MUMBAI, April 20 (Reuters) - India's Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) has issued its first license to establish a family investment fund, marking a significant step in managing private wealth within the financial hub.
Here are some details:
o Permit granted to Poornam Asset Management IFSC Pvt Ltd, according to a GIFT City financial regulatory authority official who was not authorised to speak to the media.
o Underscores GIFT City's aim to build a globally competitive and flexible regulatory ecosystem for foreign family offices and private wealth structures, the GIFT City financial regulatory authority said.
o Some wealthy Asians are seeking alternatives to Dubai due to geopolitical tensions in the Gulf.
o Poornam Asset Management has an authorised capital of 7 million rupees ($75,175.86) and is directed by Vineet Kulbandhu Sharma, currently based in London, public disclosures showed.
o Sharma is a fund manager of two funds based in Hong Kong and London.
o Previously, GIFT City provided in-principle approval to family offices linked to Indian billionaire Azim Premji and Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy's family fund, Catamaran Artha.
o However, a final licence to these entities allowing them to manage wealth from GIFT City has yet to be granted due to concerns over potential flight of Indian capital, the official added.
($1 = 93.1150 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Jayshree P Upadhyay; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)
