September 17, 2025
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Sahifund.com presents an exclusive interaction with Komal Narang, Chief Client Officer of Jio BlackRock AMC. With over two decades of experience in financial services, Komal has specialized in distribution strategy, client relationship management, digital initiatives, and brand building. At Jio BlackRock AMC, she leads the client strategy across sales, marketing, and digital outreach, shaping the AMC’s mission of offering transparent, low-cost, and technology-driven investment solutions to Indian investors.
In this conversation, she shares her insights on digital distribution as a diffrentiator, tech innovation, fund launches and the road ahead for Jio BlackRock AMC.
Distribution Strategy in a Crowded Market
Q: Komal, most large AMCs currently have distributor/agent networks numbering in the tens of thousands — for example, HDFC AMC claims over 75,000 empaneled distributors. What will be Jio BlackRock AMC’s strategy to build out its distribution reach? Will you focus on traditional distributors & agents, or prioritize digital / direct channels? What numbers are you targeting for distributor strength in the first 1–2 years?
A: At this stage, we clearly see the value of having a strong digital distribution in place, and everything we do at Jio BlackRock revolves around innovation and differentiation. We have built a digital-first AMC where the focus is on using BlackRock’s global technology and Jio’s understanding of Indian consumer to make investing seamless, transparent, and accessible.
Our early success in this approach is evident — for example, with our cash management proposition we engaged with over 300 corporate treasuries across the country, identified their pain points, and built a solution that resonated deeply with them. That is the blueprint we want to replicate. Just as we did with corporates, we will actively engage with distributors — large and small — across the length and breadth of India. We want to have a symbiotic relationship with distributors wherein we listen, understand the challenges they face, and build a differentiated value proposition around their needs rather than simply depending on the brand.
So while our starting point is direct and digital, we are equally committed to exploring strong partnerships in traditional distribution in a way that brings genuine value to both distributors and investors. On the digital front, we have already tied up with some of the largest digital distributors in the country who share a similar vision of driving inclusion through technology. This gives us instant reach and scalability without adding layers of inefficiency. We are focusing on meaningful digital engagement, investor acquisition, and retention. Over the first couple of years, our benchmark is how many investors we are able to reach, educate, and serve well through digital-first channels.
Growth of Index Funds vs Liquid / Safe Funds
Q: So far, out of your 8 schemes, 3 are money market / liquid / G-Sec funds, and the other 5 are index funds, none of which has yet crossed a corpus of Rs. 100 crore. On the other hand, many NFOs by other AMCs raise much more. Is this a conscious strategy — to grow slowly with smaller initial corpus — perhaps to ensure quality service, controlled risk, or aligning with a low-promotion strategy? Or is this more due to lower distributor engagement / visibility / priority at this stage?
A: This outcome is a result of conscious choices rather than limitations. When we launched our five index funds, we raised around ₹350 crore across them, entirely through direct channels. For a digital-first AMC just entering the market, that is a strong validation of our approach and our ability to build trust with investors without relying on traditional distribution. As we stand today, two of these 5 funds have already crossed 100 Cr individually and the third is almost there. Collectively we are upwards of 400 Cr across these 5 funds now.
It is also important to understand that index funds, by their very nature, offer little differentiation possible in terms of what the fund itself can do — they all track benchmarks. In this space, want to offer transparency, efficiency, cost effectiveness and a great investor experience.
Digital Initiatives: What’s Next
Q: You have been one of the first to leverage digital initiatives aggressively — be it digital on-boarding, app / platform experience, investor education, etc. What are the upcoming digital features or channels we can expect in the next 6–12 months? For example, will you explore robo-advice, AI-based product recommendations, social media influencer tie-ups, or integrations with other fintech / super-apps?
A: We see ourselves very much as a startup in spirit — agile, experimental, and digital at the core. Over the next 6 to 12 months, you will see us expand aggressively on this front. The first priority is to deepen our partnerships with fintech distributors, RIAs, and other digital platforms to bring Jio BlackRock products to a wider investor base with minimal friction.
We are also exploring ways to use technology to make investing more intuitive, whether through robo-advisory models, AI-driven product recommendations, or portfolio planning tools. However, our approach will be balanced — technology must empower investors but not overwhelm them. That is why we see hybrid models, where human judgment complements data-driven recommendations, as the way forward.
Perhaps our most unique advantage lies in being part of the broader Jio Financial Services ecosystem. The Jio platform, including super-apps and MyJio, offers unparalleled reach and integration opportunities. This is where we see enormous potential to embed investing seamlessly into people’s everyday financial lives. Alongside this, investor education will remain a big focus. We are building content, tools, and experiences that simplify investing, particularly for first-time investors and those in smaller towns and cities.
Fund-manager Driven Schemes & Active Management
Q: Given the global trend that well-run active funds with skilled managers tend to outperform in certain market cycles, does Jio BlackRock plan to launch more schemes which are fund-manager driven (i.e. active funds rather than passive/index/liquid)? If so, what types (equity, thematic, sectoral, multi-asset) and within what timeline might we see them?
A: Yes, we absolutely see ourselves building a presence across both passive and active categories. Though at BlackRock we do not even categorize funds as active and passive. Our first step into active equity is already underway with the launch of the FlexiCap fund powered by BlackRock’s Systematic Active Equity (SAE) approach. This is a unique proposition for Indian investors — combining quantitative models, alternative data signals, and human expertise to deliver a systematic and disciplined form of active management. We believe this approach has strong potential to generate consistent results across market cycles.
Beyond that, we are actively evaluating where meaningful gaps exist in the Indian market. These could include thematic opportunities, sectoral allocations, factor-based strategies, or multi-asset products. The guiding principle is simple: every launch should solve a genuine investor need, not just add to the clutter. Over time, our ambition is to have a thoughtful presence in every SEBI category, but in a phased manner. We want to build each step carefully, ensuring our products live up to investor expectations.
Cost, Transparency & Investor Education as Differentiators
Q: You have emphasized cost savings and transparency as part of your positioning. How will you ensure these translate into real benefit for the investor — through lower expense ratios, better disclosure, regular updates etc.? Also, what role does investor education play in your strategy — will you run camps, webinars or tie-ups to improve investor awareness especially in smaller cities?
A: Our philosophy is very clear — investors come first. Every decision we make on cost, transparency, or product design must deliver tangible benefits to them. On the cost front, we are a digital-first AMC built with a highly efficient infrastructure. This allows us to keep our manufacturing costs low and pass on those savings in the form of lower expense ratios. This is evident in the expense of all our funds – including our active equity fund (JioBlackRock FlexiCap Fund) is being launched at 50 bps expense. Over time, these savings compound significantly for investors, and we want to make that benefit visible and measurable.
Transparency is equally critical. We are committed to providing disclosures that go beyond regulatory requirements, presented in a way that is simple and easy to understand. Regular updates, clear risk attribution, and accessible performance reporting will form the backbone of how we communicate with investors.
Finally, education is at the heart of everything we do. We are creating a broad library of content — articles, explainers, videos, and webinars — to help investors understand both the basics of mutual funds and more advanced topics. The goal is to make investing simple and accessible for everyone, particularly in smaller cities where awareness is still low. In short, we want to make investing easy, transparent, and inclusive — which is core to Jio BlackRock’s mission.
Challenges & Competitive Edge
Q: What do you think are the biggest challenges ahead for Jio BlackRock AMC over the next 12–18 months — in distribution, customer acquisition cost, regulatory environment or investor trust? And what do you believe will be your competitive edge over more established AMCs?
A: Like any new entrant, we will face challenges in building scale, earning trust, and establishing our presence in a crowded market. Distribution is evolving rapidly, and while digital is our strength, acquiring customers efficiently in a market dominated by legacy AMCs with entrenched distributor networks will require continuous innovation. Building investor trust is another priority — even though both Jio and BlackRock are well-recognised names, investors will ultimately judge us by our transparency, performance, and service. In addition, the regulatory environment for mutual funds is evolving quickly, and staying ahead of compliance requirements is non-negotiable.
That said, our competitive edge is very strong. We have the agility and mindset of a startup but the backing of two global leaders — Jio with its unmatched digital reach and ecosystem, and BlackRock with its investment expertise, technology, and global scale. This combination is unique and positions us to solve investor problems in ways others cannot. And above all, we are relentlessly focused on keeping the investor at the center of everything we do. That is what we believe will set Jio BlackRock apart over the long term.