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Securities and Exchange Board of India Updates Rules for Asset Management Companies being Launched by Fintech Firms and Other Startups
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Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the regulator of the nation’s securities and commodities market, announced on Wednesday (December 16, 2020) that it has updated guidelines related to establishing asset management companies (AMCs) for Fintech firms and other startups.
SEBI confirmed that it has tightened up the shareholding guidelines for firms that may be relisting after completing the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) in order to ensure fair price discovery.
SEBI stated that an entity may sponsor a mutual fund even if it’s unable to meet profitability requirements. But the entity must have a net worth of at least Rs 100 crore (appr. $13.6 million). Currently, mutual fund sponsors are required to have a profitability track record and must have a net worth of Rs 50 crore.
Source: Value Research Another reason why investors are showing interest in this relatively new category of funds is the pause in the interest rates by RBI. The returns from the category are also going up because of slow down in the rate cuts.
“The RBI has held the policy rates for three consecutive times. This precisely means that even though the stance is accommodative, the likelihood of frequent rate cuts is very low. In 2021, we don’t see rates being cut drastically. In such a situation when our policy rates are already low, the floaters funds tend to benefit and offer higher returns. That is why many big investors started to put money in them,” says Neeraj Chauhan, CEO, The Financial Mall.
Synopsis
The regulator said the net worth of the AMC would have to be maintained until the time it makes a profit for five consecutive years.
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The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) Wednesday paved the way for technology startups to enter the mutual fund business by waiving the profitability requirement, approved doing away with minimum promoter contribution toward follow-on public offers (FPO), and also eased norms on investing in insolvent companies.
“To facilitate innovation and enhanced reach to more investors at a faster pace including tech-enabled solutions, sponsors that are not fulfilling profitability criteria at the time of making the application, shall also be considered eligible to sponsor a mutual fund subject to having a net worth of not less than Rs 100 crore for the purpose of contribution toward the net-worth of the asset management company (AMC),” Sebi said Wednesday after its board meeting.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday paved the way for fintech companies and other start-ups to set up asset management companies (AMCs) by tweaking the eligibility criteria. The market regulator also tightened the shareholding norms for companies relisting after undergoing the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) to ensure fair price discovery.
Sebi said an entity would be allowed to sponsor a mutual fund even if it didn’t fulfil the profitability requirement. However, the entity would need to have a net worth of Rs 100 crore. At present, MF sponsors need to have a profitability track record and are required to maintain a net worth of Rs 50 crore.
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