Irdai allows OTP for opening online insurance account
NEW DELHI: Regulator Irdai has permitted usage of OTP or one time password for opening e-insurance account (EIA) as an alternative to electronic signature.
As part of its ongoing effort to improve insurance penetration, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has also permitted E-KYC facility offered by UIDAI which provides the unique Aadhaar numbers.
Irdai said as part of its developmental mandate and to reach out to the policyholders in a cost efficient manner it has taken number of steps, including insurance e-commerce, issuance of electronic insurance policies, and maintenance of electronic records.
Insurers and other stakeholders had approached the regulator seeking clarity on some of the issues related to guidelines. NEW DELHI: Investments in the domestic capital market through participatory notes (P-notes) slumped to a five year low of Rs 1.35 lakh crore in July-end amid stringent norms put in place by Sebi.
The total value of P-notes investments in Indian markets -- equity, debt and derivatives -declined to Rs 1,35,297 crore at July-end from Rs 1,65,241 crore at the end of June, according to Sebi data.
This was the lowest level since July 2012 when the cumulative value of such investments stood at Rs 1,29,586 crore.
P-notes are issued by registered foreign portfolio investors to overseas players who wish to be a part of the Indian stock markets without registering themselves directly.
They however need to go through a proper due diligence process. Of the total investments in July, P-note holdings in equities were at Rs 1 lakh crore and the remaining were in debt and derivatives markets.
Besides, the quantum of FPI investments via P-notes fell to 4.4 per cent in July from 5.7 per cent in the preceding month.
In July, markets regulator Sebi had notified stricter Pnotes norms stipulating a fee of $1,000 that would be levied on each instrument to check any misuse for channelising black money.
Also, the regulator prohibited FPIS from issuing such notes where the underlying asset is a derivative, except those which are used for hedging purposes. NEW DELHI: Continuing the selling spree, foreign investors have pulled out close to Rs 3,000 crore from equities in the first week of this month amid "lacklustre earnings season" as well as tensions between the US and North Korea over the latter's nuclear programme.
The net outflow by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIS) follows a withdrawal of Rs 12,770 crore from the stock market in August. Prior to that, they had pumped in over Rs 62,000 crore in the past six months, February-july. According to the latest depository data, FPIS withdrew a net of Rs 2,965 crore ($462 million) from September 1-8.
However, they pumped in Rs 2,700 crore in debt markets during this period. After taking into the account the latest outflow, the total investment by FPIS in equity markets is at Rs 45,220 crore this year.