Reflecting the buoyancy in the markets, leading brokerage Geojit Financial Services has nearly doubled its net profit at Rs 36.8 crore for the quarter to March, up 95 percent from Rs 18.8 crore a year ago, when the market was ravaged by the pandemic last year. The board of the Kochi-based company, which is the leading distributor of mutual fund SIPs, has also decided to enter the International Finance Centre in Ahmedabad with an alternative investment fund (AIF).

To further diversify the client offerings and consolidate our presence, the board has approved a proposal to form an entity in Gift City to acquire an AMC licence as an AIF manager, Geojit Group executive director Satish Menon said. For the full year, the Kochi-headquartered company reported a 163 percent spike in net profit at Rs 123 crore, it said in a statement, helping it declare a 350 percent annual dividend at Rs 3.50 a share, he said.

Consolidated revenue in the reporting quarter has grown 48 percent to Rs 122.56 crore from Rs 82.68 crore in the same quarter previous fiscal, while for the full year, consolidated revenue jumped 39 percent to Rs 426.81 crore in FY21 from Rs 306.37 crore in FY20. On the earnings, Menon said despite FY21 being a challenge due to the pandemic, the markets were resilient, helping us capitalise on the positive trend to increase our client base as well as enhance our online offerings. During FY21, it added 66,000 clients and now has 11,10,000 clients, Menon said.

As of end-March, the company’s assets under custody and management stood at Rs 51,000 crore. Geojit is a leading investment services company in the country with a strong presence in the GCC. It has over 11,10,000 clients, served through 465 offices and has assets under custody and management worth over Rs 51,000 crore. It owned and controlled by the founder and managing director CJ George, BNP Paribas, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation and big bull Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.

Its GCC operations are carried out via joint ventures and partnerships such as Barjeel Geojit Financial Services UAE, BBK Geojit Securities Kuwait, and QBG Geojit Securities Oman and in Bahrain through a business partnership with Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait.