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The Mystery of Missing 'Conflict of Interest' Line from SEBI Chairman's Speech!
Moneylife Digital Team 10 March 2025
Investor Interest
Tuhin Kanta Pandey, the newly-appointed chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), made his first speech after assuming charge at the Moneycontrol Global Wealth Summit 2025. However, there is a lot of speculation about a line on 'conflict of interest' missing from Mr Pandey's official speech uploaded by SEBI on its website. 
 
SEBI insiders say that the market regulator and the chairman are fully committed to a new code of conduct that will apply to all. However, it is strange that the first speech by the new chairman has not been suitably updated on the website, given that it is one of the key issues impacting SEBI's reputation in recent times. 
 
Speaking at Moneycontrol Global Wealth Summit 2025, Mr Pandey says, "Enhanced transparency in regulatory action, corporate reporting, and market operations will further strengthen the trust of both domestic and global investors in India's financial markets. And I think the trust and transparency extends to SEBI itself. We need to not only create trust of all stakeholders in us, but we also need to maintain that trust. And to that extent, I think we need to be more transparent including on various other measures, including, for example, on the conflict of interest of the board and so on. And we will be coming forward with our own plan to further transparently reveal these conflicts of interest to the public."
 
Quoting Mr Pandey, a report from Moneycontrol also says how transparency is important even for SEBI and, therefore, the market regulator will now reveal conflicts of interest of its employees. "Maintaining trust and transparency is paramount to instil confidence in investors. Regulatory bodies and market participants must uphold the highest standards of governance and transparency... maintaining trust and transparency extends to SEBI as well. Therefore, we need to be more transparent on the conflict of interest of the board. We will be coming forward with our own plan to further transparently reveal these conflict of interests to the public," the report says.
 
However, Mr Pandey's speech uploaded on the SEBI website does not have any reference to or does not even mention the 'conflict of interest'.  
 
Here is what is uploaded on the SEBI website:  
"Trust and transparency are crucial not only for regulated entities but also for functioning of SEBI as well. A transparent and accountable regulatory framework fosters confidence and clarity in the market. Going ahead, we will endeavour to bring more transparency in the system including board disclosures."
 
 
In a post on LinkedIn, Chennai-based company secretary (CS) Raghunath Ravi expressed doubt over the omission of 'conflict of interest' from the new SEBI chairman's first public speech. Mr Ravi says, "BTW, who is the 'superior in command' at SEBI (to the new SEBI chief) to have ordered the deletion of the 'sensational portion' from the speech of Mr Pandey in the version uploaded on the SEBI website?"
 
 
As pointed out by Sucheta Dalal, managing editor of Moneylife, in her weekly column, SEBI's 2008 code of conduct—applicable only to board members—must be replaced with a comprehensive, legally binding framework that extends across the organisation. "This should cover part-time board members, lateral entrants and bureaucrats, most of whom have significant financial interests, hold stocks and earn rental income in addition to their government salary or pension. The new code must mandate full disclosure, transparency and a documented recusal process that is approved and notified in the official gazette. It should also establish clear protocols for handling allegations against top officials, ensuring due process instead of ad hoc damage control that embarrassed the regulator during the Buch controversy. It would be naïve to think that appointing a bureaucrat as a regulator fixes the problem automatically in the absence of clear rules." (Read: Restoring SEBI's Credibility: A Roadmap for the New Chairman)
 
As Ms Dalal mentioned in another column, the conflict code, which was voluntarily adopted by the board, is applicable only to the SEBI chairperson, WTMs and board members and is much weaker than the rules applicable to SEBI employees to the level of executive directors (ED). It has remained untouched for 16 years, even as the regulator came up with thousands of new rules, regulations and disclosures for all market participants and intermediaries over the years. (Read: SEBI Code of Ethics: Set It Right before Getting a New Chairperson)
Comments
amit_kumar
1 week ago
As usual, much easier to keep India back.
Reply
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