The ICICI Bank on Monday said it was planning a dedicated SME private equity fund of about $200 million in the next few months.

This would be the first private equity fund by the bank. Currently, all private equity funds are being managed by ICICI ventures. 

"We want to increase credit in the SME sector and for this a dedicated equity fund had been proposed which would be in place in the next six to eight months," ICICI Bank GM (business banking) Sanjiv Sherawat said on the sidelines of the CII organised seminar on alternate financing of SMEs.

"The structure of the fund is yet to be finalised, but though we will remain the prominent partner, we will have other investors also," he said.

Yes Bank group president (business banking) Varun Tuli said the bank was also in the process of setting up a private equity fund.

"We have not yet decided whether we will make it a sectoral fund or general fund. By September we hope to decide on the structure. The fund will not be less than $100 million," Tuli said.

Meanwhile, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Executive Director M S Ray said he expects the separate SME exchange or platform would be in place by this fiscal.

"We are analysing the feedbacks received. We are serious about the alternate platform for SMEs and do not want a repeat of the previous attempts."