Blackstone-backed ASK Investment launches ₹1,000 crore special opportunities PMS, targets volatile market bets

Blackstone-backed ASK Investment Managers has launched a new equity portfolio management strategy targeting special situations and valuation mismatches in the Indian stock market. The ASK Special Opportunities portfolio aims to raise up to ₹1,000 crore with a minimum ticket size of ₹50 lakh per investor.

The strategy is structured as a limited period offering, closing either by July 31, 2025, or earlier if the fundraising target is met or if the company believes the opportunity set has diminished due to changing market conditions.

The portfolio will be managed by Deputy CIO Sandip Bansal and will invest across market capitalisations and sectors, following a bottom-up approach. It will hold 15–30 stocks, with a cap of 10% exposure to any single stock. The fund will benchmark against the BSE 500 TRI and offer both fixed and hybrid fee models.

Capital will be returned to investors under three scenarios—on portfolio doubling, after a 4–5-year tenure, or if the fund manager sees limited further upside amid sharp valuation shifts or reduced return potential.

Bansal said the strategy will focus on two types of companies: those with strong valuation comfort and those offering high growth visibility. “Periods of volatility expose pricing inefficiencies. We want to take long-term positions where the market is being too pessimistic in the short run,” he said.

The PMS is targeted at high net-worth individuals, ultra-HNIs, family offices and corporate treasuries.

ASK Investment Managers, among India’s earliest PMS licensees, is part of the ASK Asset & Wealth Management group, which manages over ₹73,000 crore across public equities, real estate, private credit, and hedge funds as of March 2025.