CIO & Fund Manager
Mr. Parameswara Iyer Krishnan serves as the Head of the EAM business and Chief Investment Officer at Spark Asia Impact Managers Pvt Ltd. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades in asset management, Mr. Krishnan possesses extensive expertise in Indian and regional equity markets. Prior to his current role, Mr. Krishnan spent 19 years with DNB Asset Management, a prominent Scandinavian fund house affiliated with Norway's largest banking and insurance entity. During his tenure from 1998 to 2017, he significantly contributed to establishing DNB and its Carlson Fund as leading authorities on India and Emerging Markets within the Nordic region. As the fund manager for the Carlson Asian Small Cap Fund (CASC) and the Carlson India Fund (CIF) for nearly two decades, Mr. Krishnan demonstrated adept navigation of critical market cycles in India and Asia. Under his management, CASC achieved a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 29% in Net Asset Value (NAV) in Euro terms from 1999 to 2007. Assets under Management (AUM) for CASC expanded from under USD 10 million to over USD 1 billion during this period, solidifying its reputation as a highly respected Asian growth fund in Northern Europe. In 2014, with an India allocation exceeding 50%, CASC ranked among the top-performing Asian funds across all categories. The Carlson India Fund (CIF), launched in 2008, delivered a CAGR of 15.9% in Euro terms between 2009 and 2017, a period marked by a 12.5% depreciation of the Indian Rupee against the Euro. Mr. Krishnan was instrumental in scaling CIF's AUM from USD 3 million at inception to approximately USD 150 million. In the 1990s, during the foundational phase of India's fund management industry, Mr. Krishnan held the position of the first Portfolio Manager for India's inaugural private-sector mutual fund scheme, which is now known as Franklin India Bluechip Fund. He commenced his professional journey in 1990 at SBI Mutual Fund, where he managed India's first bank-sponsored mutual fund scheme, MRIS-1987. Beyond India, Mr. Krishnan brings significant experience in Asian emerging markets, including China, Taiwan, and Korea. He is recognized as one of the few managers in the domestic fund management sector with such comprehensive regional experience. Mr. Krishnan has received numerous accolades for his expertise in the Indian market and his country management capabilities. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Computer Science and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) from IIM, Bangalore.