[Harit Gandhi and Mukund Arora are fourth-year law students at National Law School of India University, Bangalore and Symbiosis Law School, Pune, respectively] Recently, commitments in alternative investment funds (‘AIF’) crossed INR 10 trillion for the first time amid rising demand from high net-worth individuals. As of December 2023, the investment commitments amounted to INR 10.84 trillion...
SEBI and Brokers’ Industry Standards Forum: Charting a New Course in the Sector
[Vaishnavi Srinivasan and Philip Oommen are lawyers based in Mumbai, and graduates of the National Institute of Securities Markets] In a pioneering move, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has established the Brokers Industry Standards Forum (BISF). Initially proposed in July 2023, the formation of the Industry Standards Forum by SEBI aims to establish regulatory standards, drawing...
Demystifying Overlap in Collective Investment Schemes and Joint Ownership Structures
[Mihir Vashishtha is a final year B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) student at National University of Study and Research in Law, Ranchi] With the rise of digitization in the capital market, there has been a notable surge in interaction between retail investors and the market, leading to increased investment activity. In turn, this increased digitization has incentivized market players to develop investment...
SEBI Greenlights Pledging of Equity Investments by Alternative Investment Funds
[Prachya J. Bhattacharya and Sahsransh Pandey are 3rd year students at Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar] In an effort to foster the consistent growth of alternative investment funds (AIFs), the Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) introduced a consultation paper on 2 February 2024. The paper aims to allow AIFs to create encumbrance on their equity holdings in infrastructure...
Navigating the Maze: Scrutinising SEBI’s Framework for Short Selling
[Garv Arora and Vatsal Jain are 3rd year B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) student at HNLU, Raipur] By way of its circular titled ‘Framework for Short Selling’ dated January 5, 2024 (the ‘Circular’), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (‘SEBI’) has laid down a definitive framework to better regulate short-selling transactions in the Indian stock market. Short selling is a trading activity that focuses...
Empowering Investors: SEBI’s Game-Changing Circular on Trading Account Control
[Nikita Singh and Aishana are the third year law students at Gujarat National Law University.] The Indian stock broking industry is undergoing a major change with the introduction of a new facility for investors to voluntarily freeze or block their online access to their trading accounts. This facility, which was introduced by the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on 12 January 2024...
Adani-Hindenburg Saga: Unraveling the Market Turmoil and Regulatory Response
[Dhaval Bothra and Anoushka Das are law students at Symbiosis Law School, Pune] On January 24, 2023, Hindenburg Research LLC released a report accusing the Adani group of fraudulent activities and market manipulation, leading to a significant decline in the share value of Adani companies. The Hindenburg report had a substantial impact on the Indian securities market, causing a stock plunge and...
The Paradigm Shift in AIF Units: Navigating the Transition to Dematerialisation
[Vidisha Tanna and Sonali Nagariya are 5th-year BLS LLB students at SVKM’s Pravin Gandhi College of Law, Mumbai] In the ever-evolving landscape of Indian financial markets, the move towards dematerialisation of units of alternative investment funds (“AIFs”) marks a significant regulatory stride. The SEBI (Alternative Investment Funds) Regulations, 2012 have heralded a new era where AIFs, an...
Handling the Rumour Mill: SEBI’s Market Rumour Verification Reforms
[Gyanesh Mishra is a third year B.B.A LL.B (Hons.) student at National Law University, Odisha] The Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”), through a consultation paper released on 28 December 2023, proposed substantial reforms to enhance the regime surrounding the verification of market rumours. The reforms propose to change the existing material event criteria under the regulation 30 of...
Restricting Stock Brokers from Non-Securities Business: SEBI’s Approach
[Vaishnavi Srinivasan and Philip Oommen are lawyers based in Mumbai, and graduates of the National Institute of Securities Markets] Rule 8(3)(f) of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Rules, 1957, (“SCRR”) is one of the lesser-known, yet crucial provisions in securities regulation. From the placing of restrictions on loans and advances to the prohibition of digital gold sales, rule 8(3)(f) is...
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