Foreign Direct Investment

Subscribe to Foreign Direct Investment

Ministry of Corporate Affairs circular - Legal Enforceability

Context

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (“MCA”) is entrusted with the responsibility of administering the Companies Act, 2013 (“2013 Act”). To this end, it has issued many a circulars to clarify the provisions of the 2013 Act and the rules made thereunder from time to time. On important matters like CSR, the ministry has issued detailed FAQs in the form of clarificatory circulars. Till date, the MCA has issued more than 210 clarificatory circulars under the 2013 Act.…

Continue Reading Are Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) Circulars constitutionally valid?

New ODI Regime

Background

The Ministry of Finance (“MoF”) and Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) notified the new overseas investment (“OI”) regime on August 22, 2022 (“New Regime”).

The New Regime inter alia comprises the OI Rules, 2022[1] notified by the MoF (“Rules”), the OI Regulations, 2022[2] notified by the RBI and the Master Directions issued by the RBI to authorised persons. It supersedes FEMA 120[3] and the circulars and directions issued thereunder (“Old Regime”).…

Continue Reading New ODI Regime: What RBI needs to clarify?

SEBI Clarifies Applicability of Portfolio Managers Regulations to an Indian Manager of an Offshore Fund

In an interpretative letter sought under the SEBI (Informal Guidance) Scheme, 2003 (“Informal Guidance”), the markets regulator has clarified that the investment manager of an alternative investment fund (“AIF”) can provide investment management services to an offshore fund only as a SEBI-licensed  portfolio manager under the SEBI (Portfolio Managers) Regulations, 2012 (“PM Regulations”). SEBI also reiterated that the investment managers of AIFs are considered to be regulated by SEBI. In this post, we will explore the queries, SEBI’s responses, and implications for the industry.…

Continue Reading SEBI Clarifies Applicability of Portfolio Managers Regulations to an Indian Manager of an Offshore Fund

security clearance

Background:

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (“MCA”), vide notification dated June 1, 2022, notified the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Amendment Rules, 2022 (“2022 Amendment Rules”), which amended the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014 (“Appointment and Qualification Rules”).[1] This amendment states the security clearance requirements needed to hold directorship position in an Indian company, if an individual is a national of a country which shares land border with India.…

Continue Reading Raising the wall higher: This time no directorship without security clearance

Liberalisation of FDI In Insurance Companies – A look at the step(s) taken since the Big Budget Announcement

The industry is now well versed with the move to liberalise foreign direct investment (“FDI”) in Indian insurance companies to 74%, from the existing cap of 49%. The announcement was first made by the Finance Minister Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2021, as part of her Budget presentation. The move followed the raise in FDI limits to 100% in insurance intermediaries, which was announced by Ms. Sitharaman in July 2019 and effected in September 2019.
Continue Reading Liberalisation of FDI In Insurance Companies – A Look at the Step(s) Taken Since the Big Budget Announcement

FDI IN DIGITAL MEDIA - A CASE FOR FURTHER CLARIFICATION

 

The Government of India recently issued a clarification on FDI in digital media sector. The pre-cursor to this clarification is Press Note 4 of 2019 (“Press Note 4”) that allowed up to 26% FDI in entities engaged in uploading/ streaming of news and current affairs through digital media platforms under the Government approval route, similar to the print media sector. We have analysed the implications of the recent clarifications on entities that are engaged in the digital media sector.

Press Note 4 did not provide a definition of “Digital Media” and accordingly there were concerns regarding entities that fall within its ambit. The Government of India therefore issued the “Clarification on FDI Policy for uploading/streaming of news and current affairs through Digital Media” on October 16, 2020 (“Clarification”). The Clarification inter alia provides that Press Note 4 shall apply to the following types of entities registered or located in India:…
Continue Reading FDI IN DIGITAL MEDIA: A CASE FOR FURTHER CLARIFICATION

FDI in Brownfield Pharma – Will COVID-19 be the catalyst for policy reforms

The pharma sector has gained renewed global attention due to the crisis brought about by COVID-19, a pandemic having an unprecedented impact on health and wellbeing of citizens across geographical boundaries. It is estimated that around 76 pharma companies across the world are in a race to develop and mass-produce an effective vaccine in the fight against COVID-19[1]. Indian pharma companies too are playing a vital role in this search.[2] The Indian pharmaceutical industry has responded to the rapid challenges arising from disruption in supply chains and is working in an integrated manner to drive local expertise by production and export of essential formulation to countries across the globe, and live up to its title as the ‘Pharmacy of the World’.
Continue Reading FDI in Brownfield Pharma – Will COVID-19 be the Catalyst for Policy Reforms?

REVISED FDI LIMIT IN DEFENCE - Impact and Opportunity

On May 16, 2020, as part of the economic packages being announced to revive the Indian economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Finance Minister announced that the automatic route limit for foreign investment in the defence sector will be raised from 49% to 74%. This had been a long-standing demand of the foreign original equipment manufacturers (OEM) lobby, stating unease in transferring high-end, proprietary technology to Indian entities that they cannot control. Therefore, the Government’s move is definitely a positive step, which should accelerate foreign investment in the sector, but the impact of certain other aspects of the present regulatory regime may dampen this positive sentiment. This post discusses the various factors that would impact OEM decision making around investing in the India’s defence sector, and further steps that should be taken to make high-end technology transfer to India a reality.
Continue Reading REVISED FDI LIMIT IN DEFENCE: Impact and Opportunity

Non-Debt Instruments -The New Rules for Foreign Flows

In a quiet mid-October surprise, nearly four and a half years after the passage of the Finance Act 2015 (20 of 2015), the Government notified the effective date for implementation of the clauses that amended Section 6 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA). The notification defining debt and non-debt instruments followed suit and then of course the Non Debt Instrument Rules (NDI Rules) under FEMA, which superseded the extant FEMA 20R and 21R.
Continue Reading Non-Debt Instruments -The New Rules for Foreign Flows

India Simplifies Foreign Investment Reporting Process Update

On June 7th, 2018, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had introduced two new forms (namely Single Master Form and Entity Master Form) vide a circular[1] (RBI Circular), with the aim of simplifying reporting under the Foreign Exchange and Management Act, 1999 (FEMA). Our earlier blog post contained details of the two forms and our in-depth analysis of the same. On June 27th, 2018, RBI released a User Manual for Entity Master – FIRMS[2] (User Manual) which provides detailed instructions and the process for filing the Entity Master Form.
Continue Reading India Simplifies Foreign Investment Reporting Process: Update