Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) will reduce fee for filling offer documents for public issues and mutual funds, effective April 1, SEBI chairman C B Bhave said after a board meeting.

The SEBI board, at its meeting held in New Delhi, also decided to reduce the fee for offer documents for buyback of securities and registration fee for venture capital funds beginning next financial year.

Bave said the fee for filing offer documents for public issues and mutual funds will be reduced from 0.03 per cent to 0.005 per cent

He said, for buyback, the fee for filing offer document will be reduced from 0.05 per cent to 0.125 per cent, subject to a maximum of Rs3 crore.

For rights issue, he said, the offer document fee will be slashed from 0.05 per cent to 0.005 per cent, subject to a maximum of Rs5 lakh.

The annual fee for registration for the custodians of mutual fund will be reduced to 0.0005 per cent of asset under management from existing 0.001 per cent, he said.

SEBI has, however, set a Rs3 crore cap on fee for public offer and a Rs50 lakh ceiling for mutual funds.

SEBI has also halved the registration fee for venture capital fund - from Rs10 lakh to Rs5 lakh.

Dave said these measures are aimed at benefiting the investors.