ASK into wealth management

Last week, diversified financial services company ASK Group made an entry into financial planning and wealth advisory services in North India with seven branches across the region set up through ASK Wealth Advisors Pvt. Ltd. The group already has started the services in six cities, including Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Coimbatore and Visakhapatnam. ASK plans 21 offices across India in three years. ASK financial planners have been given a brief to provide a detailed 40-page plan, which would involve around 20 work days, to advise customers on a financial course and suggest ways to achieve them. The service is available for individuals who have assets of about Rs1 crore they can invest over a two-year period. ASK would charge a consultancy fee of Rs15,000 upfront in the first year; this would come down to Rs10,000 from the second year onwards. Annual charges are around 0.35%-0.05% of the assets under management (AUM). The charges entitle a portfolio review twice every year. ASK has a set $2 billion-$3 billion (Rs8,200 crore-Rs12,000 crore) AUM target for the next two or three years.