FRAMEWORK FOR GRANT OF FUNDS FOR RESEARCH STUDIES BY IFSCA

1 CIRCULAR F. No. 1068/IFSCA/EPA/Research/2023-24 December 04, 2023 To: All Applicants Dear Sir / Madam, FRAMEWORK FOR GRANT OF FUNDS FOR RESEARCH STUDIES BY INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICES CENTRES AUTHORITY This circular is issued in exercise of powers conferred by Section 12 of the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019 to develop and regulate the financial products, financial services, and financial institutions in the International Financial Services Centres. 1. Objectives 1.1. The framework is aimed at undertaking quick and effective policy-oriented research backed by strong analytical and empirical formulations, which will help the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) in designing effective policies and in evaluating the impact of implemented policies. 1.2. The framework aims to bring in domain expertise for conducting fundamental and original research, on topics that are of relevance to IFSCA, for policy formulation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation, necessary for the development of financial services market including “financial products”, “financial services”, and “financial institutions” in IFSC. 1.3. The framework also aims at encouraging research in emerging and promising financial disciplines for development of IFSC and mitigating regulatory challenges by developing suitable policy and regulatory framework in an effective and efficient manner. 2. Scope of Research Studies and Call for Proposals 2.1. The scope of research studies shall include, but not be limited to, the development of financial services market including financial products, financial services, and financial institutions in IFSC or other ancillary and incidental matters connected with IFSC. 2.2. Research is expected to be undertaken on policy/ regulatory/ market assessment as required by IFSCA. The IFSCA may issue an annual call for 2 proposals with a list of topics related to the aforementioned scope of research studies from eligible research institutions. The annual call for proposals may be made either every year in the month of January or multiple times in a year as per the requirements. 3. Eligibility 3.1 The applicant must be an academic institution that has achieved a ranking within the top 20 in the Management category, or the top 10 in the Research Institutions category, or the top 10 in the Law category, as per the latest NIRF India Rankings released by the Ministry of Education, Government of India. 3.2 The applicant institution shall appoint a lead researcher on behalf of it to undertake the research study and the lead researcher shall have: i. experience in research studies for at least 10 years in the field of finance, economics or any other field related to the research proposal, and ii. strong publication (research papers) record in high impact factor journals with high citation index. 3.3 The lead researcher, in each study, is expected to associate such other senior researchers with strong research and publication experience with desired competency or highly experienced practitioners from the financial services market. 4. Time Period and Other Conditions 4.1. Research shall be completed within a period of four to six months. However, upon request with due justification, extension of timeline for completing the research report may be granted in a special circumstance, post approval by Expert Committee (EC). 4.2. Applicant shall not have commercial interest in the research studies under this framework. Any conflict of interest shall be disclosed at the time of application. 5. Expert Committee 5.1. A research proposal received under this framework shall be referred to the EC constituted by IFSCA for appraisal and recommendations. 5.2. The EC shall, as far as possible, have representation from Regulators, Industry and Academia. 5.3. The experts having domain knowledge and expertise in the related areas may be included in the committee as desired by the EC. 6. Approval Process 6.1. Research proposals, received from the applicants upon call for proposals made by IFSCA, shall be placed before the EC for recommendations, after initial screening. 6.2. After due consideration of recommendations of EC, IFSCA may approve or reject a proposal in its entirety or in part and may also suggest modifications to any aspect of the proposal. Subsequently, IFSCA shall issue a sanction letter for each approved research proposal. 3 6.3. The EC may call for a progress report on the research undertaken, at periodic intervals, starting from the date of approval. 6.4. The EC may take expert opinion as to assess or review the on-going research. 6.5. The EC may recommend to IFSCA, to call off the research study at any time, if it appears to the Committee that the study is not viable or feasible. 7. Quantum of Assistance and Disbursal 7.1. Each research study shall carry an all-inclusive grant of Rupees Ten Lakh (Rs. 10,00,000/-) only (subject to TDS at the applicable rate). Grant shall be disbursed by IFSCA to the institution upon achievement of the milestones i.e., proposal approval, acceptance of the interim report and the acceptance of the final report by the IFSCA on the recommendation of EC. The milestones for disbursal of grant and the timelines for research study shall be as follows: Sr. No. Phase/Milestone Timeline* (Months) Grant Release (%) 1 Approval of research proposal Nil 10 2 Interim Report# 4 40 3 Final Report# and Presentation 6 50 *Timeline shall start from the date of approval of the Research Proposal and may differ as per the proposal #Grant shall be released after acceptance of interim and final reports by the IFSCA on the recommendation of EC 7.2. In case where the research study is called off, the grant release (%) shall correspond with the completed milestone(s). If the study is called off after submission of interim report, the report shall be deemed as accepted by IFSCA. 7.3. IFSCA may also collaborate with any regulatory/ statutory body or any other institution for jointly funding a research grant. 7.4. The Applicant receiving the grant will be required to submit an undertaking, as prescribed in Annexure-II, to the effect that they will adhere to the terms and conditions associated with the grant, failing which, the applicant shall return the grant to the Authority along with simple interest at the rate of 8% per annum. 8. Facilities 8.1. In addition to the grant for research studies, IFSCA may also provide restricted economy domestic air-fare tickets and per diem allowance, as decided, to the researcher during their visits to IFSCA Head Office Gandhinagar or any other place, in connection with the study. 4 8.2. Accommodation and local conveyance for such visit may be provided during each such visit as decided by IFSCA. 8.3. IFSCA may not encourage more than two visits depending upon the necessity, and each trip may not exceed two to three days at a stretch. The rest of the interactions may be held virtually on VC. 9. Final Report 9.1. The final report of the study shall be submitted by the lead researcher to IFSCA, which shall place the report before EC for evaluation. 9.2. The final report shall include the following points – I. The problem studies including the following: - (i) Theoretical context (ii) Review of existing literature (iii) Statement of the problem, including explanation of key concepts and mention of the hypotheses tested II. The Methodology of the study: (i) The research designs (ii) Tools used, detailed account, special contribution made by the study in devising new observations or sharpening existing ones (iii) Field work, if any, with details including problems encountered, etc. (iv) Schedule of the study (v) Organisation structure and problems (vi) Methodology gains (vii) Limitations of the study (viii) Other observations III. An account of the population/ data studied IV. Description and analysis of data, vis-à-vis objectives of the research V. Findings and conclusions: (i) Summary of findings (ii) Conclusions (iii) Implications for further research (iv) Suggestions for action and for policy making 10. Data Privacy It will be the absolute responsibility of the researcher and institution to keep the data being shared, if any, by IFSCA as confidential. Under no circumstances shall it be shared with any other entity or be used for any purpose other than carrying out research. The data shared by IFSCA shall be deleted once the research is completed/terminated. The researcher/institution will be liable for action, as deemed fit, in case of any breach of data. All such data shared by IFSCA and the report shall be treated as intellectual property of IFSCA. 11. Copyright and Publication 11.1. The IFSCA will have the copyright for each of the completed research. Each research shall carry the disclaimer that the views in the document are those