Amid concerns about possible misuse of Offshore Derivative Instruments-ODI, or P-Notes, for money laundering and other such purposes, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Monday directed foreign investors to ensure compliance with all necessary norms before issuing such notes with immediate effect.The SEBI in a circular issued in Mumbai said while existing ODI positions will be allowed to continue till expiry if they are not in compliance with the relevant provisions of Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) Regulations. However, there are no changes in the existing regulations that FPIs need to comply with while issuing ODIs.P-Notes are mostly used by overseas High Networth Individuals- HNIs, hedge funds and other foreign institutions to invest in Indian markets through registered foreign institutional investors, while saving on time and costs associated with direct registrations. However, there have been often concerns about misuse of this route. The investments through P-Notes rose to nearly seven-year high of over Rs 2.65 lakh crore at the end of October 2014.