Sebi attachment orders up 5-fold at 1,610 in FY'15

NEW DELHI: As Sebi tightens its noose on defaulters and market manipulators, the number of attachment proceedings initiated by the markets regulator against the defaulters has surged by more than five times to 1,610 in the past fiscal.

In comparison, the number of attachment proceedings initiated by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) stood at 299 in 2013-14.

These proceedings involve attachment of bank accounts, lockers, shares and debentures, among others.

The move comes after entities failed to pay penalties imposed on them for violations of various securities market regulations.

Sebi is empowered to recover money from persons who fail to pay the penalty imposed by adjudicating officers or fail to comply with any direction of the board for refund of money or any violation of the disgorgement order.

During 2014-15, 571 attachment notices were issued against bank accounts and lockers while 1,039 attachment notices were issued against demat accounts, according to Sebi's annual report.

Further, the markets watchdog said that recovery proceedings were completed in 121 cases in the past fiscal and Rs 19 crore was recovered. In comparison, Rs 7.8 crore was recovered through six cases during 2013-14.