV will be charged for redemption or switching within three months from the allotment date. |
About Helios Balanced Advantage Fund
Given that it is a balanced advantage fund, it has the flexibility to keep the equity allocation anywhere between 0 and 100 per cent. The fund's equity and debt allocation will broadly depend on four key factors - macro conditions, prevailing market conditions, valuations and market sentiments. Equity allocation will be higher when these factors are comfortable and lower when they aren't.
However, as per the documents available on the AMC's website, the fund will endeavour to maintain a gross equity exposure of over 65 per cent, to help investors benefit from the favourable tax treatment. It will employ various derivative strategies to hedge against market headwinds. Further, the fund will conduct monthly rebalancing to maintain the allocation.
What are balanced advantage funds?
Also known as dynamic asset allocation funds, balanced advantage funds tactically invest in both equity and debt instruments. They belong to the hybrid category, which boasts 33 funds and has a cumulative asset under management (AUM) of around Rs 2.51 lakh crore.
What sets the hybrid category apart from others is its flexible nature. Hence, funds in this category don't have to adhere to fixed asset allocation criteria.
About Helios Mutual Fund
Helios Capital Asset Management (India) Private Limited is a relatively new entrant in the mutual fund industry. Founded by Samir Arora in 2005 as a portfolio management service company, Helios got its mutual fund licence in August 2023. Its overnight fund (launched in October 2023) and flexi-cap fund (launched in November 2023) collected Rs 26 crore and Rs 550.54 crore, respectively.
Arora gained prominence in the 1990s when three Alliance Capital funds he managed outperformed the benchmark by wide margins.
Samir Arora's performance as Alliance fund manager
| Tenure | Fund return (%) | S&P BSE sensex (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alliance Tax Relief '96 | April 1996 to August 2003 | 37.68 | 1.27 |
| Alliance '95 | February 1995 to August 2003 | 23.36 | 0.71 |
| Alliance Equity | September 1998 to August 2003 | 27.55 | 5.23 |
| *Only funds managed by Arora for over four years are included in the list. | |||
Helios AMC follows a unique investment philosophy known as 'elimination investing,' which prioritises identifying which stocks not to buy. The fund house believes it's easier to discern what is bad than what is good.
About the fund managers
Helios Balanced Advantage Fund will be managed by a team of three fund managers - Alok Bahl, Pratik Singh and Utsav Modi.
Alok Bahl, the Chief Investment Officer (CIO), brings over 30 years of expertise in investment management, including an impressive 18-year tenure at Helios.
Pratik Singh was appointed Fund Manager - Equities at Helios AMC in February 2024. He holds an MBA degree and over a decade of experience. Prior to joining Helios, he worked as an Equity Research Analyst at Motilal Oswal's institutional equity research team, tracking the capital goods and consumer durables sector.
Utsav Modi, who has over 11 years of experience, will join them. Before his role at Helios AMC, Modi served as Dealer - Fixed Income at Groww Mutual Fund.
Our take
We have always advocated that investors must follow an asset allocation plan, distributing their portfolio between equity and debt as per their risk appetite. This can be achieved through separate allocations to equity and debt funds or by investing in a hybrid fund that diversifies across both the asset classes. However in such a scenario, we prefer funds with a static allocation.
Even within the dynamic asset allocation category, we prefer funds whose equity-debt allocation oscillate within a narrow range, offering investors a certain degree of predictability.
Like with any other NFO, we suggest you wait for a while before deciding to invest.
Also read: Ask these three questions before investing in an NFO .
Disclaimer: This content is for information only and should not be considered investment advice or a recommendation.
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