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ARTHA

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India corpus of USD 77 billion. There is also a growing
(IRDAI), and the Pension Fund Regulatory and momentum in relocation of funds from overseas
Development Authority (PFRDA); the IFSC has been locations to GIFT IFSC on account of its globally aligned
brought under the regulatory purview of a dedicated and regulatory regime and competitive tax structure.
unified financial regulator, the International Financial
Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), through an Act of Further, a complete capital market ecosystem has been
Parliament. In the last five years, IFSCA has notified 30+ established within IFSC, with the presence of Market
Regulations and 15+ Frameworks across the entire Infrastructure Institutions, such as Stock Exchanges,
spectrum of financial services, including banking, capital Clearing Corporations, and a Depository, as well as
markets, fund management, insurance, and specialized Intermediaries, such as Broker-Dealers, Clearing
segments, such as aircraft and ship leasing. Members, Custodians, Investment Advisers, Depository
Participants.
Third, the Central Government has provided a competitive
tax regime for the IFSC which is at par with leading global The monthly turnover on the Stock Exchanges in IFSC
financial centres. had reached USD 96 billion in December 2025. GIFT
IFSC is also emerging as a preferred jurisdiction for
Collectively, these enablers have not only provided a fillip listing of debt securities. As of December 2025, 170+
to the zone but have also contributed to ease of doing Bonds have been listed on the IFSC Stock Exchanges
business and long-term certainty. by around 50 issuers, raising nearly USD 68 billion.

Niche business sectors such as Aircraft and Ship
The Growth Momentum leasing are also exhibiting strong growth in IFSC. 34
Aircraft leasing firms have been granted approval for
The IFSC is now well poised to contribute significantly to operation in IFSC. As of December 2025, these firms
the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047 as outlined by the have leased 370 Aviation Assets, comprising of 196
Hon’ble Prime Minister. The strong growth momentum is Aircrafts & Helicopters, 89 Engines, and 85 Aircraft
evident from the fact that in the last five years, IFSCA has auxiliary power units (APUs), with strong participation of
granted over 1,200 registrations across 30+ business leading commercial airline companies. Similarly, the ship
segments including banks, capital market entities, fund leasing ecosystem is also evolving at a rapid pace given
management entities, aircraft and ship leasing firms, the strong focus of the Government of India to develop
among others. Several leading global financial the maritime sector in the country. More than 29 ship
institutions have now established a substantive leasing firms have already been registered with IFSCA.
presence in the IFSC to undertake India centric foreign
currency business as well as global business operations. To augment talent availability in IFSC, the Government
of India has also permitted foreign universities to
Core financial services businesses, such as Banking, establish branch campuses in IFSC, offering courses in
Fund Management, and Re(insurance), have been financial management, fintech, science, technology,
growing at a rapid pace with participation of both global engineering and mathematics. Deakin University,
and Indian institutions. The Banking sector, which acts University of Wollongong from Australia, and Queen’s
as a life-blood for any financial centre, is making University, Belfast have established their International
significant strides with participation of 37 Banks, Branch Campuses in GIFT IFSC and have commenced
including 20 foreign banks. The total banking assets academic operations with the launch of several
have increased from USD 14 billion in September 2020 master’s programmes. This initiative is expected to
to USD 106 billion in December 2025, driven primarily by augment the industry - academia collaboration for
the growth in External Commercial Borrowings and employment generation, internship opportunities and
Trade Finance activities. research work.

Similarly, on the Fund Management side, GIFT IFSC is
seeing great traction for pooling of global capital for The Way Forward
making investments into India. Till December 2025, 202
Fund Management Entities (FMEs) have been granted As the participation of global financial institutions grows
registration under the IFSCA (Fund Management) and the range of financial products and services expands,
Regulations, 2025. These FMEs have launched 327 the financial markets within GIFT IFSC are expected not
Alternative Investment Funds with a total targeted only broaden in scope but also to deepen liquidity.

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