Partha Sengupta: Wealthy Indians to deploy cash over 12-24 months

Wealthy Indians sitting on cash, preparing to deploy it over next two years: Joint MD & CEO Systematix Private Wealth

Mumbai, October 31

"Investors are holding liquidity, but it does not necessarily mean that they are waiting for a correction," Sengupta said, adding that investors are looking at phased investments across different market segments.

He said, "I see a trend amongst the investors is that you know, they are holding on to lot of liquidity at this point of time. And what is important is that they get into the market in a phased manner," adding that the investment horizon is around 12 to 24 months.

His remarks come at a time when the Indian equity market continues to trade below its previous peak. The Nifty closed at 23,053 on October 30, nearly 13 per cent below its September 2024 high of 26,277.

Sengupta said wealthy investors are also increasingly looking beyond domestic equities to diversify their portfolios across geographies and sectors. Their overseas investment choices include markets such as the US, China, South Korea and Taiwan.

Investors are accessing these markets through direct stock investments, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and alternative investment funds (AIFs), including through the Liberalised Remittance Scheme and the VCC model.

"Offshore asset allocation is an important piece, irrespective of whether your Indian market is doing well or it is choppy," he said.

He clarified that overseas investments are not necessarily a hedge against India, but are increasingly part of a broader allocation strategy based on the prospects of different countries and sectors.

Sengupta also pointed to growing interest among ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices in private markets and private credit. He said wealth managers would need to develop more investment solutions as clients increasingly explore opportunities in unlisted assets and private credit.

On alternative investments, he said commitments in AIFs stood at Rs 17.53 lakh crore, while funds raised were Rs 7.59 lakh crore, indicating scope for further deployment of capital.

Real estate and gold, meanwhile, continue to remain important parts of wealthy Indians' portfolios, although the way investors access these assets is changing.

Sengupta said wealthy Indians are increasingly exploring real estate through Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), instead of relying only on direct physical property ownership. This allows them to gain exposure to real estate through investment funds rather than purchasing properties themselves.

He said real estate AIF portfolios stood at around Rs 1.2 lakh crore, having doubled over a year. The share of AIF deployment in real estate increased from 13 per cent to 19 per cent in FY26.

He also cited an 8.7 per cent rise in prime Mumbai residential property prices over the last year.

A similar shift is visible in gold investments, with some investors opting for gold ETFs instead of buying physical gold. However, gold continues to remain an important hedge during uncertain market conditions.

Sengupta also highlighted a change in India's wealth creation pattern, with business founders from sectors such as healthcare, automobiles, energy and financial services emerging as a major source of new wealth.

He said people with wealth of USD 30 million or above had increased by 63 per cent over five years, citing Knight Frank and Hurun data.

He said entrepreneurs who built hospital chains, manufacturing businesses and financial services franchises had created substantial wealth, while market traders had not seen the same level of success.

— ANI