Since its inception, Edelweiss Wealth Management has been redefining the future of wealth management with its matchless products and services spanning over multiple asset classes and consumer segments on a global scale. Among the company’s top-notch wealth management services are investment advisory, estate planning, investment management, securities trading, broking for individuals and institutions, chief executives, professional investors, and family offices.
THE JOURNEY SO FAR
Over the last five years, Edelweiss Wealth Management has continuously exceeded market growth and advanced rapidly in industry rankings. Its customer AuA has increased by 43% year over year, from INR 18,500 Cr in FY15 to INR 1,68,000 crores in Q1FY22. Moreover, customer growth has doubled since FY 2016. This is a powerful testament to the company’s strength in the face of market volatility, as well as the trust its clients have in it. During the year of pandemic, the company secured a partnership with PAG (Pacific Alliance Group), an Asian-focused investment company, as its predominant shareholder. An investment of INR 4 billion over 10 years created a business valued at INR 44 billion at stake sale. This is a testament to the business’ capability to build a franchise that creates value. With a 36% YoY increase in AuA, EWM is embracing digitization by focusing on scaling and leveraging advanced technology.
PROVIDING SUPERLATIVE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
Edelweiss Wealth Management adheres to the highest professional standards and always places the interest of its clients at its core to create the best customer experience. The company firmly believes that catering to the UHNI market segment necessitates understanding the clients’ needs. The company has always been very responsive to the clients’ needs and has always strived to deliver cutting-edge products to provide customers with what they need. By evangelizing a new asset class for investors, the company has carved out a niche as a pioneer in alternative assets. It launched its third series of Edelweiss Crossover Opportunities Fund with the goal of raising USD 1 Billion by next year. The company has pioneered the development of alternative assets for investors. It has also introduced several schemes through the years, including a long-short AIF, an Edelweiss Dynamic Growth Equity Fund (EDGE), and the first warehousing fund in India–Welspun One Logistics Parks Fund I. Additionally, it bagged 63 deals in FY21, covering ECM, DCM, M&A, special situations, and debt syndication. The company also introduced a second series of Bharat Bonds after the success of its first series, generating almost INR 4,000 crores. For an optimal client experience, Edelweiss Wealth Management’s thoughtfully designed platform combines the best of technology and a highly personalized touch.
GLORIOUS ACHIEVEMENTS
Edelweiss Wealth Management has received several prestigious awards and accolades in recognition of its unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional wealth management services to its clients. Asian Private Banker ranked the company as the second-largest non-bank wealth manager in India. Additionally, it has been ranked first in India for QIPs worth INR 1 billion to INR 10 billion over the last five years, with a market share of 16% for the number of issues resolved. Awards include ‘Best Private Bank – India’ four times in a row by Global Finance Bank; ‘Best Broker – India’ for 5 consecutive years (2016-2021) by FinanceAsia; Best Performing Institutional Member by National Stock Exchange in 2017 and 2018; and Leading India Custodian by Global Custodian ABEM Survey in 2017, 2018, 2019. It also received the Global Custodian ABEM Award 2021 for its outstanding performance in APAC. What’s more, the forward-thinking company was also honored with Mobby’s Award for Best Mobile Trading App. Furthermore, Debt Capital Markets ranked the company as the number one issuer in public bond issuances for the seventh consecutive year. What’s more, renowned publications, such as the Global Finance Magazine and Asian Private Banker named it as a Best Private Bank. Asiamoney also named it the Best Private Bank for Family Offices in 2020 & 2021.
TECH-CENTRIC APPROACH TOWARDS WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Edelweiss Wealth Management is a technologically savvy company that believes in investing with a digital and tech-first mindset. Technology is at the heart of the company’s efforts to enhance process efficiencies and the overall customer experience. Edelweiss Wealth Management is the first wealth manager in India to migrate to cloud-based services fully. It has also launched Infinity – India’s first subscription-based advisory platform. The company also leveraged technology to simplify customer onboarding by introducing Edelweiss Lite to self-sufficient, tech-savvy clients. Moreover, the company’s MF Transaction Platform delivers seamless digital interaction between the MF execution platform and customers. Its key features include real-time portfolio rebalancing, executing future dated transactions for addressing longer settlement cycles, and automating portfolio rebalancing. In addition, Edelweiss Mobile Trader (EMT) is the company’s award-winning app, which has been downloaded 1.7 million times in four regional languages. The company’s High-Frequency Trading (HFT) platform, Tradeweiss, has been upgraded with cutting-edge technologies, allowing it to handle more transactions in a faster and
more efficient manner. In recent years, the company has significantly enhanced its retail trading platform’s scalability, making it the only platform in the business that can scale up transaction flows within 48-72 hours. Last but not least, EWM has also implemented Swift, an automated, paperless, fast, and easy way for onboarding customers.
SURVIVING TOUGH TIMES THROUGH RESILIENCE
Edelweiss Wealth Management has managed to stay ahead of the curve throughout the pandemic due to its leadership’s resilience, talent pool, and platform’s technological prowess. As soon as COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, the company shifted to a fully digital model without interrupting client operations. Additionally, the company made its platforms available round the clock so that clients could reach them with any questions. Its dedicated team has proactively responded to the drop in engagement during the lockdown period with client engagement programs like Leadership Unplugged and Calm Allocators as well as thought leadership events like the Emerging Ideas Conference and the Edelweiss India Conference to keep customers updated. Moreover, its advisors were in constant touch with them, particularly during the initial phases of uncertainty.
WHAT THE FUTURE ENTAILS
With Edelweiss Group’s vision to create sustainable business models that could grow and flourish on their own, Edelweiss Wealth Management is positioned towards a demerger from the parent group and subsequent listing by Dec’22 (subject to requisite approvals). The listing would empower Edelweiss Wealth Management to further its leadership stance as a preeminent wealth management platform, not just in India but also globally.
