GIFT City is seeing growing interest from Indian investors looking to access global markets, but India INX believes the bigger opportunity could be to make the financial hub a two-way gateway for capital. Vijay Krishnamurthy, MD and CEO of India INX, which operates Global Access (a platform that enables investors in India to access global securities through GIFT City) said regulatory clarity is beginning to give the business momentum. The other side of that equation is attracting global investors to India. Tony (Anthony) Petrilli, Chairman and CEO of US-headquartered ViewTrade Holding Corporation, which provides the technology and market infrastructure for cross-border investing, calls this emerging opportunity “investment tourism”. The executives not only see a large untapped market ahead, but also expect greater clarity on KYC, equity listings and dual listings over the next 3-6 months. Edited excerpts:
Is the opportunity for GIFT City now as much about bringing global investors into India as it is about taking Indian investors overseas?
Tony : Our clients outside India are very interested in India too. GIFT City is a very interesting way to bring those investors into the Indian market. This is going to be a two-way flow — money coming back to India too. India is a dynamic market. Quite frankly, the next 20 years are India’s and people recognise that. GIFT City represents a potential opportunity to bring those investors to the Indian market. A lot is going on around the world, and investors want to participate where wealth and great ideas are being created. India is one hell of a great story when it comes to that. I really like the word “investment tourism”.
Vijay : The objective from the beginning has been to see how GIFT IFSC can become a true international jurisdiction where both inbound and outbound investment happen. Today the globe has become seamless. You are sitting in the comfort of your home and, with technology and the payment systems that have been built, you can access markets around the world. The idea now is to develop a true international centre where both-way flows happen equally. There is a lot of interest in global markets to participate in India, while Indians are also looking at opportunities globally.
But doesn’t greater access to global markets mean more Indian money moving overseas?
Vijay: There is a misconception that money is going from the Indian securities market to the global securities market. Indians, like any other investment community, want to diversify. Take overseas education. Indians typically aspire for their children to study abroad, particularly in the US. Someone may start accumulating assets in a foreign currency to build that corpus. In doing so, they are also hedging against currency fluctuations. Over the last two years, Indian equities have not performed as strongly as some global markets. So there is an opportunity to diversify perhaps 1-3 per cent of a portfolio overseas, depending on one’s risk appetite. I would say diversification is good. You are not just diversifying across asset classes, but across securities, jurisdictions and countries.
We strongly believe in India’s growth story. Indians will continue to invest in Indian securities. This is not about keeping your money away from India; it is about not keeping all your eggs in one basket.
What is different about the GIFT City model for an Indian investor?
Tony: Opening the accounts of Indian residents outside India is not the right thing to do. We spent five years working with regulators and exchanges to understand what it means to offer cross-border business from India. We are a broker from a licence perspective, but we like to think of ourselves as a solution provider. We are a technology-first company and work only on a B2B basis with financial institutions. The model we brought here did not exist before. The important difference is that an Indian resident can open an account here in India under Indian and IFSCA rules.
If you are an Indian resident opening an account in the US, do you have access to the US legal system? Probably not. Bringing that entire process to India changes the equation. You have an Indian-based account subject to Indian laws and regulations, and you can trade global stocks in almost the same way as you trade in local markets. That is a game changer.
There are hundreds and thousands of accounts opening every month and it is growing rapidly. It is just the beginning. The core mission is to make it seamless, frictionless and as easy as possible for anybody to have access to the world markets. It sounds like a simple mission, but we do all the hard work with the exchanges, regulators, banks and the entire ecosystem required to deliver what, to the end customer, seems like the push of a button.
Vijay: Earlier, these opportunities were available to Indians, but there was limited awareness and there was also a trust issue — your money was going somewhere and your securities were lying somewhere. Today, through the GIFT ecosystem, it comes through a trustworthy ecosystem. You have a regulated entity with a legacy behind it. We are also building our own capacity to support investors as the scale increases.
What still needs to be fixed before this becomes a much larger market?
Vijay: KYC is one of the key things that needs to be solved. There has been progress with video KYC for certain jurisdictions and categories of investors, but a lot of processes still need to be eased. There is also a lot happening around equity listings and dual listings. Optimistically, in the next 3-6 months, we should see greater clarity on these policy issues. Once that happens, the doors will open a lot more. We are already talking to startups, unlisted companies and merchant bankers. Compared with the domestic framework, there are areas where the requirements are lighter.
And where does GIFT City go from here?
Tony: We have set up 70-80 people in GIFT City and are continuing to grow. Everyone helping with these accounts, trading those accounts and moving money through those accounts is working in GIFT City. The people you need to talk to are here. Those who are accountable are here. It is actually less cost-effective for me as ViewTrade because I have built a new infrastructure, organisation and technology stack here instead of simply using the scale we already have elsewhere. But it is worth it. From the end customer’s perspective, our investment makes the process much more efficient.
Vijay: I would say we are more of a startup where something is being developed right from the policy. Over the next 3-5 years, the scale is going to be far larger. The focus is to create an environment where inbound and outbound investments happen seamlessly and to bring new products for both sets of investors.
Tony: Ultimately, this is not just a story about giving people access. It is about helping them discover what is happening around the world, giving them information and technology so they can make informed decisions and participate in global wealth creation. That is the bigger opportunity for GIFT City.
Published on October 9, 2026
