Balanced advantage funds: Equity exposure dips as valuations kicks off

HDFC MF exposure drops below 50%, ICICI MF at 20-month low

Balanced advantage funds (BAFs) are reducing their equity exposure as the market continues to rise, defying concerns over expensive valuations. HDFC BAF, the largest fund in this segment with assets under management (AUM) of Rs 94,000 crore, decreased its equity exposure to below 50 per cent in July - the lowest at least in the last two years.

Similarly, ICICI Prudential BAF, the second-largest, had only 31.2 per cent of its corpus invested in equities at the end of July, a 20-month low. SBI BAF had an even lower equity holding of 30.9 per cent.

BAFs manage