Hyderabad: Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya on Sunday said the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will take a final call on raising investment limit in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to 15% from 10% at a meeting scheduled on 27 May in Pune.
“On May 27, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation’s Central Board of Trustees (CBT) meeting is scheduled in Pune. Now, one of the major agenda items is ETF investments,” Dattatreya, the minister of state for labour and employment, told reporters here.
“Till now, we have done 10% investment. Now in the agenda discussion, we have to take decision of (raising) from 10% to 15%,” he said.
As of 21 April this year, an investment of Rs21,559 crore has been made and the market value is Rs23,845 crore with absolute return of 10.6% till 31 March, while the absolute return as on 21 April is 11.5%, the minister said.
“We have invested Rs6,577 crore in 2015-16 and Rs14,982 crore in 2016-17,” Dattatreya said, adding after the matter (raising investment limit) is finalised by CBT, then the labour ministry will take a final call.
“My contention is results are encouraging...returns are showing improvement. So by seeing this condition, CBT will take a decision,” he said.
Asked specifically if the meet will decide to increase the quantum of investments to 15%, Dattatreya said “Positively...it is most likely”.
The finance ministry had earlier notified a new investment pattern for EPFO, allowing the body to invest a minimum of 5% and up to 15% of its funds in equity or equity-related schemes. The EPFO had started investing up to 5% of its investable deposits in ETFs from August 2015.