The Reserve Bank of India has proposed steps to improve ease of doing business for start-ups through easier access to foreign capital and by enabling smoother transfer of ownership. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said the central bank wants to simplify the process and will create an enabling framework for attracting foreign venture capital (VC).

For easing cross-border transactions, RBI has proposed that in case of transfer of ownership of a start-up, permitting receipt of the consideration amount on a deferred basis could be done. It has also proposed to enable escrow arrangement or indemnity arrangement up to a period of 18 months.

RBI said the aim was to enable start-ups, irrespective of the sector, to receive foreign VC investment and also enable transfer of shares from foreign VC investors to other residents or non-residents. The central bank has also proposed simplifying the process for dealing with delayed reporting of FDI-related transactions by building a penalty structure into the regulations.