SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA

 The Securities and Exchange Board of India was established on April 12, 1992 in accordance with the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act,  The Preamble of the Securities and Exchange Board of India describes the basic functions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India as “…..to protect the interests of investors in securities and to promote the development of, and to regulate the securities market and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto”

Functions of the Board (A) Regulatory 1.regulating the business in stock exchanges and any other securities markets 2.registering and regulating the working of stock brokers, sub-brokers, share transfer agents, bankers to an issue, trustees of trust deeds, registrars to an issue, merchant bankers, underwriters, portfolio managers, investment advisors and such other intermediaries who may be associated with securities markets in any manner 3.registering and regulating the working of collective investment schemes including mutual funds 4.regulating self-regulatory organisations 5.prohibiting fraudulent and unfair trade practices relating to securities markets 6.prohibiting inside trading in securities 7.regulating substantial acquisition of shares and takeover of companies;

8.Undertaking inspection, conducting inquiries and audits of the stock exchanges and intermediaries and self-regulatory organisations in the securities market; 9.levying fees or other charges for carrying out the purposes of this section. (B) Developmental 1.promoting investors’ education 2.promoting self-regulating organisations 3.training of intermediaries of securities markets 4.promotion of fair practices and code of conduct for all SROs 5.conducting research and publishing information useful to all market participants.

SEBI Guidelines to Investors 1.Deal with a registered member of the stock exchange. If you are dealing with a sub-broker, make sure that all bills and contracts are made in the name of a registered broker. 2.Insist that all your deals are done in the trading ring. 3.Give specific orders to buy or sell within the fixed price limits and/or time periods within which orders have to be executed. 4.Insist on contract notes to be passed on to you on the dates, when the orders are executed. 5.Make sure that your deal is registered with the stock exchange in a souda Block Book. In the case of a dispute, this will help trace the details of the deal easily. 6.Collect a settlement table from the stock exchange mentioning the pay-in and pay-out days. Each stock exchange has its own trading periods which are called settlements. All transactions done within this period are settled at the end of it. All payments for shares bought and their deliveries take place on the pay-in day. An awareness of pay-in and pay-out days is useful when a broker tries to make excuses.

7.Execute periodic settlements of dues and delivery of shares to avoid accumulation of transactions. 8.Ensure that shares bought are transferred in your name before the company’s book closure date. This is necessary to make sure that you receive benefits like dividend, interest and bonus shares. All companies have a book closure date on which the list of shareholders in the company is finalised. 9.Complain if the broker does not deliver the shares bought in your name. Proceed to contact another broker with the bill/contract given to you by the earlier broker, and the Exchange authorities and the latter will purchase the shares on your behalf. In such an event, the first broker will have to pay the difference in price.

12.Do not sell/deal in shares where any one of the holders has passed away. In cases where the holder has died, a succession certificate is necessary. In case where one of the joint shareholders passes away, the surviving holder should send the shares along with the death certificate to the company. Only after the name of the deceased has been deleted from the shares, can they be transferred. 13.Unless you have a special arrangement with the broker, do not expect the adjustment of purchases and sales against one another. One pays first and receives later. 14.Do not take delays or harassment lying down. You have to complain to the Grievance Cell of the stock exchange or the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in case of delay or harassment.

Limitations of SEBI 1.Bureaucratic administration 2.Long and complex procedures 3.Lack of serious approach to investors’ needs 4.Fraudulent activities 5.Counter-productive regulations 6.Lack of adequate powers 7.Weak legislation 8.Minimum accountability