New Delhi, Nov. 27 -- The alternative investment industry is divided on whether the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (Sebi) latest rules will expand India's base of accredited investors, a cohort of sophisticated investors that has the financial capacity and understanding to invest in high-risk instruments.

Registration for accredited investors remains modest, according to Sebi's September board meeting documents. While India has more than 72,000 unique AIF investors, the number of accredited investors (AIs) is "below 1,000", the documents show. The count was 649 in Sebi's June meet documents.

The regulator attributed the low count of such accredited investors (AIs) to recent relaxations and the existence of "deemed AIs," whose ...