SEBI planning campaign to discourage people who don’t understand F&O: Pandey

SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the markets regulator, is soon planning to launch an investor awareness campaign across various segments of the capital market.

Speaking at an event organised by the Bombay Society of Chartered Accountants (BCAS) on Saturday, July 5th, 2025, SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey underscored the organisation’s focus on responsible investing.

“We are going to do a massive campaign on various issues plaguing the investor ecosystem, whether it is cyber fraud or responsible investing,” he said, and added that, “We are discouraging individuals without enough skills from (entering) the F&O (futures and options) market.”

Regarding the importance of a diversified allocation,  the SEBI Chairman said that investors need to have a balanced portfolio suited to their needs and risk appetite. On the rampant cyber fraud, Pandey  admitted that, “We have to do far more and far more effectively.”

He highlighted that SEBI has announced that from October 1st, there will be the Validated UPI and  SEBI Check features within UPI, whereby investors will be able to check the authenticity of any UPI handle and bank account.

The SEBI Chief  also spoke of light-touch regulations for mature investors who understand the risk: “We should not have a one-size-fits-all approach. Because some people may be able to take higher risk. In that case, we should have different regulations, which are not so stringent as to stifle innovation.”

Pandey added that SEBI and the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) are planning steps for direct investment in G-secs. “We have finalised phase one, whereby retail investors can directly place orders through brokers like they do for equity markets.” He explained that exchanges will be involved in the trading, and that these things will be in place soon.