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Informist, Monday, Mar. 16, 2026

 

KOLKATA – The Securities and Exchange Board of India has taken several steps to bring more qualified investment advisors under the regulatory fold, Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said Monday. Eligibility and documentation requirements have been relaxed, the transition from individual to non-individual entity has been made easier, and deposit requirements for investment advisors have been made easier, Pandey said.

 

The registration process for these professionals has been made easy through simplified documentation and streamlined verification. Outreach is also being undertaken with the National Institute of Securities Market and the BSE, he said.

 

"Registered advisers have been given greater flexibility in communicating certified past performance data to clients on a one-to-one basis. With operationalization of Past Risk and Return Verification Agency, this process will become more robust," Pandey said at an event organised by the Association of Registered Investment Advisors in Mumbai. "Advisers can also collect advance fees with client consent and charge fees for providing a second opinion."

 

The chairman of the markets regulator said that registered investment advisor entities are required to disclose the extent of use of artificial intelligence tools in the advisory process and where execution or implementation services are provided through telephone calls, client consent must be properly recorded.

 

Pandey raised concerns that the number of registered investment advisers has declined since 2021. There are around 1,000 registered investment advisers in the country currently, with 470 being individuals and 530 being non-individuals, he said.

 

"While the number of registered IAs (investment advisors) has declined in recent years, the shift towards non-individual entities points to a more institutional ecosystem," he said. "This transition is important because as our markets expand, investment advisory can no longer remain at the margins of the market."

 

"As India's investor base expands rapidly, our market needs more regulated advisers. Otherwise, the gap will be filled by unregulated voices - like finfluencers - who present opinion as expertise and speculation as strategy," he said.

 

Stating that SEBI's Investor Survey shows that nearly 62% of prospective investors are influenced by these finfluencers, Pandey said, "This is undesirable. It distorts investor behavior, weakens discipline, and erodes trust."

 

Pandey said this issue of investors being influenced by finfluencers is also cultural in nature as investors tend to gravitate towards free recommendations from finfluencers as the habit of paying for professional financial advice is still evolving in India. "The challenge is clear - make the registered advisory model viable, scalable, and attractive for qualified professionals," he said. 

 

Reported by Avishek Rakshit

Edited by Ashish Shirke

 

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