DAIS 2026 showcases India’s PMS, AIF and GIFT City to global investors

PMS Bazaar successfully hosted the fourth edition of the Dubai Alternative Investment Summit, DAIS 2026, on February 14 at Conrad Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road. The summit brought together over 300 attendees for a full day of discussions on Indian alternative investments and global portfolio opportunities.

Delegates attended from five countries and 26 cities, underscoring the growing interest in India’s alternative investment ecosystem among NRI & global investor communities.

This year’s edition was backed by ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company as the Title Sponsor.

R. Pallavarajan, Founder and Director, PMS Bazaar, said, “DAIS 2026 was built around a simple need — to make India’s fast-growing alternatives space more accessible for NRI and global investors. They are seeking credible insights into products and opportunities, greater clarity on structures and risks, and meaningful access to asset managers. DAIS delivers this through focused conversations that move beyond narratives to enable informed decision-making.”

Over the years, DAIS has positioned itself as a premier platform connecting NRIs and global investors to the Indian alternative investment ecosystem, spanning PMS, AIFs, and India-domiciled GIFT City funds.

The agenda reflected how investors are increasingly looking beyond plain vanilla equity, with sessions covering listed India and global equities, private credit, private equity, SME investing, venture capital, fractional real estate, quant investing, and more.

Networking breaks and knowledge booths throughout the day were designed to help delegates engage directly with fund managers and product teams.

The summit opened with an address by R Pallavarajan on Indian alternatives and how the product universe is evolving for global investors. This was followed by the keynote, “Execution Over Narratives,” delivered by Geetika Gupta, Senior Fund Manager, PMS and AIF, ICICI Prudential AMC. Her message centred on discipline as a repeatable edge across market regimes.

The summit also featured a guest session on market benchmarking by Aniruddha Chatterjee, CEO, NSE Indices, Data, and Cogencis. His remarks focused on how indices are used to evaluate performance and risk, and how investors can use benchmarks to judge outcomes consistently across cycles.

DAIS 2026 featured multiple presentations and panel discussions, each aimed at translating market themes into investable frameworks.

The first panel, “The Art of Stock Picking in Small and Mid Caps from Smart Fund Managers,” brought together Abhisar Jain of Monarch AIF, Anirudh Garg of INVasset LLP, and Dhaval Mehta of Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company, moderated by Ajaya Sharma of Adfactors. The discussion focused on opportunity identification, downside management, and the practical realities of owning smaller companies through market volatility.

The second panel, “From Startups to Scale Ups: Navigating the VC and PE Landscape in India and Globally,” featured Pavan Sarawad of Globridge Capital IFSC, Vignesh Shankar of a99 VC, and Vinit Rai of JM Financial Private Equity, moderated by Vikaas M Sachdeva, Co-Chair, IVCA Category III AIF Council. The conversation covered key funding trends, how founders and funds think about scale, and how investors can evaluate private market risk and time horizons.

In the presentation track, quant investing was discussed by Manit Ankhad of Dolat Capital, who outlined how systematic strategies and data-driven models are designed and deployed.

The afternoon started with a presentation by Varun Sanan of Edelweiss AMC on “Unlocking India through GIFT City,” highlighting the role of GIFT City as a gateway for inbound and outbound fund opportunities and its appeal for global capital flows. It was followed by a panel titled “5X in 5 Years: The Alpha Makers of India,” featuring Vijay Bharadia of Wallfort PMS, Pawan Bharaddia of Equitree Capital Advisors, and Divam Sharma of Green Portfolio, moderated by Dinesh Giridhar of Dolat Capital. The discussion examined how managers identify compounding opportunities early and balance conviction with robust risk controls.

A session on pre-IPO opportunities was led by R Sivaramakrishnan of Sincere Syndication, followed by a panel on SMEs and wealth creation featuring Rishi Agarwal of Aarth Growth Fund, Mohit Nigam of Hem Securities, and Abhishek Jaiswal of Finavenue Growth Fund, moderated by Vineet Arora of NAV Capital Limited.

The final set of presentations covered private equity and fractional real estate by Hitesh Dhankani of Analah DIFC, and growth investing by Amit Jeswani of Stallion Asset.

The summit concluded with closing remarks by Hameed Rahman, Founder and Director, PMS Bazaar. Across the day’s sessions, a consistent message emerged: broaden opportunity sets across asset classes, combine conviction with process, and prioritise disciplined execution in an increasingly complex global environment.

As interest in Indian alternates expands globally, DAIS 2026 reinforced its role as a bridge — connecting investors to opportunities across PMS, AIF, and GIFT City, and providing direct access to India’s evolving alternative investment ecosystem.