SBI Funds Management Pvt. Ltd – Investment Managers for SBI Mutual Fund, one of the largest mutual funds in the country has formalized its tie-up with Citibank, the global banking major to qualitatively enhance its reach in the category of mutual fund investors across the country. This tie up brings together two of the leading players in this space.

SBI Mutual Fund, a joint venture between State Bank of India and Société Generale Asset Management - France, is one of the leading players in the mutual fund having won the CNBC TV-18 Mutual Fund of the Year 2007 in the fund house category. The fund house has an experienced team of fund managers and analyst who continuously monitor market movements to identify stocks that promise high performance in the future. This team works in tandem with a compliance and risk monitoring department which ensures minimization of operational risks while protecting the interests of the investors. The outcome of this is that the schemes continue to deliver consistent returns to investors and outperform benchmark indices. The tie-up with Citibank will further enhance the reach of the fund house to investors looking to invest in mutual funds.

Citibank has 39 branches across 27 cities in India. The bank is a leading player in the wealth management space having won the CNBC TV-18 financial advisor award for Best Performing Bank in 2006. The bank offers wealth management services across market segments based on client needs and risk profile. Its Relationship Managers are trained and certified to help clients create a suitable financial plan leveraging the bank’s proprietary financial planning tools, global research and a wide product set comprising mutual funds, structured notes and Portfolio Management Services (on a referral basis). The tie-up with SBI MF will further enhance the mutual fund product suite available to its customers.

Mr. Syed Shahabuddin, Managing Director and CEO, SBI Mutual Fund said: “We at SBI Mutual Fund endeavor to provide efficient and prompt service to our investors and cater to their investment and servicing needs. The tie-up with Citibank is prestigious as our quality products would now be available to the bank’s customers across the country.”

Mr.Vidur Varma, Country Investments Director, Citibank said: “We are committed to offering our clients the best of products and service. Our partnership with SBI Mutual Fund will enable us to offer more quality funds to our customers. This will benefit our customers as they will have more choice and opportunities to diversify their portfolio in accordance with their financial needs.”

In the initial phase, The SBI MF – Citibank tie-up, shall offer an opportunity to invest in two of SBI Mutual Fund’s top performing equity funds - MSFU Contra Fund and Magnum Global Fund and its fixed maturity plans / liquid funds. The tie-up would facilitate Citibank customers to invest in SBI MF’s two leading equity funds either through a lump sum investment or through a Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) on a monthly basis.

Magnum Sector Funds Umbrella – Contra Fund: Magnum Contra Fund is the flagship fund of SBI Mutual Fund. Here's a fund that thinks differently, goes against the grain of market thought and takes the road less traveled. This fund invests in scrips which may be currently out of favour but is likely to show attractive growth in the long-term. This fund offers a possibility to invest in growth scrip's of the future and is India's first equity fund with a contrarian approach

Magnum Global Fund: This aggressive fund portfolio invests in midcap stocks and selective large cap stocks, which are chosen based on their potential to grow and make profits. This scheme aims to help you meet your financial requirements through capital gains or through regular dividends.

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About SBI Mutual Fund:

SBI Mutual Fund, a joint venture between State Bank of India and Société Generale Asset Management – France, is amongst the leading Asset Management Companies in India with total Assets under Management (AUM) at Rs 16807 crores as on March 31, 2007.

The Equity schemes of SBI Mutual Fund have performed exceedingly well and have scored over the respective benchmark indices. SBI Mutual Fund has won 12 awards this year including “CNBC TV-18 Crisil Mutual Fund of the Year 2007”, 3 ICRA Awards for Magnum Taxgain Scheme 1993 and Magnum Global Fund and MSFU – IT, 3 Lipper Awards for – Magnum Global Fund, MSFU – IT, Magnum Balanced Fund. SBI Mutual Fund has also won the CNBC Awaaz Consumer Award 2006 for the Most Preferred Mutual Fund Award.

SBI Mutual Fund has an investor base of over 35 Lacs spread over 40 schemes. With a large network over 26 Investor Service Centers, 28 Investor Service Desks and 52 District Organizers covering over 100 points of acceptance, the fund house constantly endeavors to get closer to its growing family of investors.

About Citi:

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Major brand names under Citi's trademark red arc include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Citi Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com

Issued on behalf of SBI Mutual Fund by Sampark Public Relations, New Delhi
Rajat Chandihok / Lalit PandeyTel: 41731526/7