The asset management company being floated by Deutsche Bank is likely to commence operations in the fourth quarter of 2002-03.
It will be a separate company floated through a 75:25 joint venture with an Indian partner, with the majority stake being held by Deutsche Bank.
"Talks with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are at a final stage and we expect to get the nod for the AMC soon. Identification of the joint venture partner is also nearing completion," Deutsche Bank chief country officer for India, Douglas T Neilson, said.
He declined to name the partner but said, "we are likely to sign a deal soon."
Deutsche Bank is also considering the possibility of setting up an investment banking desk in India. At present, the bank offers investment banking services from Singapore and Hong Kong and advisors fly in from there to service clients. "Setting up an investment banking unit in the country will allow us to service our customers better," said Neilson. "This will also allow us to focus more on the business," he added.
To supplement the investment banking business, Deutsche Bank is also considering the possibility of setting up an equity research arm in India.
This too operates out of the Hong Kong office. Although the Indian stock market has not being doing well, the need to locate one in India comes from the requirement of providing private banking service to high net worth individuals in the country.
The equity research arm in Hong Kong conducts research on the Indian stock market with focus on select industry sectors like steel and petroleum. A full fledged arm in India will enable the bank to conduct research on all aspects of the Indian economy and not remain confined to select industry sectors.
The twin aim of setting up an investment banking unit and an equity research arm falls in line with Deutsche Bank 's strategy of catering to high networth clients.
The bank has recently hived off its retail banking arm to HSBC and is at present concentrating on specialised services for select customers. This is also part of Deutsche Bank 's plan to offer conditional products on an ongoing basis.
It has drawn upon a strategy of concentrating on areas in which it has global strength lies. On the business front, Neilson expects revenues to be flat this year as the bank was not expected to outperform the market by any great margin.
