SEBI for consolidation in mutual fund space, sets 1-year target for probes

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Sunday said there is a case for consolidation in the asset management industry owing to the presence of some non-serious players, but clarity on this course will emerge only after the national mutual fund policy is put in place.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Sunday said there is a case for consolidation in the asset management industry owing to the presence of some non-serious players, but clarity on this course will emerge only after the national mutual fund policy is put in place.

HT Image

At present, there are around 40 mutual fund companies.

“The entry barriers are not there and the capital requirement is very small,” said UK Sinha, chairman, SEBI. “Like the insurance policy and the pension policy, SEBI is working on a mutual fund policy and once this policy is in place, the industry will have clarity about the future.”

SEBI has set a one-year target to complete investigations, saying that the long-drawn probe processes are a thing of past and manipulators can’t escape the long arm of the law. “Our target is that going forward there will not be any matter where we will keep any case pending for beyond a year,” said UL Sinha, chairman, SEBI. “I am hundred per cent sure that we will be able to achieve that target.”