IFSC GIFT City | Financial hub, a work in progress
The Hindu
A subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange on Thursday introduced a facility by which Indian retail investors can directly trade in stocks that are listed on the U.S. stock exchanges. The NSE arm would invest the funds in those specific stocks against which investors would receive depository receipts in lieu of actual shares.
The subsidiary – NSE IFSC – is registered at the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT), a financial district located between Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in Gujarat.
The City was conceptualised as an alternative to global financial hubs such as Hong Kong, Singapore or London. Though the idea was mooted in 2007, work on the physical infrastructure started in 2012. It was only in 2015 that business regulations were introduced; 2017 saw the setting up of an international exchange.
The GIFT City SEZ – with demarcations for domestic and export-oriented units – is the only place in India to be designated as an IFSC.