Para 2 - Definitions - SEBI (International Financial Services Centres) Guidelines, 2015

Definitions. 2. (1) In these guidelines, unless the context otherwise requires, the terms defined herein shall bear the meanings assigned to them below, and their cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly, (a) Act means the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act 1992; (b) Board means the Securities and Exchange Board of India established under the provisions of section 3 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (15 of 1992); (c) domestic company means a company and includes a body corporate or corporation established under a Central or State legislation for the time being in force; (d) financial institution shall include: (i) a company; (ii) a firm; (iii) an association of persons or a body of individuals, whether incorporated or not; or (iv) any artificial juridical person, not falling within any of the preceding categories engaged in rendering financial services in securities market or dealing in securities market in any manner. Explanation.- For the purpose of this clause and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, the expression financial institution shall include stock brokers and sub-brokers, merchant banks, mutual funds, alternative investment funds, stock exchanges, clearing corporations, investment advisers, portfolio managers, or any other entity that may be specified by the Board. (e) financial services shall mean activities a financial institution is allowed to carry out as specified in the respective Act of the Parliament or by the Government of India or by any regulatory authority empowered to regulate the concerned financial institution; (f) foreign jurisdiction means a country, other than India, whose securities market regulator is a signatory to International Organization of Securities Commission s Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (IOSCO's MMOU) (Appendix A signatories) or a signatory to bilateral Memorandum of Understanding with the Board, and which is not identified in the public statement of Financial Action Task Force as: i. a jurisdiction having a strategic Anti-Money Laundering or Combating the Financing of Terrorism deficiencies to which counter measures apply; or ii. a jurisdiction that has not made sufficient progress in addressing the deficiencies or has not committed to an action plan developed with the Financial Action Task Force to address the deficiencies; (g) intermediary means and includes a stock broker, a merchant banker, a banker to an issue, a trustee of trust deed, a registrars to an issue, a share transfer agent, an underwriter, an investment adviser, a portfolio manager, a depositary participant, a custodian of securities, a foreign portfolio investor, a credit rating agency, or any other intermediary or any person associated with the securities market, as may be specified by the Board from time to time; (h) International Financial Services Centre or IFSC shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (q) of section 2 of the Special Economic Zones Act, 2005; (i) issuer shall mean a company incorporated in India seeking to raise capital in foreign currency other than Indian rupee which has obtained requisite approval under Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) or exchange control regulations as may be applicable, or a company incorporated in a foreign jurisdiction; (j) recognised entity means any intermediary which is registered with the Board or registered or recognised with a regulator of a foreign jurisdiction: Provided that such entities shall comply with fit and proper norms specified by the Board; (k) securities laws means the Act, the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956 (42 of 1956), the Depositories Act, 1996 (22 of 1996), provisions of Companies Act, 2013 administered by the Board and the rules, regulations, circulars, clarifications issued thereunder; (2) Words and expressions used and not defined in these guidelines but defined in the Act, the Seurities Contracts (Regualtion) Act, 1956, the Depositories Act, 1996, Companies Act, 2013, the Special Economic Zones Act, 2005 or any rules or regulations made thereunder shall have the same meanings respectively assigned to them in those Acts, rules or regulations or any statutory modification or re-enactment thereto, as the case may be.