FinMin soon to relax investment rule for pension, insurance companies

12 Nov 2012 Evaluate

To enable participation of long-term and stable class of investors in the corporate bond market, the Finance Ministry is planning to relax investment guidelines for pension, provident funds and insurance companies. An indication to this effect was given by Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram at the India Infrastructure Investment Forum on Nov 9.

The legal amendments are required to strengthen the regulation for corporate debt. Currently, pension funds are required to keep 55 per cent of their debt investments in Central and State Government securities. The insurance companies were not allowed to hold over 10 per cent of the equity of investee company. Also, at least three-fourths of their debt portfolio should be invested in triple-A rated bonds.

Moreover, finance ministry is looking at amendments to the rules formulated by the Corporate Affairs Ministry, income tax law and SARFAESI law and for removal of legal and regulatory constraints for introduction of new products such as covered bonds, municipal bonds and credit defaults swaps. However, a lot of sovereign wealth funds and foreign pension funds had evinced interest in infrastructure debt funds, Mayaram added.

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