ICICI Prudential eyes DIFs

Mumbai, Aug 9 (UNI) Country's second largest private fund house in market share, ICICI Prudential AMC, may launch Dedicated Infrastructure funds (DIFs) to boost its prospects in country's emerging infrastructure sector.

DIFs, a tool for mutual funds to invest in securities and unlisted infrastructure companies, had recently received green signal from the U K Sinha Committee, constituted by market watchdog SEBI with a view to promote investments in infrastructure sector.

ICICI will come up with DIF, which will invest in unlisted infrastructure companies with longer gestation periods, once the regulator clears the proposal, company CIO Nilesh Shah told UNI today.

''We see DIFs as a welcome move as the scope is immense in the expanding construction sector of the country. We will be venturing into DLFs once the regulator creates the fund. However, this will be done separately from the current MF operations in infrastructure sector,'' Mr Shah said.

ICICI Prudential, which is the second largest MF house in the country in terms of market share (10 per cent), has Assets Under Management (AUM) at Rs 48,688 crore.

The fund house today said it has recognised engineering and construction sectors, utilities and real estate as the most favored sectors in domestic market.

''MFs have increased scope in coming years. Emerging airports, roads and other construction projects offer an array of opportunities for the investors,'' Mr Shah added.

The DIF proposal, which has been currently posted for public comments by the SEBI, is expected to be allowed for SEBI-recognised AMCs by the end of this year or early next year, according to sources.

The U K Sinha Committe, which had tabled the recommendations on August 6, had proposed that DIFs can be launched by all SEBI-registered AMCs and may be allowed to invest upto 100 per cent of its funds in unlisted securities, including both equity and debt instruments.

DIFs will operate as closed-ended schemes, with a maturity of seven years and a possibility of one or two extensions, subject to adequate disclosure in the offer documents and approval of trustees.

The Committee, in the report, had also said, ''DIFs may be allowed to take control of the asset, if they so desire, and own up to 100 per cent of the paid up capital of a company.'' UNI