Sebi amends investment rules; lays framework for employment benefit scheme

Capital markets regulator Sebi came out with a framework for a unit-based employment benefit scheme for investment trusts -- REITs and InvITs.

Under the framework, Sebi has prescribed the manner of the implementation of the scheme through a trust, the manner of receiving units by the employee benefit trust and the manner of allotment of units to the employee benefit trust by REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) and InvIT (Infrastructure Investment Trust).

In two separate notifications, Sebi said the 'unit-based employee benefit scheme' would be in the nature of the employee unit option scheme.

Employee unit option scheme refers to a scheme under which the investment manager grants unit options to its employees through an employee benefit trust.

The implementation of the scheme would be done through a separate Employee Benefit Trust (EB Trust) which can be created by the manager of a REIT or the investment manager of InvIT. The units held by EB Trust would be used only for the limite