For years, Indian investors looking for exposure to global markets largely relied on international mutual funds or direct overseas investing platforms. Now, GIFT City is emerging as a new route for accessing global investment opportunities without leaving India. According to Jay Kothari, GIFT City was originally designed as India's answer to global financial hubs such as Singapore and Mauritius.
Located in Gandhinagar, GIFT City allows Indian asset managers and investors to access international investment products through a unified regulatory framework overseen by the International Financial Services Centres Authority, or IFSCA.
How Retail Investors Can Invest
Kothari said the process for investing through GIFT City is designed to be similar to investing in mutual funds. Retail investors can invest either directly or through financial advisors by completing digital onboarding, transferring funds and receiving units in global investment products.
The investments operate under the Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme, or LRS, which allows individuals to remit up to $250,000 annually overseas. For a family of four, that effectively creates a combined investment capacity of nearly $1 million per year.
Minimum investment requirements vary depending on the structure. Alternative Investment Funds, or AIFs, operating through GIFT City may require investments of at least $150,000, while retail-oriented global products can have much lower entry thresholds. Kothari said some retail offerings begin at around $5,000.
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Why Investors Are Looking Overseas
The growing interest in global investing comes as Indian investors seek geographical diversification beyond domestic equities. “India is only 3% of the global market cap,” Kothari said. “You have 97% of opportunity which you are not exposed to.”
He pointed to the past two years as an example, when several global markets — including the US, Taiwan, China and Korea — outperformed Indian equities during certain periods. Kospi, for example, has seen a surge of nearly 200% in one year. Nifty, on the other hand, is down around 5% in the same time period.
GIFT City-based funds can invest across global stocks, exchange-traded funds and international mutual fund structures, depending on the strategy.
Risks and Taxation Still Matter
Kothari cautioned that global investing also introduces additional risks, including currency fluctuations, geopolitical developments and tax implications. For Indian residents investing through these structures, gains are taxed differently depending on the holding period, with long-term capital gains treatment generally applying after two years.
He added that while GIFT City simplifies operational access to global markets, investors should still understand the underlying products and ideally seek professional financial advice before allocating money overseas.
“The world is your stage,” Kothari said. “You can invest wherever you are most comfortable with.”
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