Shaw Wallace & Co Ltd (SWC) was acquired by the UB group in 2005
for around Rs1,300 crore, which allowed Vijay Mallya to get control over a company that he always thought was his. According to the grapevine, Manu Chhabria was supposed to co-own the company but kept Mallya out, once he acquired control. With brands like Antiquity, Royal Challenge, Director’s Special, DSP Black and Old...

Funds are sending investors their money by cheques and enjoying the float

Last week, I received this e-mail from R Ashar of Dubai. The message included a copy of an e-mail sent to M Damodaran, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) complaining that asset management companies (AMCs) of mutual funds are indulging in unfair practices to profit at the cost of their...

Most active funds don’t beat the Nifty. Those that do can be identified only with hindsight

If you have been reading MoneyLIFE, you would know that we are sceptical about the prowess of funds and fund houses to consistently deliver above-average returns by following active management, that is, by cleverly buying and selling stocks. There are a few funds that are exceptions to this rule and...