India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Indian government has approved the establishment of a Development Fund Institution (DFI), according to media outlets. The new national bank will use the markets to raise capital and put those funds into long-term infrastructure projects.
In her budget for the financial year 2021–2022, Sitharaman designated INR 200 billion ($2.8 billion) for such a body, aiming to help fund a proposed $1.5 trillion in infrastructure projects.
The DFI would seek to raise funds from global pension and insurance sectors for investment in new projects.
According to Sitharaman, there are around 7,000 projects in the infrastructure pipeline. The board will decide which projects will be taken up on a priority basis and which ones will receive funding later.
