Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) Pvt. Ltd.

MASTERING THE FINANCIAL FRONTIER AT GIFT CITY, IFSC

The Most Trusted Company To Watch out 2024

As a remarkable addition to this publication, we bring to you the story of a visionary business leader. Meet Niteen D, who is the luminary guiding Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) Pvt. Ltd. to unprecedented success. With his 22 years of experience in the banking, financial services, and broking industries, Niteen’s journey showcases the power of his strategic prowess and steady dedication to his work. His expertise spans transaction banking product sales, trade assets, working capital products, forex derivatives, and remittances, making him a dynamic protagonist shaping the organisation’s growth trajectory.

To unpack various unexplored aspects of the venture that Niteen is spearheading as the director, we sat down for a one-on-one interaction with him that concluded in quite an informative conversation. We believe this will allow you to get a view of what Anand Rathi International Ventures intends to establish in GIFT City and how Niteen is fueling this vision with his stellar business acumen.

The vision

The company’s vision is to be the best financial service provider in GIFT City, IFSC, offering high-quality financial and broking services to NRIs, precious metal suppliers and domestic jewelers, and UHNI Indian residents. He highlighted the complexity of products like GIFT Nifty, NSE IFSC Receipts (US stocks), and precious metal supply and import, which require comprehensive research, advisory, and hand-holding for clients.

The GIFT City market operates 22 hours a day, necessitating dedicated shifts for US stock dealers to ensure uninterrupted service. The core aspects of their vision statement include providing exceptional service, maintaining transparency, and fostering strong client relationships. The company aims to lead in the financial advisory sector within GIFT City.

Leader’s Background Overview

Niteen D. attained a mechanical engineering degree in 1998. Later on, he pursued an MBA with a dual specialization in marketing and finance from the Faculty of Management Studies, New Delhi. As an avid Blockchain enthusiast Niteen is also an IIM Calcutta alumni and is certified in “Advanced Program in Fintech and Financial Blockchain” Course.

After attaining his higher education, his career began as a management trainee at Wockhardt Pharmaceuticals, followed by roles in the banking sector majors, including positions at ICICI Bank India, ICICI Bank Canada, ABN AMRO Bank, Royal Bank of Scotland, and RBL Bank. He also had a stint with Angel Broking Limited as Head of Currency Futures Desk .His expertise includes working capital financing, trade-related products, and business banking products. We have enlisted all of his professional roles so far, as follows:

• ICICI Bank: Roles in India and Canada.
• ABN AMRO: Continued after its acquisition by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS).
• Angel Broking: Head of Currency Futures Business (2009–2013).
• RBL Bank: Vice President, managing trade and forex products, remittances, and LRS.
• Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) Pvt. Ltd. joined as Director and CEO in 2022.

At present, Anand Rathi International Ventures has been operational in GIFT City since 2016, with a dedicated office and team since 2020. The company employs approximately 15 people, including US stock dealers who operate 24/7, a dedicated IIBX Trading and Operational Desk, client onboarding, and a relationship management desk in the Indian and UAE markets. Niteen frequently travels across Indian cities to meet UHNIs and family offices, big brand jewellers, and Dubai to manage overall business operations, meet clients, and expand the business horizons.

The Business Portfolio

Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) Pvt. Ltd., a part of the Anand Rathi Group, primarily operates as a broking company. While the Anand Rathi Group encompasses various different businesses, including investment advisory and share and stock broking, Anand Rathi International Ventures focuses predominantly on broking activities in GIFT City, IFSC.

Anand Rathi International Ventures holds trading memberships with all three major exchanges in GIFT City:

• India INX: They are a trading member of India INX.
• NSE IX: They hold a trading membership with NSE IX.
• IIBX: They are both trading and self-clearing members of IIBX.

Anand Rathi International Ventures holds a license as a registered distributor in GIFT City in addition to the trading memberships. With the use of this license, the business is allowed to market a range of financial Products and services that GIFT City offers, such as investment advisory services, global mutual funds, and AIFs, to their esteemed investors in India and NRIs across the globe.

In addition, Anand Rathi International Ventures is also a depository participant with India International Depository Limited (IIDL). The group serves clients situated in the UAE market, predominantly the Dubai market, by having agents in the market to expand its services beyond India.

The company’s clientele is diversified and includes family offices, domestic market players, non-resident Indians (NRIs), Indian high-net-worth individuals (HNIs), residents, and overseas citizens of India (OCIs). The Authorised Person network of the company has around 36 registered APs who also fuel the business with client referrals.

On the distribution front, Anand Rathi International Ventures has started registering Associated Distributors from the UAE market too. The company’s target segments are Indian residents (under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme), NRIs and OCIs, family offices, domestic market participants, bullion suppliers, and Indian jewellers who trade on the India International Bullion Exchange (GIFT City, IFSC).

He asserted great efforts on how the India International Bullion Exchange (IIBX) allows jewellers to import bullion and bullion suppliers outside India to supply precious metals like gold and silver. Anand Rathi International Ventures is a trading and self-clearing member of IIBX.

It has a client base of approximately 100 to 110 jewellers from the Indian market and around 10 to 12 suppliers from the Dubai market for IIBX. In the face of this, they have a highly reliable pipeline of about 60 to 70 jewellers from the Indian market and are actively trading on behalf of their clients via the IIBX platform.

With the recent launch of gold futures contracts on the IIBX exchange, Niteen is confident about the increase in the participation of jewellers on the IIBX platform for their hedging needs. The recent reduction in customs duty for precious metals announced in the FY 24–25 budget will attract more jewellers who want to directly import from the GIFT City exchange. The CEPA agreement between UAE and India that allows a 1 % duty benefit has also fueled the participation of Indian Jewellers on the IIBX platform.

Flagship Products and Services

• NSC IFSC Receipts (NSE IX Exchange): This product is available to both Indian residents and NRIs, allowing investment in the top 50 US stocks in the form of UDRs*, which are part of the S&P 500 Index. (* Unsponsored Depository Receipts). Investors who wants to diversify their investments globally now have an avenue to invest and trade in global blue-chip companies.

The product allows fractional investment too. The market opens at 7 p.m. and operates until 2.30 a.m. the next day. Niteen also commented that UHNI and investors have shown interest in the product and are looking forward to the addition of new stocks to the list. Fractional investment allows investors to buy fractions of these US stocks with a minimum investment of USD 10. The product is a regulated one, and investors can have the UDRs in their Demat account, thus keeping them safe! To start their global investment journey, a trading and Demat account can be opened using the Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) digital platform, DIGINXT.

• GIFT Nifty and other GIFT NIFTY Indexes (NSE IX Exchange): A USD-denominated version of the domestic Nifty 50 is available for NRIs and foreign entities to trade on this index within GIFT City. Previously known as SGX Nifty on the Singapore Exchange, it is now available on the NSE IX Exchange at GIFT City, IFSC.

The product has tremendous volatility and volume, as FPIs, EFIs, and NRIs are actively participating in the GIFT Nifty. It’s a 22-hour market, and the cost of transactions is very low as there are no transaction costs like STT, CTT, or exchange turnover taxes in GIFT City. An added advantage for NRIs is that GIFT City has a no-tax regime and no currency fluctuation risk.

• Global Access Platform (India INX Exchange): This platform provides investors and traders access to 135 exchanges worldwide. Indian residents can open accounts digitally, transfer funds, and trade via a mobile app.

• Distribution of AIFs: Anand Rathi International Ventures is an approved Registered Distributor in GIFT City. With this, the company has partnered with various AIF funds available in GIFT City. The AIF Funds allow NRIs to participate in Indian markets, viz., feeder funds. This reduces the tax burden, hassle of documentation, and currency risk. Some prominent AMCs with which Anand Rathi International Ventures (IFSC) has partnered are HDFC, ALCHEMY, ABSL, MIRAE and VIVRITI asset management companies.

About the leadership board of the Anand Rathi Group

• Mr. Anand Rathi is the founder and driving force behind the Anand Rathi Group. He is a Gold Medalist-chartered accountant and a leading financial and investment expert in India and the broader South-East Asian region. Before establishing the Anand Rathi Group, Mr. Rathi had an illustrious and fruitful career with the Aditya Birla Group. As a core member, he played a crucial role in shaping the flagship cement business of the group and spearheading its entry into various manufacturing and service sectors.

• Mr. Pradeep Gupta, the co-founder, drives the efficient Anand Rathi machinery across India. Initially involved in a familyowned textile business, he transitioned into the financial sector with Navratan Capital & Securities Pvt. Ltd. After successfully expanding this venture, Mr. Gupta collaborated with Mr. Anand Rathi to establish the Anand Rathi Group.

• Mr. Mathur is a veteran in the field, boasting a wealth of experience in commodities and currency broking, as well as in building businesses and teams. With a career spanning 26 years in financial markets, he has worked with organisations engaged in trading equities, commodities, and currencies.

The Digital Way: The Innovative Offering

Anand Rathi International Ventures has now come up with several unique products that are all set to revolutionise their purpose. The apt team behind utilising digital platforms to improve customer experiences and optimise workflows. Also, residents of India may now open trading and DMAT accounts in GIFT City quickly and within a day with the help of DigiNext, the first digital KYC onboarding platform specifically developed for them. The platform has drawn a lot of interest from HNI clients since it makes the onboarding process a lot simpler.

To ease the process of fund transfer for their clientele, under the LRS scheme, Anand Rathi International Ventures has tied up with banking majors to offer a digital way for outward remittances from their savings accounts to their trading accounts in GIFT City. The tie-ups reduce the cost of the transaction too, as clients save on the forex spreads and charges.

Additionally, the business provides GIFT City’s first smartphone app of its sort, ARTrade. With this software, investors can easily purchase US equities, and NRIs may trade on GIFT Nifty. They also plan to offer a digital onboarding platform for NRIs, and the same is in UAT.

Thus, investors interested in opening trading and demat accounts, transferring funds, and trading online are now able to do so with the various digital ways provided by Anand Rathi International Ventures, whose sole aim is to enhance the overall trading experience of their esteemed clients!

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Anand Rathi Gift City (Anand Rathi International Ventures ( IFSC ) Pvt Ltd)