FM Nirmala Sitharaman launches new fund for MSMEs

Uttar Pradesh’s ‘One District One Product’ (ODOP) programme will aid in effective identification of “champion sectors” amongst MSMEs under the ‘Ubharte Sitaare Fund’, union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday as she launched the “ambitious” alternate investment fund for MSMEs in the state capital. The fund, co-sponsored by Exim Bank and Sidbi, was formed as per a 2020 union budget announcement but its launch was delayed due to Covid-19 and ensuing lockdowns over the last and current year. With a corpus of Rs 250 crore with a green shoe option of Rs 250 crore, the fund will look at investing in certain identified MSMEs by way of equity and equity-like products to boost presence of such enterprises in the export market.