JM Financial Asset Management Company is expanding its alternatives platform with the launch of an early-stage real estate Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) targeting Rs 10 billion, aimed at addressing financing gaps in the property sector. Amitabh Mohanty, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of JM Financial Asset Management, said the objective is to build a comprehensive AIF ecosystem to support India’s next phase of enterprise growth, with thematic, real asset-backed strategies focused on non-traditional opportunities. The platform will offer specialised pools of capital across credit, real estate and pre-IPO investments. The newly launched early-stage real estate fund leverages the group’s decade-long experience in managing real estate credit and seeks to bridge the capital shortfall faced by developers as traditional lenders remain constrained by regulations. The fund is targeting a first close of about Rs 5 billion, with proceeds to be deployed as debt capital to established developers in metro cities for land acquisition and approval-related costs. According to Mohanty, the fund has attracted strong interest from institutional investors as well as high-net-worth individuals and family offices. In parallel, the asset manager has filed applications with Securities and Exchange Board of India for its maiden pre-IPO fund and a follow-on performing credit fund. The pre-IPO strategy will invest in companies with an 18-month runway to listing, up to the anchor book stage. JM Financial’s first performing credit fund is on track to deliver returns in line with its stated objectives, with several investments already exited. Mohanty said alternatives will remain a priority for the group, with continued investment in specialist teams, risk management, due diligence and investor experience to meet rising demand for flexible capital.