Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, NSE and Herman Gref, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank at the Launch event
| Photo Credit:
NSE
Sberbank and JSC First Asset Management have launched First–India, a new mutual fund offering Russian retail investors direct exposure to India’s stock market through the Nifty50 Index. The announcement was made today in Mumbai by Sberbank CEO Herman Gref during his business visit to India.
The fund tracks the Nifty50, comprising 50 large-cap stocks from India’s top companies across 15 sectors listed on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE). Gref described the product as creating “a new and efficient financial bridge” between the two countries, noting that no straightforward investment options previously existed for Russian investors seeking Indian asset exposure.
NSE’s MD & CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan welcomed the initiative, stating it would strengthen capital flows and deepen India-Russia financial cooperation. The Nifty50, launched in 1996, is tracked by over 45 passive funds domestically and 22 internationally.
The launch comes as NSE maintains its position as the world’s largest derivatives exchange by trading volume for 2024, according to the Futures Industry Association, and ranks second globally in equity trading by number of transactions.
This marks Sberbank’s expansion into South Asian investment products, providing Russian clients access to one of Asia’s key equity markets through a regulated, transparent benchmark.
Published on December 4, 2025