Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund launches Kotak Sensex ETF

Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company today announced the launch of an exchange traded fund focusing on investing in stocks that comprise the BSE Sensex. The investment objective of the scheme is to provide returns that closely correspond to the total returns of the BSE Sensex subject to tracking errors, and its performance will be benchmarked against BSE Sensex.

Each unit of the Kotak Sensex ETF will be approximately equal to 1/100th of the value of BSE Sensex  The fund is open for subscription from 7 May 2008 till 16 May 2008.

"Our endeavor has been to provide diverse investment options to cater the requirement of our investors," said Sandesh Kirkire, chief executive officer, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company. "Kotak Sensex ETF is one such product, which enables a long-term investment strategy at significantly lower costs. Sensexis a very widely tracked index and is a representative of the Indian economic growth story. Kotak Sensex ETF offers investors to partake in the same."

Announcing the launch of the new mutual fund, Bombay Stock Exchange managing director and CEO, Rajnikant Patel said, "Since its corporatisation and demutualisation, BSE has launched several initiatives for the investing community. The Kotak Sensex ETF is the latest such offering. Sensex is the flagship index of the Indian capital markets and the Kotak Sensex ETF represents an easy, liquid and effective instrument to track the index. We are happy to have Kotak Mutual Fund as partners in this endeavor. I am sure the ETF will be well received by both retail as well as institutional investors."

The minimum investment amount during the New Fund Offer is Rs10,000 and in multiples of Rs1,000. In case of investors opting to switch into the scheme from existing schemes / plan / options of the fund during the NFO period, the minimum amount is Rs10,000 and in multiples of Re0.01 thereof.

For investments below Rs1 crore, the entry load during the subscription period is 1 per cent. There is no entry load for investm,ents above Rs1crore. There will also be no entry load on "direct" applications or those that are not routed through any distributor, agent, broker and submitted to AMC office or collection centre or investment service centre and no entry load during continuous offer. The scheme does not have any exit either.

Exit Load - Nil

Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund is in the business of asset management, by providing investors with smart financial products, which are aimed at enhancing customers' wealth, along with services that make the investing process easier. The company has a history of innovative products and service behind it, and has led the way for the industry on many counts.

Set up in 1998, Kotak Mutual Fund currently manages assets in excess of Rs21,546.23 crores contributed by over 9 lakh investors.