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When the Framework Outlives the Project: Evaluating SEBI's March 2026 REIT and InvIT Reforms
The four March 2026 reforms are all justified in their own right. The SPV amendment addresses a real compliance issue.
Mridul Kumar Chaurasia
4 days ago7 min read
Compliance Cul-de-Sac? Terrascope and the Missing Route for Bona Fide Business Pivots
Terrascope settles an important question and should be welcomed for reinforcing transparency as a foundational norm of securities regulation.
Vighnesh Kumar Sharma
Jun 76 min read
Pension Funds and AIFs: Reading PFRDA Master Circular Alongside SEBI's 2025 Reforms
The December 2025 PFRDA circular and SEBI's 2025 AIF reforms together represent a meaningful, even if incomplete, step towards integrating India's pension and alternative investment ecosystems.
Sidharat Som Mohanty
Jun 54 min read
SEBI’S Disclosure Wall has a Door: The Section 230 Problem
The Section 230 arbitrage is not a design defect in either statute. SEBI’s framework assumes direct contractual transactions within its jurisdiction.
Samridh Sharma, Aviral Joshi
May 306 min read
Churning Profits over Wealth: The Juxtaposition of Advisory-Distribution Services
This piece argues the need for remedial measures in the (eventual) backdrop of increasing number of MFDs (may or may not be SEBI registered) acting as advisory agents enjoying continued inclination of retail investor sentiment, to uphold investor intent and ease while balancing SEBI’s protective tendency.
Darshan Rao
May 265 min read
The Limits of Corporate Democracy in Securities Fraud: SEBI v. Terrascope Ventures
What is left is the more difficult doctrinal task of defining where the illegality-irregularity line lies in less extreme situations, of offering a legitimate way of genuine fund-use variation in private placements, and of calibrating the range of the affected class of stakeholders.
Akashi Khandelwal
May 246 min read
SEBI's Consultation Paper: Revisiting Fit and Proper Criteria
The paper is a significant step towards making the “fit and proper person” criteria more balanced and fairer. However, its triumph depends on how SEBI exercises its discretion.
Suhani Sharma, Sukriti Gupta
May 177 min read
Regulatory Acquiescence in Action: SEBI Clarifies Status of IPO Advisors
Through the order, SEBI clarified that entities in purely advisory or consultative roles are not required to register as a Merchant Banker under Section 12(1) of the SEBI Act. This clarification, grounded in regulatory acquiescence and established market practice, provides meaningful relief to advisors who have operated without assuming issue management responsibilities.
Aadi Vighnesh J, Nidhi Rayudu
May 107 min read
Guilty Until Proven Fit: The Double-Edged Sword of SEBI’s Preventive Regulation
Market integrity regulation is invariably faced with a dilemma of how far precautionary provisions can be stretched until there exists a possibility of punitive action against a behavior not yet found to have occurred.
Abhimanyu Beniwal, Srushti Khule
May 96 min read
New Bottle, Ol’ Wine: NSE’s IPO Puzzle
The article focuses on key aspects surrounding the impending listing of the National Stock Exchange and its implications for companies and investors in the Indian capital market.
Vasupriya Awasthi, Ketayun H Mistry
May 36 min read
From Delegation to Diligence: Strengthening SEBI’s Trusted Investor Framework
The Circular eases barriers to entry and rationalised procedures by aligning capital markets in India with global best practices, and facilitated efficiency without compromising regulation. However, regulatory trust cannot exist in a vacuum. The lack of well-defined eligibility criteria, long compliance periods with the lack of well-established event monitoring, and the overdependence on intermediaries also create the issues of arbitrariness, supervisory dilution, and fragmen
Divyansh Yadav
Apr 256 min read
Securities Markets Code 2025: Is it the Long-Awaited Silver Bullet?
The SMC signifies a progressive initiative to update India’s securities market by consolidating different acts into a single statute. If successfully adopted, the code will rewrite the securities market in India, redefining legislation, enforcement, and the investor experience.
Devashish Bhattacharyya
Apr 186 min read
Expanding Powers, Shrinking Checks: The Accountability Deficit in the Securities Markets Code 2025
The main thesis of this article is not as broad as that, which is that the increase of the powers of SEBI under the SMC has not been offset by a corresponding increase in the supply of institutional checks to those powers.
Mridul Kumar Chaurasia
Apr 137 min read
From CSR to ESG: Strengthening Accountability and Shareholder Democracy
CSR introduced conscience into corporate law, but ESG must introduce consequences. India today stands between the comfort of disclosure and the necessity of enforcement. SEBI has constructed the reporting architecture, the Companies Act embeds fiduciary responsibility, and shareholder democracy is maturing into participatory oversight. However, without liability, ESG risks become CSR 2.0, a sophisticated but ultimately ineffective framework.
Arundhathi B
Apr 106 min read
The Securities Markets Code 2025: From a Fragmented Regime to a Unified Regulatory Vision
The SMC is a forward-looking move in the modernisation of the capital market regulation India. It goes beyond codifying the various disparate statutes in one instrument and instead attempts to effect a structural redefined securities laws.
Ananya Sonakiya, Vvanshika Singhal
Mar 305 min read
From Formulaic Capital to Risk-Based Supervision: SEBI’s 2026 Broker Framework
SEBI’s re-ordering in 2026, caused by up-streaming and the altered locus of risk of settlement, was, in institutional terms, the only possible course.
Shaunak Wagle, Janki Bharati
Mar 306 min read
Tax Relief for Category III AIFS: Delhi High Court's Ruling in Equity Intelligence v/s CBDT
The Delhi High Court’s decision in Equity Intelligence AIF effectively addresses a decade-long tax conundrum for Category III AIFs by applying the doctrine of impossibility.
Sanskruti Parate
Mar 296 min read
Credentializing Compliance in AIFs: SEBI’s NISM Mandate for Compliance Officers
The SEBI's NISM mandate reflects an attitude which holds that the maturation of Indian private capital markets cannot be built on informal standards and, similarly, on the appointment being regarded as a mere business function.
Inika Dular
Mar 286 min read
SEBI Merchant Banking Amendments: The Liquidity Effect on Underwriting
SEBI’s shift toward liquid net-worth requirements prioritizes immediate solvency over dynamic, risk-weighted metrics used in the US and EU. While this deleveraging enhances market stability, it risks institutional consolidation and reduced SME flexibility.
Aryan Chowdhury, Shaunak Saha
Mar 96 min read
Digital Governance Without Legal Accountability: Re-examining SEBI’s Fourth Amendment Regulations 2025
The current framework has critical shortcomings that demand targeted reforms to instill genuine accountability.
Inika Dular
Feb 276 min read
Re-conceptualizing Materiality in Related Party Transactions: Lessons from SAT’s Linde India Ruling
The Linde Judgement is a major step towards a more substance oriented and shareholder centric RPTs regime in India.
Alfiya Noor
Feb 227 min read
SEBI’s Revamped RPT Regime: Aligning Oversight With Scale and Transparency
The recent amendments by SEBI in the LODR aligns with the effort to maintain the governance standards in response to changing realities of the market.
Ali Asghar
Feb 227 min read
The Regulatory Schism: Defining "Control" Under SAST Regulations and Competition Law
Ultimately, India's dual standards for “control” stem from two distinct policy objectives: minority protection and market dominance.
Taha Lakdawala
Feb 136 min read
SEBI’s Review of MPO and MPS Requirements: Rewiring Large-Cap IPOs
SEBI's August 2025 consultation paper proposes key reforms to MPO and MPS norms for large-cap IPOs, aiming to enhance market capitalization and public shareholding. This article examines how these regulatory changes balance dilution concerns, boost investor protection, and address legal challenges to ensure market integrity and robust participation in India's equity markets.
Pranjal Nayak
Jan 146 min read
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