Credit Suisse weighs India fund business

By Tony Munroe and Himangshu Watts

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Investment bank Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which relaunched its India brokerage earlier this year after a six-year hiatus, expects to add about 35 staff as it ramps up its wealth management and other businesses in the country over the next few months, the firm's country head said.

Credit Suisse, which is awaiting regulatory approval for its wealth management license in India, is also considering entering the fund management business, Mihir Doshi, managing director and country head, told the Reuters India Investment Summit on Friday.

"All the existing businesses want to grow next year," Doshi said, referring to a line-up that includes equity sales and trading, M&A advisory and private equity.

The firm, which like its rivals has been rapidly building up its presence in a country whose economy is growing at nearly 9 percent, employs about 94 people in its India business and expects that number to rise to 125 or 130 by March, Doshi said.

That does not count Credit Suisse's offshore operation in Pune, which opened in November 2006 and employs about 900 -- a figure it plans to increase to about 2,400 by the end of 2008.

Credit Suisse is also considering applying for a banking license in India, and may also look to offer listed derivatives, Doshi said.

"The India story is about infrastructure, it's about the consumer. These are the two biggest reasons to get excited about India," said Doshi, who is known as Mickey.

Wealth generated by an economic expansion that has averaged 8.6 percent over the past four fiscal years has driven a consumption boom. Car sales, for example, rose nearly 15 percent in October from a year earlier to nearly 106,000, and more than 8 million people signed up for a mobile phone during the month.  Continued...