Feeder funds may well be the next big thing for Indian investors looking at opportunities abroad. "Several top funds are working on launching feeder funds schemes.

They are in discussions with Securities and Exchange Board of India," Association of Mutual Funds in India Chairman A P Kurian, told reporters on the sidelines of the CII Mutual Fund Summit held in Mumbai on Thursday.

Mutual funds will now be able to invest in existing MFs' international funds as the RBI's latest circular has paved the way for launching feeder funds which will raise money in India and invest in existing mutual funds abroad.

Kurian said the recent RBI guidelines to allow mutual funds to invest in international mutual funds up to 10 per cent of their assets in unlisted securities was a 'welcome step'.

You may soon get to buy foreign MFs

Earlier, funds were allowed to invest only in listed securities abroad. On AMFI likely to become the first self regulatory organisation in the finance industry, Kurian said, "We are studying the models of Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It would enable us to discharge our responsibility. Today our memorandum provides for only AMCs to join AMFI. We have to change our structure to induct trustees and independent members."

"We want the ability to support functions of the regulatory system," he said. Earlier, on the issue of self-regulation, Sebi chief Damodaran recalled that AMFI had resisted earlier attempts to make it an SRO.

Now, with a revised proposal, which would give AMFI more autonomy, he hoped AMFI would become the first SRO in the finance industry.