Industrial Finance Corporation of India on Thursday said it has offered 9 per cent interest to the Employees Provident Fund Organisation and other retirement funds though it was much higher than the present market rate.

"As part of restructuring scheme, we have offered reset interest of 9 per cent to EFPO and other retirement funds along with extension of maturity, as recommended by McKinsey," IFCI said in a statement in New Delhi.

"Accordingly in anticipation of EPFO's approval to our request, we have started payment to EPFO and other retirement funds at the proposed reset rate," IFCI said, adding the reset interest rate of 9 per cent was still more than 3 per cent in the present interest rate scenario.

"The sacrifice taken by retirement funds by resetting interest rate would be offset by continuing their investment at 9 per cent for the extended maturity with IFCI," the Delhi-based term lending institution said.

IFCI said so far 182 retirement funds had approved the restructuring proposal.