It’s early days for GIFT City – India’s first operational smart city and international financial services centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project in Gujarat – but the regulator is very supportive and keen to make it successful, Edelweiss Mutual Fund MD and CEO Radhika Gupta has said.
Speaking to NDTV’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal on Walk The Talk, Gupta said Edelweiss has launched two products out of GIFT City (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) for money coming into India as well as for Indians working abroad. “They’re ready to engage, whether it is on technology or product. We have taken both bets. So we have actually got large NRI checks and we have just started international marketing. “I think when GIFT was conceived, the use cases were not known. We have also started with use cases that are closer to home, which is Indians. But, globally, as I talk to foreign investors and FIIs, I think the acceptance of GIFT will grow. Some of the funds listed here are actually channelling even their foreign investor money via GIFT.
Because nRIs find doing this via GIFT a lot more convenient, we want this to be a destination for NRIs coming into India via multi-manager and that has got very good uptake.
So it feels like everyone wants to come together and make this happen,” Gupta said. Asked about Edelweiss being among the first AMCs (Asset Management Companies) to actually launch a multi-manager fund out of GIFT City, the MD said, “We are actually doing two products. Gupta said Edelweiss will also target the US, including US tech, as well as Asian markets. And I think that’s going to grow as the destination acquires more stability,” she said.
