WhiteOak Capital MF India’s first actively managed quality factor theme fund in 2025

A quality-focused open-ended equity plan, the WhiteOak Capital Quality Equity Fund was launched by WhiteOak Capital Mutual Fund.
This fund, which is India’s first actively managed quality factor-themed fund, aims to invest in companies with strong fundamentals, robust governance, and the ability to generate consistent income even in times of economic instability.

Index Fund Basis

The fund’s New Fund Offer (NFO) will open on January 8, 2025, and close on January 22, 2025.

It provides investors a unique opportunity to focus on top-quality businesses that show resilience during market volatility.

The fund’s thematic focus, combined with the Nifty 200 Quality 30 TRI, has delivered returns of over 10% in the past decade, making it a strong investment goal.

This index recorded a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18.6% from April 2005 to December 2024, outperforming the Nifty 200 Value 30 TRI (16.7%) and Nifty 500 TRI (15% CAGR). The fund house mentioned that while past performance does not guarantee future results, these metrics demonstrate the potential of the quality factor theme.

Ashish Somaiya, CEO of WhiteOak Capital Asset Management Limited, said at the launch, “Businesses with high governance standards, strong management, and robust cash flow profiles perform better in the long run.” He further added, “2025 is the right time to focus on quality as the market values cyclicality and enterprises with better fundamentals.”

Somaiya also emphasized that this shift is a logical step for long-term investors as markets become cyclical and yield average returns. According to the quality factor theme, the fund will allocate 80-100% of its portfolio to equity and equity-related instruments.

The remaining 20% will be invested in the equities of other companies, while the rest will be allocated to debt securities, money market instruments, REITs, and InvITs.

Ramesh Mintri, Tripti Agarwal, Dheeresh Pathak, and Piyush Barnwal will manage the fund.

“Our objective is to invest in businesses with solid fundamentals at appealing valuations,” stated WhiteOak Capital Asset Management’s CIO. This approach allows us to build a diversified portfolio across sectors and market capitalization, with a focus on quality stocks for long-term gains.” As of December 2024, the parent company, WhiteOak Capital Group, will manage equity assets worth ₹80,053 crore. The former CIO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Group, works with research teams in India, Singapore, and Spain, serving clients across Asia and Europe.