ISLAMABAD: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has fixed reduced fee for registration of a private fund, ie, Rs500,000 instead of Rs1 million.
The SECP will also allow both individual investors and foreign investors to participate in private funds.
The SECP has specified this in the Consultation Paper on private funds issued on Wednesday.
“It may be clarified that fee for registration of a private fund is Rs 500,000 instead of 1 million. Further, term fund size may be used instead of proposed size of investible funds. Additionally, term custodian may be inserted where the details of trustees are required,” the SECP clarified.
Private Fund Regulations, 2015: SECP proposes significant amendments
Under the revised regulations, the term “Eligible Investor” is proposed to be expanded to include individual investor both local and foreign along with relaxed financial resource requirement and inclusion of term “Qualified Institutional Buyer”. The classification of the eligible investors into Individual and Qualified Institutional Buyers is being defined separately as the regulations only define individuals as eligible investors.
Additionally, requirement for eligible investor has been relaxed through inclusion of net income requirement to enable broader investor participation in Private Funds and stimulate market growth.
The commission has initiated impact analysis to assess efficacy of the Private Fund Regulations, 2015 in catering to the rapidly evolving Private Fund landscape within the country. Given increased preference for Shariah compliant private funds, the regulations are also being reviewed for ensuring better linkage and enabling enhanced adherence to Shariah principles and the Shariah governance regulatory framework recently notified by the SECP.
The SECP has proposed that definition of “Small and Medium Enterprise Fund or “SME” may be incorporated in the Regulations. The definition of “SME Fund” has been introduced to align SECP regulatory framework with international standards and ensure clarity in fund categorization.
It is proposed that definition of “Shariah Compliant Private Fund” may be incorporated in the Regulations.
The sessions follow the SECP’s publication of a Consultation Paper in July 2025, which was drafted subsequent to earlier feedback received from the industry.
The paper highlights proposed amendments to the private fund regulations that provide a more structured and globally aligned approach to regulating private equity and venture capital funds. Proposed changes include clearly defined subtypes of private funds, expanded investor eligibility, and enhanced governance.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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