House panel on finance pitches for more IFSC-like hubs in India
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The parliamentary standing committee on finance has urged the government to consider setting up satellite financial innovation zones or fintech clusters in other major cities while maintaining its focus on International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in Gujarat's GIFT City as the core hub.In a report submitted with the Lok Sabha on Monday, the panel under senior BJP leader Bhartruhari Mahtab cited the growing demand for specialised financial services and called for exploring region-specific models for new IFSCs. Such models can draw 'inspiration from GIFT City's success to further integrate India into the global financial services landscape and bolster the nation's journey towards Viksit Bharat'.The panel stressed that while GIFT-IFSC is India's only such centre, China has 10 such hubs. Even other BRICS economies possess multiple financial hubs.More such hubs would help foster inclusive growth, create talent pools and attract diverse investors, it said.It acknowledged the Gujarat IFSC's improved ranking at 46th of 119 financial centres from its previous rank of 52nd in the Global Financial Centres Index . 'However, the committee believes further measures are essential to elevate GIFT-IFSC to a premier global financial hub, aligning with the vision of Viksit Bharat ,' it said.In its submission with the panel, the finance ministry has said 'all efforts would be made' to meet the FY26 miscellaneous capital receipt target—comprising disinvestment and asset monetisation goals—of Rs 47,000 crore. In FY25, such receipts stood at only Rs 16,731 crore—Rs 6,600 crore from asset monetisation and Rs 10,131 from disinvestment.The committee has, in its latest report, prescribed regular reviews of the government's asset monetisation goals in sectors, including road and railways, to ensure that the targets are met. The performance on asset monetisation needs to be 'rigorously and transparently' tracked, it said.'The committee opine that it is essential to stay on course to achieve the vision of asset monetisation as it will contribute to funding new capital investments, improving operational efficiencies and reducing fiscal burdens,' it added.
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