FPIs left in the lurch as debt investment route reaches limit

Many won't be able to meet commitments that were to be bid in tranches, say experts

Foreign debt investment through the voluntary retention route (VRR) has seen a sudden surge in the past few days on the back of one or two large transactions, totalling Rs 15,000-20,000 crore, said people in the know.

This has resulted in the utilisation of the VRR limit and has caught a number of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) off guard as they will be unable to fulfil their original investment commitments that were to be bid in tranches.

“In the last 2-3 weeks a huge chunk of the limit has been taken away, as a result of which many of our clients can’t