ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENT FUND-SEBI CONCEPT PAPER

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has released a concept paper on proposed AIF norms. These would cover venture capital funds, private equity funds, debt funds, real estate funds and PIPE (private investment in public equity) funds, among others. It has proposed a minimum investment size of Rs 1 crore. The current norms allow a high net worth individual (HNI) to participate in a portfolio management scheme with as little as Rs 5 lakh. There are currently 45 players in the domestic MF sector, with overall assets under management (AUM) of Rs 6.96 lakh crore as on August 31. In 2010-11, the industry witnessed a net outflow of Rs 49,406 crore, compared with a net inflow of Rs 83,081 crore in the previous year. The highest outflow, of Rs 13,000 crore, was in equity schemes.