SEBI

SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) is the regulator for India’s securities markets, including mutual funds. It registers funds, sets the rules, inspects them, and can penalise anyone who breaks them.

What SEBI does

SEBI is the referee for the stock market and the fund industry. It writes the rules that mutual funds, brokers, exchanges and listed companies must follow, registers and inspects them, and takes action, fines, bans or worse, when they break the rules. Much of what protects an ordinary investor comes from SEBI: how a fund must disclose its holdings and costs, how the daily NAV is priced, how your money is kept separate from the fund house, and what a scheme is allowed to do with it.

Why it matters to you

You deal with SEBI’s rules every time you invest, usually without noticing. The riskometer on a fund, the cut-off timing for your purchase, the cap on charges, the standard documents, and the complaint system are all SEBI requirements designed to make the market fairer and more transparent. If you have a grievance against a fund or broker, SEBI runs an official complaint platform to escalate it.

SEBI is not an endorser

One caution: SEBI regulates the market, it does not guarantee returns or vouch for any scheme. A fund being SEBI-registered means it follows the rules, not that it is safe or that it will do well. GreenFunds is independent and not affiliated with SEBI. For who else oversees funds, see AMFI.