Karnataka sees highest MSME funding from SRI fund

Karnataka sees highest MSME funding from SRI fund As a part of Atmanirbhar Bharat package, Rs 50,000 crore equity infusion for MSMEs through Fund of Funds was announced in 2020, for which the SRI Fund was set up. Implementation of the government’s Self-Reliant India Fund (SRI Fund) over the past five years has remained limited in most states. Only a handful of MSMEs have benefitted under the fund in most states and UTs. However, Karnataka seems to have beaten the lag with 151 investee companies, the highest in India, according to a reply in Lok Sabha by the Minister of State for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), Shobha Karandlaje, With very few states having reached double digits, only Maharashtra is a close second with 144 investee MSMEs. In total, 577 companies across India have benefitted from the fund since its inception, as of February 28, 2025. As a part of Atmanirbhar Bharat package, Rs 50,000 crore equity infusion for MSMEs through Fund of Funds was announced in 2020, for which the SRI Fund was set up. Under the fund, there is a provision of Rs 10,000 crore from the central government and Rs 40,000 crore comes from private equity and venture capital funds. The funding aims to help those MSMEs which have the potential and viability to grow and become large units, Karandlaje said. Under the operationalisation of this central sector fund, 60 daughter funds have been empanelled including Tata Capital, IDBI Capital, SIDBI Venture, ICICI Venture, amongst others. “By way of investing of Rs 10,979 crore, 577 MSMEs have been assisted... according to the written reply furnished. “Under SRI Fund, Rs 1,722 crore has been allocated and released by the central government to NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited (NVCFL) and an amount of Rs 1,641.90 crore has been utilised,” added Karandlaje. NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited (NVCFL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC), operates as the mother fund. As per the model, the SRI Fund shall invest in SEBI registered Category I and Category II Alternative Investment Funds (the daughter funds), which shall in turn invest in MSMEs. The daughter funds shall invest at least five times the amount of capital. contribution received from SRI Fund (net of fees and expenses) in MSMEs, defined as per the MSMED Act. (Published in Deccanherald , Bengaluru, 21 March 2025, 03:09 IST Karnataka News : https://www.deccanherald.com/india/karnataka/k-taka-sees-highest-msme-funding-from-sri-fund-3455567)