LIC, EPFO could start investing in Indian startups, do investors need to worry?

If the government allows LIC and EPFO investments in Indian startups, then the country’s startups won’t have to depend on foreign fundings for their growth. 

New Delhi: Your investments in the schemes offered by the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and the Employees' Provident Fund (EFPO) could be invested in India’s startups to offer you promised returns. Both the state-backed organisations are in talks with the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to invest in India’s startup ecosystem, which has grown manifold in the past few decades.  If the government allows LIC and EPFO investments in Indian startups, then the country’s startups won’t have to depend on foreign fundings for their growth. At present, Indian startups usually raise most of the capital from several countries such as Singapore, Saudi Arabia, the US, and Canada, among other nations.  Additional secretary of DPIIT, Anil Agarwal, said that the government is in the process of encouraging the two state-owned firms - LIC and EPFO - to start investing in India’s startups to get hefty returns from their funds, according to a report by ET.