Motilal Oswal Financials settles Sebi probe in suspected front-running case for Rs 34.85 Lakh

Motilal Oswal Financials settles Sebi probe in suspected Front-Running Case for Rs 34.85 Lakh

Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited has settled proceedings with Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in connection with a probe into suspected front-running of trades of a large institutional client by entities linked to the Chaturvedi Group.

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Sebi had investigated trades executed between January 1, 2022, and December 8, 2023, to determine whether client orders were front-run. Following the probe, the regulator issued a show cause notice to Motilal Oswal on February 20, 2025, alleging that the broker failed to exercise due skill and care by not keeping evidence of client order instructions, and instead attempted to create supporting documents after orders were executed.

The order stated, “a show cause notice (SCN) dated February 20, 2025 was issued to the Applicant, wherein it was alleged that the Applicant failed to exercise due skill and care of its conduct as a registered stock broker by not keeping evidence of the order instructions of the client and by trying to create the supporting documents at a later date i.e. post execution of the client’s orders”.

Pending the proceedings, Motilal Oswal applied for a settlement without admitting or denying the findings. The settlement application, filed in March 2025, was considered by Sebi’s Internal Committee, which recommended a settlement amount of Rs 34.85 lakh. The High-Powered Advisory Committee (HPAC) later endorsed the revised settlement terms.

On September 5, 2025, panel of Sebi’s Whole Time Members approved the settlement.

After the order, Motilal Oswal Financial in a statement clarified that, Sebi settlement order announced today relates to involvement and non-maintenance of records by one of our authorised partners (AP)- Om Securities. We had to opt for the settlement route and the matter now stands resolved.