The Finance Ministry has welcomed two new members to the Governing Council of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Trustee Ltd (NIIFTL). This council is responsible for providing strategic direction on various issues, including the investment strategy for NIIF’s corpus.
Highlights
New Appointments
The newly appointed members include:
– **C S Setty**, the Chairman of SBI, who succeeds Dinesh Khara.
– **Uday Kotak**, a seasoned banker and director at Kotak Mahindra Bank, who takes over from T V Mohandas Pai.
These nominations received the approval of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who serves as the Chairperson of the Governing Council. This information was confirmed in a circular issued by the Department of Economic Affairs within the Ministry of Finance.
Other Council Members
The remaining members of the council include:
– **Ajay Seth**, Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs
– **M Nagaraju**, Secretary of the Department of Financial Services
– **Hemendra Kothari**, Chairman of DSP Group
About the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund
The NIIF, with a corpus of Rs 40,000 crore, operates as a quasi-sovereign wealth fund established in December 2015. Its primary goal is to boost infrastructure financing by investing in:
– **Greenfield projects** (new ventures)
– **Brownfield projects** (existing investments)
– **Stalled projects** (those that have not progressed)
In November 2020, the Union Cabinet endorsed a proposal for an equity infusion of Rs 6,000 crore by the government into the NIIF Debt Platform, which is sponsored by the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund. This platform includes Aseem Infrastructure Finance Ltd and NIIF Infrastructure Finance Ltd.
