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SEBI Mandates Social Media Disclosure for Market Entities from May 1

SEBI has mandated that all entities it regulates must clearly display their registered name and registration number when posting securities-related content on social media platforms, effective May 1. The directive covers stock brokers, portfolio managers, mutual funds, and their agents across platforms like YouTube, Telegram, and WhatsApp. The move is designed to help investors distinguish legitimate content from unregulated players and follows SEBI's actions against social media-driven stock manipulation schemes. Regulated entities must feature these details on their social media home pages and at the start of every relevant post or video.

Key Points: SEBI Social Media Rules: Registration Details Mandatory from May

  • New rule effective May 1
  • Applies to brokers, mutual funds, agents
  • Covers all social media platforms
  • Aims to curb market manipulation
  • Requires clear display on profiles and posts
2 min read

SEBI asks regulated entities to disclose registration details on social media from May 1

SEBI directs all regulated entities to display registration details on social media for securities content. New rule effective May 1 aims to protect investors.

"helping investors easily identify content shared by registered and regulated entities - SEBI"

Mumbai, Feb 26

The Securities and Exchange Board of India on Thursday directed all entities regulated by it to clearly display their registered name and registration number while posting securities market-related content on social media platforms.

The new rule will come into effect from May 1. The directive will apply to stock brokers, portfolio managers, mutual funds and other intermediaries and agents such as distributors.

SEBI said the move is aimed at helping investors easily identify content shared by registered and regulated entities and distinguish it from posts by unregistered or unregulated players operating on social media.

As per the circular, the requirement will cover all types of content, including videos, written posts and other material related to the securities market.

It will apply not only to open platforms but also to closed or semi-closed groups on platforms such as YouTube, Telegram, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, X, LinkedIn, Reddit and Threads.

SEBI said regulated entities and their agents must prominently display their registered name and registration number on the home page of their social media handles. They must also mention these details at the beginning of every video or post related to the securities market.

The regulator noted that in recent years, it has taken action against several entities for using social media platforms to run coordinated stock manipulation and pump-and-dump schemes.

Market participants believe that clearer identification of regulated content will help investors make more informed decisions and avoid misleading information.

SEBI further clarified that entities holding multiple registrations will have to provide a web link on their social media home page that directs users to a page listing all their SEBI-registered names and registration numbers. In addition, they must clearly state under which specific registration the content is being published.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Finally! My uncle lost a good amount of money following some WhatsApp group's "sure-shot" calls. Regulation in the social media space was long overdue. Hope enforcement is strict.
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David E
As an investor, this brings much-needed transparency. The Indian market is growing fast, and such measures protect retail participants. Curious to see how they'll monitor closed WhatsApp groups effectively though.
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Anjali F
A step in the right direction, but implementation is key. Will SEBI have the manpower to track all these platforms? Also, what about those influencers who are not directly regulated but have massive followings?
K
Karthik V
Good for investor protection. But I hope this doesn't become another compliance burden for genuine advisors. The rule about mentioning details at the start of *every* video seems a bit excessive. Could clutter the content.
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Sarah B
Transparency benefits everyone. This should help build more trust in the market. Interesting that it covers Reddit and Threads too – shows SEBI is keeping up with the times.

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