On February 26, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”) issued a circular, requiring SEBI-regulated entities and their agents to disclose the registered name and registration number on social media platforms (“SMPs”) (“Circular”).
A. Applicability
The Circular applies to all persons regulated by the Board (“Regulated Entities”) and their agents operating on SMPs. For this purpose, the phrase, “persons regulated by the Board” carries the meaning assigned to it under Explanation 1 to Regulation 16A of the SEBI (Intermediaries) Regulations, 2008, and includes: (i) a person registered with SEBI under Section 12 of the SEBI Act, 1992; (ii) an asset management company of a mutual fund registered with SEBI; (iii) the investment manager of an alternative investment fund or infrastructure investment trust registered with SEBI; and (iv) the manager of a real estate investment trust registered with SEBI.The Circular applies to content relating to the securities market uploaded on SMPs. This encompasses videos, posts, broadcasts, uploads, or any other content posted on any SMP, whether in closed or publicly available groups, including YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, X, LinkedIn, Threads, Telegram, and Reddit, among others.
B. Disclosure Requirements
In case of entities having single SEBI registration: The entity must display (near the name of the social media handle) its registered name and SEBI registration number on the home page of its SMP handle, and disclose the same at the beginning of any content published.
In case of entities having multiple SEBI registrations: The entity must provide a weblink on the home page of its SMP handle to a dedicated page on its website listing all registration details. Further, the relevant registered name and registration number is required to be disclosed at the beginning of the content published.
Agents: Agents of SEBI-regulated entities (such as distributors, authorised participants, etc.) must disclose, on the home page of their SMP handle (near the name of the social media handle) and at the beginning of the content: (a) the registered name and SEBI registration number of their principal entity; and (b) their own registered name and registration number. In case the SEBI-regulated entity has multiple registrations, the SEBI-registered name and registration number is to be stated on the home page of their handles and in the beginning of each video/content uploaded by the entity.
C. Effective Date
The Circular shall come into effect from May 1, 2026.
Our Views
In our view, the Circular is a measured step in the right direction. It seeks to create a clear and verifiable link between online content and regulated status, thereby equipping investors with a basic tool for due diligence before engaging with intermediaries on SMPs, and will foster a investment culture where any person can differentiate between context uploaded by regulated persons or unregulated persons.
However, the Circular may result adding onto compliance burden for players such as distributors. For instance, Mutual Fund Distributors (“MFDs”) who act as agents of multiple AMCs simultaneously. Unlike a single-principal intermediary, an MFD’s social media handle may span content relating to several AMCs, each with its own distinct registration details. Requiring such agents to identify and display the relevant registered name and registration number at the beginning of each piece of content, tailored to the specific AMC being promoted, could impose a significant operational burden, especially for smaller, individual MFDs operating without dedicated compliance support. SEBI may wish to consider providing clarificatory guidance or a streamlined disclosure template for multi-principal agents to ensure that the objectives of the Circular are not undermined by disproportionate compliance costs for this segment.
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