SEBI Cancels Research Analyst Registration After Noticee Seeks Cancellation, Says He Runs Grocery Store
Sangeetha Prathap
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cancelled the registration of a Research Analyst after the registrant informed the regulator that he runs a small grocery shop and is not engaged in any securities market–related activities. The action followed proceedings arising out of the misuse of his SEBI registration details by an unregistered investment advisory firm that had falsely projected itself as a SEBI-certified entity.
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The noticee had been registered with SEBI as a Research Analyst since June 19, 2018, under the SEBI (Research Analysts) Regulations, 2014. The proceedings stemmed from complaints received by SEBI in June 2022 and February 2023 alleging that a website named “optionresearch.in” was offering investment advice with promises of assured returns, while misusing the noticee’s SEBI Research Analyst registration number to lend legitimacy to its activities.
Upon examination, SEBI found that the website was operated by a partnership firm named Option Research Consultancy (ORC), which was not registered with SEBI in any capacity. It was further found that investor funds collected through the website were credited to bank accounts belonging to ORC and its associates, and not to the noticee.
SEBI had earlier concluded proceedings against ORC and its partners in August 2024. In those proceedings, SEBI directed ORC and its partners to refund more than ₹30 lakh collected from investors, restrained them from accessing the securities market for a period of two years, and imposed monetary penalties for violations of the SEBI Act and regulations.
Parallel proceedings were initiated against the noticee whose registration details had been misused. In adjudication proceedings under the SEBI Act, the Adjudicating Officer gave the noticee the benefit of doubt, recording that there was no conclusive evidence to establish that he had colluded with ORC or that he had received any monetary benefit from the unregistered advisory activities carried out through the website.
However, the Designated Authority under the SEBI (Intermediaries) Regulations, 2008, took a stricter view of the conduct of the noticee. It noted that the noticee had admitted to sharing the password of his registered email ID with one of the partners of ORC. SEBI observed that such conduct was impermissible and inconsistent with the responsibilities and standards expected of a registered intermediary, particularly given the sensitive nature of regulatory communications and compliance obligations.
Accordingly, a show cause notice dated September 30, 2025, was issued to the noticee proposing cancellation of his Research Analyst registration. The noticee did not submit a written reply to the show cause notice but appeared for a personal hearing before the Designated Authority. During the hearing, the noticee stated that he was running a small retail grocery shop, that he was not carrying out any research analyst or securities market–related activities, and that he did not intend to continue as a registered Research Analyst. He expressly requested SEBI to cancel his registration.
Taking note of these submissions, the Designated Authority observed that the noticee had himself admitted that he was not engaged in the activities for which registration had been granted and had consented to cancellation. SEBI also noted that sharing access credentials of a registered email ID with third parties was a serious lapse and unacceptable for a registered intermediary, irrespective of whether financial benefit was derived.
In view of the noticee’s admission, consent, and the surrounding facts, SEBI cancelled his Research Analyst registration with immediate effect. The regulator held that continuation of registration in such circumstances would not be in the interest of market integrity or investor protection. The order brings the proceedings to a close, with SEBI emphasising that registration under its regulatory framework carries ongoing obligations and responsibilities, and that intermediaries who are not engaged in regulated activities or who fail to safeguard their credentials cannot be permitted to remain registered.
