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Informist, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025

NEW DELHI – The Securities and Exchange Board of India has simplified the path for low-risk foreign investors to participate in the Indian securities market with the introduction of single-window access for foreign portfolio investors and foreign venture capital investors. This will help boost long-term capital inflow into Indian markets by minimising compliance burden.

The new framework – Single Window Automatic & Generalised Access for Trusted Foreign Investors (SWAGAT-FI) – will provide easier investment access to low-risk foreign investors, enable a unified registration process across multiple investment routes, and reduce repeated compliance and documentation for such entities, according to two separate notifications dated Dec. 1. The new gateway will come into effect 180 days thereafter, the notifications said.

Low-risk foreign investors identified by SEBI include government-owned funds, central banks, sovereign wealth funds, multilateral entities, highly regulated public retail funds, and appropriately regulated insurance companies, as well as pension funds. 

Both amendments streamline the administrative burden, requiring registration fees to be paid in advance for a block of 10 years, rather than shorter cycles, providing greater certainty and efficiency for long-term institutional investors.

For foreign venture capital investors, SEBI has exempted them from investment allocation limits by removing the mandatory minimum investment of 66.67% in unlisted securities, and the limit of 33.33% on investment in specified securities. This will help investors – through the single window – exercise complete autonomy to allocate their funds flexibly across both India's listed and unlisted markets.

To support FPIs operating from international financial services centres, SEBI has allowed retail schemes in IFSCs with a resident Indian sponsor or manager, to register as FPIs, according to one of the notifications. Currently, alternative investment funds at IFSCs with a resident Indian sponsor or manager are permitted to register as FPIs.  End

Reported by Priyasmita Dutta

Edited by Avishek Dutta

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