Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has directed all regulated entities and their agents to disclose their registered name and registration number on social media platforms, tightening transparency norms amid the surge in market-related content online.
In a circular issued on Thursday, the market regulator said all intermediaries registered under Section 12 of the Sebi Act, which includes stockbrokers, depository participants, portfolio managers, investment advisers, research analysts, and so on, must comply with new disclosure requirements when posting securities market-related content on social media platforms.
The move comes as social media has become a dominant channel for investment-related communication, with videos, reels and posts on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, WhatsApp and X influencing retail investor behaviour.
Sebi said the objective is to distinguish content posted by registered entities from that of unregistered individuals, thereby strengthening investor protection and promoting ease of doing business.
The circular was preceded by a consultation process that began last year to improve investor protection by differentiating between Sebi-registered players and those disseminating market knowledge without authorization.
The growing influence of social media on investor behaviour was highlighted by a Sebi survey last year, which found that 62% of retail investors rely on finfluencer recommendations for investment decisions, often ignoring formal advisory channels. The study, Sebi’s first comprehensive investor survey in a decade, was conducted by Kantar across more than 90,000 households.
The market regulator said that for entities with a single Sebi registration, the registered name and registration number must appear near the handle name on the home page and at the start of each piece of content.
Entities with multiple Sebi registrations, such as a firm registered as a stockbroker, investment adviser and mutual fund distributor, must provide, on their social media home page, a weblink directing users to their website listing all Sebi-registered names and registration numbers.
However, at the beginning of each video or post, they must disclose only the relevant registration details relating to the capacity in which the content is being published.
The circular also lays down similar detailed norms for agents of regulated entities, including mutual fund distributors, authorized participants and distributors of portfolio management services.
“The move will bring transparency and bring more clarity for investors using social media platforms. It will give a sense of caution to investors,” said Akshaya Bhansali, managing partner at Mindspright Legal.
“For intermediaries, this is possible. But I’m not sure how this will work for social media channels that have private chats and are encrypted,” she added.
The provisions will apply to all content uploaded on or after 1 May 2026. Existing content posted prior to that date is not covered under the circular.
