Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Non-Tech : ICICI Ltd - (Nyse: IC) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (67)	2/6/2000 3:19:00 PM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 494

ICICI to take 55% stake in IT fund New Delhi, February 6 (K. A Badarinath-HT) The ICICI will pick up majority stake at 55 per cent in the much hyped India IT and Software Brand Equity Fund being set up by the Union Government to promote Indian software products in the international markets. Both Finance and Information Technology Ministries have cleared a proposal on this count. Of the total Rs 100 crore investment in the IT brand equity fund, ICICI will be allowed to pitch in with Rs 55 crore through its Venture Capital Funds Management Co Ltd. The rest, Rs 45 crore, would be pitched in by the Ministry of Information Technology. (MIT). The funds would be provided by Finance Ministry through budgetary support to the MIT. Support is being provided to this fund over two years by the Finance Ministry. The Fund was launched by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee in December 1999. Sources said MIT is considering a proposal to double the investment in this fund over next four years. The fund management would be done via a two tier structure. A separate trust and a professional managed ASC are being floated to undertake the fund management. A board of trustees would manage the affairs of the trust, while an AMC would be constituted. The AMC would be entitled to enter into collaboration with other financial institutions and industry to manage the fund. Sources said the fund would be utilised for promoting IT and software industry abroad especially those products that have achieved international quality and performance standards. Domestic awareness campaigns are also sought to be supported by this fund, while IPR related activities and Nasdaq listings of Indian software and hardware companies would also be helped. Assistance in the form of soft loans at nominal interest rate would be available to industry associations, export promotion councils promoting IT industry abroad. "The sun rise industry is expected to rake in annual US $ 20 billion exports in next three years" said an official source. This figure is sought to be hiked to US $ 50 billion by 2008. Already the Commerce Ministry has set up an India Brand Ezquity Fund to make "Made in India" a symbol of quality and competitive price. hindustantimes.com