Detailed Narrative
Q4 FY26 Performance Overview and Strategic Focus
CAMS reported its highest ever quarterly revenue in Q4 FY26, alongside a record EBITDA of INR183 crores, achieving a 46.5% margin. This performance was delivered despite a challenging external environment, particularly in March. The company's strategic focus on non-MF businesses yielded strong results, with non-MF revenue growing close to 25% year-on-year, surpassing the 20% target. While the MF business saw muted growth of 0.5% quarter-on-quarter, overall AUM grew 21% year-on-year to INR55.1 lakh crores, with equity assets reaching INR30.5 lakh crores.
Non-MF Business Diversification and Growth Drivers
The non-MF segment demonstrated robust growth, contributing 15.3% to enterprise revenue and growing 24.5% year-on-year in Q4 FY26. Key drivers included CAMSPay, which delivered 23% year-on-year growth, and Alternatives, with revenue growth exceeding 25% year-on-year and AUM crossing INR3 lakh crores. The KRA business also saw significant growth of 28% year-on-year. Management expressed confidence in sustaining over 20% growth in non-MF revenue going forward⏳, with a target of INR100 crores quarterly revenue from this segment within three years.
Profitability and Cost Management
EBITDA margin climbed back to 46.5% in Q4 FY26, reflecting strong fiscal discipline and operational efficiencies. The company's cost increase for FY26 was contained at 9% year-on-year (7.8% excluding depreciation), with a quarter-on-quarter increase of less than 1.5%. Non-MF profitability improved to over 16% in Q4, with a target to reach 20% by the end of next year. The Return on Equity (ROE) for FY26 stood at 39%, underscoring efficient capital utilization.
Re-architecture and Platform Modernization
CAMS is progressing with its re-architecture program, building a new cloud-native platform module-by-module. The transaction origination module is fully built and launching, expected to reduce industry complaints and net shrinkage. The data lake, which will host on-prem data on Google Cloud for advanced analytics, is technically ready and slated to go live in the first half of the year. These investments, part of a 4-5 year project, are expected to drive significant operational efficiencies and enhance productivity.
KRA Business Outlook and DPDP Compliance Offering
The KRA business is projected to have flat revenue in FY27, absorbing an INR8 crores impact from a 20% industry-wide price reduction implemented from April 1st. This will be offset by INR3 crores from the integration of NSE KRA and growth from new logo wins. CAMS launched ConsenPro, a commercial offering for DPDP (Digital Personal Data Protection) compliance, built in-house. Management anticipates 40,000-50,000 Indian companies will adopt this solution within the next 1-1.5 years, positioning it as a relevant new product category.
SIP Growth and Investor Base Expansion
New SIP registrations reached 1.26 crores in Q4 FY26, marking a 46% year-on-year increase and significantly outperforming the industry's 27% growth. Annual SIP registrations for FY26 were 4.7 crores, up 17% over FY25. SIP collections crossed INR20,000 crores in March and totaled INR59,000 crores for the quarter, growing 17% year-on-year. The company's share of overall collections increased from 57% to 64%, indicating continued expansion of its unique investor base.