Straight Answers to Straight Questions; Exclusive Interview With Assistant GM Sachindra Dhungana on Upcoming IPO Issue of "NIBL Samriddhi Fund - II"

NIBL Ace Capital Limited has already published an offer letter to issue NIBL Samriddhi Fund - II.

NIBL Samriddhi Fund - II is a mutual fund scheme worth Rs 1.2 Arba. Considering that each unit of a mutual fund has a face value of Rs. 10, twelve crore units will be issued. The issue will open on 13th Baisakh and close on 16th Baisakh, 2078.

NIBL Samriddhi Fund - II is a closed-end mutual fund scheme with a maturity period of 10 years. Out of the total 12 crore units, 10 lakh units have been reserved for the issue manager NIBL Ace Capital. Similarly, 2.3 crore units have been reserved for the fund promoter Nepal Investment Bank. The remaining 9.6 crore units will be issued for the public.

Investors should apply for a minimum of 100 units and a maximum of 1.20 crores. If not subscribed by Baisakh 16, the issue can be extended till 27th Baisakh.

Offer Letter

About this Interview

Oftentimes, the offer letter is the only access to information that an investor has about an upcoming issue. At Sharesansar's request, the fund manager was elated to give more information to investors regarding the issue. This is an exclusive interview given by Mr. Sachindra Dhungana, assistant general manager at NIBL Ace Capital. 

The interview revolves around the most important parts of the issue, from an introduction to the fund manager's investment team, to the fund manager's look into the fund's future. 

The fund manager was also kind enough to provide an insight on pressing issues regarding mutual funds, one being the myth of huge management and operational fees. This interview is arguably the most transparent look into the world of fund management ever unveiled to Nepal's investment community. 

1) How did the idea of NIBL Samriddhi Fund - II come into inception? Why is the fund being issued at this time? Is it the timing or trend of the capital market?

As you all are aware that the "NIBL Samriddhi Fund – I" is the first close-ended scheme of NIBL Mutual Fund with a maturity period of 7 years which is going to mature on 6^th Jan 2022. The scheme has been successful to provide optimum returns to investors during the years with consistent dividend payout. We are thankful to all investors who invested by trusting us in our first scheme where we had only limited practical exposure to managing mutual funds in Nepal.

But now we are proud to announce that we have more than 6 years of practical experience of managing mutual fund scheme NIBL Samriddhi Fund I with a fund size of 1 billion providing a total of 63.5% of return till the end of FY 2076/77 and current monthly NAV at 15.51. Henceforth to carry the legacy of our first mutual fund scheme which is on the verge of maturity, we came up with the idea of NIBL Samriddhi Fund –II replicating NIBL Samriddhi Fund I in terms of risk and investment pattern.

It is only a coincidence that the market is in a bullish trend and the issue of the fund coincided with the ongoing trend. We were pre-planned to issue NIBL Samriddhi FUND II at the final year of NIBL Samriddhi Fund I. As the name of the fund translates to “Prosperity”, the prosperity of unitholders is the primary objective of the scheme.

2) Kindly introduce us to your team that makes the investment decisions. How strong is your supervisor team?

Investment planning and investing decisions is the crucial part in managing mutual fund schemes where the 360-degree approach is needed. Therefore, considering the critical aspect, we have a separate Investment and Risk Management Committee comprising board members and management team to guide and supervise investment decisions.

Besides that, we have a separate Research and Development team to provide updated Fundamental and Technical Analysis Report of the stocks, sectors, and overall market with macro-economic analysis on daily basis.

Based on provided reports and market analysis from the research team, the Scheme Manager and Investment Head develop a periodic investment plan that is presented to the Investment and risk management committee for approval and necessary guidance in the execution of the proposed investment plan. Considering the time factor in the execution of the plan, the overall investment management team is connected virtually to take prompt action on the proposed plan.

Regarding the Supervisors team, we have very experienced and renowned personalities to supervise the NIBL Mutual Fund Schemes.

3) What are the stock selection strategies of the scheme?

The general asset allocation of the proposed Scheme's portfolio will be a maximum of 70% in Equity and Equity related instruments and remaining in FD, Bond debenture, and cash.

We are likely to make its investment by gauging the macro-economic situation and the risk & return parameters. We will adopt short as well as long-term investment strategies. Equity Investment will be categorized into trading, dividend yield, and value appreciation categories. Based on in-depth fundamental and technical analysis stock universe is created and from the updated universe stock and reviewing market trends and market economic situation, the stock will be picked in each category. Providing optimum returns to investors will be the major focus of the scheme.

4) Is the management content with the performance of its existing mutual funds? Kindly walk us through the investment journey and performance so far.

We the management of NIBL Ace Capital believe in product innovation and it’s our strength.  We have proved our leadership in product innovation in the Nepalese Capital Market. With respect to the mutual fund industry, we were the first to launch the whole equity-based scheme in a closed-end mutual fund i.e. NIBL Pragati Fund. Besides that, we were the first to launch Open Ended Scheme, NIBL Sahabhagita Fund,  in Nepal after Mutual Fund Regulation 2067

Yes, we have performed well with our mutual fund with respect to market trends and product innovation. NIBL Sahabhagita Fund has been successful to provide 8.25% of the dividend in its first year of operation. NIBL Samriddhi FUND I has been consistent in its dividend payout history with a total annual dividend of 63.5% till the end of FY 2076/77.

Dividend Payout of NIBL Samriddhi FUND I

On the contrary, the Pragati fund has not been able to give any dividend till 2076/77. But we are in a comfortable position to give optimum return to unitholders in the Fiscal Year 2077/78 with the latest monthly NAV of 17.65.

5) Did Pragati underperform among the mutual fund schemes managed by NIBl Ace Capital Ltd?

Before answering it, we will like to clear about the nature of mutual funds so that the general public will be more aware of choosing mutual fund schemes. Various mutual fund scheme is operating in the market. Some are growth schemes, some are balanced schemes and some whole equity schemes.

Based on the nature of the scheme, the scheme's portfolio is created. Generally, the balanced and growth schemes have less exposure in the equity market compared to whole equity scheme. As a pioneer in the Nepalese Capital Market, we launched Pragati Fund (Jan 11, 2017) as a whole equity scheme having full exposure in the equity market and no exposure in Fixed Deposits and Bond and debenture.

Pragati started its investment when the market was in the distribution phase of the previous bull cycle. Pragati made a high monthly NAV of 10.74 when NEPSE was trading at a high of 1709 at end of FY 2073. Considering the high and low of both the NEPSE and Pragati fund, NEPSE declined by 55.08% from an index level of 1709 to test low of 1102 whereas Pragati declined by only 32.22% to make an all-time low NAV of 7.28 from a high monthly NAV of 10.74.

Now considering the current bullish trend, NEPSE tested an all-time high of 2714.79 on the last day of the year 2077 where the NEPSE index increased by 146% from a low of 1102. Similarly, Pragati made an all-time high monthly NAV of 17.65 on Chaitra End 2077 with an increment of 142.45% from a low monthly NAV of 7.28.

This shows that Pragati Fund’s NAV increment trend is replicating the Index level in an uptrend and minimizing risk in a downtrend which is the main motive every fund manager to act for best for its unitholders. Now we will like to conclude your question regarding the performance of the Pragati Fund with a final note that Pragati has been performing well to date.

Regarding dividend distribution for mutual fund schemes, regulatory provisions of maintaining NAV above 10 for the scheme for distributing dividend has been a hurdle in the previous years which won’t obstruct the dividend distribution in this fiscal year as we have a current monthly NAV of Rs17.65.

Now it is justifiable to say, Pragati is not underperforming among mutual fund schemes managed by NIBL Capital Ace Capital Ltd.

6) The upcoming issue will have a maturity period of 10 years. How does the fund manager see the scenario of Nepal's capital market in the next 10 years when viewed from an investment perspective? How will the fund move forward and tackle uncertainties?

The bear and bull trend is an ongoing phenomenon of the Capital Market. Hence whatever be the trend, proper analysis with prompt action will definitely help to mitigate risk and optimize returns.

While saying this the good old Nepali maxim crosses my mind: "Ki padhera janincha, ki parera." We initiated our first NIBL Samriddhi Fund I with theoretical knowledge and now we have both theoretical and practical knowledge of managing mutual funds successfully in the bull and bear trend. Hence we are confident to give the best returns to investors from NIBL Samriddhi Fund II.

We have projected an average NAV of 16.63 with an average dividend payout of 11.40% and a total average annual return of 21.44% for NIBL Samriddhi Fund II.

7) The mutual funds scenario in Nepal has plenty of reforms pending. A significant majority of the investors' circle is still wary to invest in mutual funds. This can be attributed to a belief that is widespread among investors that a huge chunk of profit by mutual funds is lost in operational and management fees. How does the fund manager interpret this scenario? Can the fund manager provide unique insight on the matter?

The mutual fund industry is in the developing stage in Nepal. Currently, the mutual fund industry has grown up to the size of 21 billion which is growing compared to past years. Most of the investors are not much aware of mutual funds.

Mutual funds are long-term investment vehicles but investors compare them with short-term trade which may not be fruitful for mutual fund units. A mutual fund is a professionally managed pool of money collected from investors to invest in securities. The funds collected have to be invested to get a return, and expecting a big return in a short time may not be applicable for this investment vehicle.

Regarding operational and management fees, it is not a huge chunk as investors believe it is. The regulator has recently revised the maximum proportion of fees for fund supervisor (0.2% of NAV) fund management (1.5% of NAV) and depository (0.2 % of NAV) which in total comes around 1.9% of NAV. Considering the involvement of expertise professionals and supervisors and the volume of work in fund management for fund management, the allocated proportion of fee is admissible for fund management.

For NIBL Samriddhi Fund II, out of the total permitted limit of 1.9% of NAV, we have downsized total fees to 1.82% of NAV considering the best benefits of unitholders.

8) At last, does the fund manager have any suggestions for existing and new investors?

Mutual Fund is a regulated sector of investment in Nepal and regulated in accordance with different regulations, policies, and guidelines which have been formed by SEBON. In accordance with proper regulations and effective supervision, Mutual Funds can attract and protect the common financial interest & rights of investors from different geographic areas in Nepal.

Current regulatory reforms and digitalization have added mileage in the development of the Capital Market in Nepal which has increased investors' participation in the primary and secondary markets in Nepal.  But most of the new entrants are not much aware of the risk associated with the capital market. The main concern is that if you are entering the capital market you are exposed to market risk. Hence in order to gain from the market while minimizing potential downsides, investors can minimize their risk by investing in mutual funds.

GM's Note: A cup of tea costs NPR. 20 and you can be a unitholder/owner with only NRS. 10. This is the beauty of investing in mutual funds. Therefore, mutual funds are an ideal investment option for such investors who really want to get aboard the journey of Nepalese Capital Market under the management of professionals and investors. The investment vehicle is highly suitable for investors who have limited time, money, or knowledge but still want to invest their savings in the stock market for passive income.

Lastly, we are excited for the upcoming issue of NIBL Samridhhi Fund II that is opening on the 13^th of Baisakh 2078. Like in the previous years, we will invest all our resources, knowledge, and manpower to ensure the fund outperforms the market and leads investors to prosperity as its name suggests. 

CA. Sachindra Dhungana

Assistant General Manager

NIBL Ace Capital Ltd