Sebi initiates action against 8 investment advisers over non-payment of renewal fees

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has initiated proceedings against eight registered investment advisers for failing to pay mandatory renewal fees required to keep their registrations in force.

The eight entities named in the order are Karvy Investment Advisory Services, Sagacis Investment Advisor, Tathastu Investment Adviser, Quant Capital, Arkanis Capital, IRA Wealth Advisor, IDFC Alternatives and Indianivesh Investment Managers.

The action has been taken under Section 12(3) of the Sebi Act, 1992, read with Regulation 30A of the Sebi (Intermediaries) Regulations, 2008.


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Under the Sebi (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013, registered investment advisers are required to pay renewal fees every five years from the date of grant of registration. The payment must be made within three months before the expiry of the period for which the fee has been paid.

Sebi noted that the eight entities had failed to pay the renewal fees, with the defaults dating back to different periods between 2018 and 2024.

According to the order, Tathastu Investment Adviser and Sagacis Investment Advisor have not paid renewal fees since December 2018 and March 2019, respectively. Karvy Investment Advisory Services, Arkanis Capital and IDFC Alternatives have been in default since 2019, while Quant Capital and Indianivesh Investment Managers have not paid the fees since 2021. IRA Wealth Advisor's renewal fee has remained unpaid since May 2024.

Following the defaults, Sebi initiated summary proceedings and issued notices to the entities, asking them to explain why their certificates of registration should not be cancelled or suspended.

The entities were given 21 days from receipt of the notices to submit their replies along with supporting documentary evidence.

Sebi noted that six of the eight entities — Karvy Investment Advisory Services, Sagacis Investment Advisor, Tathastu Investment Adviser, Quant Capital, Arkanis Capital and IRA Wealth Advisor — did not submit replies within the prescribed period.

The regulator also noted that IDFC Alternatives and Indianivesh Investment Managers had responded to the notices and sought cancellation of their investment adviser registrations.

The proceedings relate to the requirement under the investment adviser regulations to pay periodic renewal fees to maintain registration with the market regulator.

Disclosure: This article has been written by Kumar Gaurav, who is not a Sebi-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Gaurav and their ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective Sebi-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclaimers here