SEBI's cautions about unregistered investment services

SEBI publishes cautions to investors about unregistered persons and apps that are being advertised as providing investment services. A caution is a public notice, not an order against a named entity unless the notice says so. The table above lists each caution by name, date, subject and link to the original. A row records what SEBI published, not a finding of ours.

SEBI cautions to investors

The caution's title and the date SEBI published it.

What a SEBI caution is

A SEBI caution is a public notice that an unregistered person or app is being advertised as providing investment services. The caution names the person or app and states the activity that SEBI says is being offered without registration. It is not an order against a named entity unless the notice itself says so; it is a warning to investors to stay away.

The caution may also state that the person or app has been added to a list of unregistered entities. That list is not a register of approved entities; it is the opposite. A caution is SEBI's way of telling investors that the entity is not registered with SEBI and therefore cannot legally offer investment advice or portfolio management in India.

What the table above shows

The table above is read from the investor cautions and press releases that SEBI publishes on its website. Each row shows the name exactly as the source wrote it, the date the source published it, the subject of the caution, and a link to the original. The date is the one SEBI gives.

A row records what the source published, not a finding of ours. This site does not say that the named entity is a fraud or a scam. It says only that SEBI has published a caution about it on that date. The reader decides what to do with that information.

Why a caution matters to an app user

If an app is offering investment advice, stock tips, portfolio management or algo trading, it must be registered with SEBI. An unregistered app cannot legally offer these services to Indian residents. A caution is SEBI's way of telling investors that the app is not registered and that investors should not deal with it.

The caution may not mean the app is technically defective or that its claims are false. It means only that the app is not registered. Registration is a legal requirement, not a quality certificate. An unregistered app may still be a well-built app, but it is outside the law.

What to do if you see a caution

If you see a caution about an app or person you have dealt with, stop and check your records. Compare the name in the caution with the name in your app, your emails and your payment receipts. The names must match exactly; impostors often change one letter.

If you have paid money to the entity named in a caution, you may wish to complain to SEBI or to the cybercrime authorities. This site does not give advice on recovery. The first step is to stop any further payments and to gather all records of your dealings.

What a caution does not tell you

A caution does not say that the entity is a fraud. It does not say that investors have lost money. It does not say that the entity will be prosecuted. It says only that the entity is not registered and that investors should not deal with it.

A caution also does not say that the entity is safe to deal with if it later becomes registered. Registration is a permission with a validity period. A caution is a snapshot of SEBI's position on the date it was published. The table above shows that date.

How to use the table

The table above is a list of cautions, not a list of all unregistered entities. SEBI may have published cautions that are not in this table if this site's weekly read missed them or if SEBI removed them. The table is a record of what SEBI published, not a complete history.

To use the table, look for the name of an app or person you are considering. If it appears, read the subject column to see what activity SEBI says is unregistered. Then click the link to read the original caution on SEBI's website. The original is the authoritative text.

A caution changes the burden of proof

Before SEBI publishes a caution, the investor is the one who has to show that an adviser or app is not registered. The platform may say it is regulated, but the investor has no easy way to check that claim. After the caution appears, the burden shifts. The named entity must now prove to SEBI that it is not offering unregistered investment services, or it must stop doing so.

This change matters because it changes what the investor has to do. Instead of asking the platform for proof, the investor can point to the caution and ask the platform to explain why SEBI has named it. The platform can no longer rely on the investor's ignorance of the registration rules. The caution makes the regulator's concern public.

In practice, this means the investor should treat a caution as a signal to stop and verify. It does not mean the investor must immediately withdraw money or delete the app. But it does mean the investor should not take the platform's word for its own legality. The caution gives the investor a reason to demand better evidence.

The caution does not freeze the entity's operations

A SEBI caution is not an order to stop business. It does not block a website, revoke a licence, or freeze a bank account. The named entity may continue to advertise, take on new clients, and process withdrawals. SEBI's caution is a warning to investors, not a penalty against the entity.

This creates a gap between what investors expect and what actually happens. An investor may see a caution and assume the entity has been shut down. In fact, the entity may still be operating and may even dispute the caution. SEBI can take further action, such as issuing an order or referring the matter to another authority, but that is a separate step.

The practical consequence is that the investor cannot rely on the caution alone to stop the entity from causing harm. The investor must also take their own protective steps, such as not adding more money and documenting all communication. The caution is a starting point, not a final resolution.

Some cautions are about a method, not a named entity

SEBI sometimes publishes a caution that names no specific app or adviser. Instead, it warns against a type of activity, such as offering assured returns on virtual currency or using unauthorised electronic platforms for fund-raising. These cautions describe a pattern rather than a particular bad actor.

This type of caution is harder for investors to use because there is no name to search in the table. The investor must read the description and ask whether the service they are using matches the pattern. For example, if a caution warns against unregistered portfolio management services offered through mobile apps, the investor must check whether the app they use does exactly that.

The value of such a caution is that it teaches the investor what to look for. It does not tell the investor that a specific app is unregistered, but it tells the investor what features are suspicious. The investor can then apply that knowledge to any app they encounter, even one that has not been named.

A caution can cover an entity that is not an investment adviser

SEBI's cautions are not limited to people who call themselves investment advisers. They also cover entities that offer research, tips, portfolio management, or collective investment schemes without registration. An app that only provides stock recommendations may be caught by a caution even if it never uses the word 'adviser'.

This is because SEBI's registration requirement is based on what the entity does, not what it calls itself. If an app offers buy or sell signals for a fee, that is investment advice under the regulations. If it manages money on behalf of clients, that is portfolio management. Both require registration with SEBI, and a caution can name an entity that does either without registration.

For the investor, this means the table of cautions must be checked against the full range of services an app offers. An app that only shows market data may not be covered, but one that adds a paid recommendation service is. The caution may not mention the app's main feature; it may only mention the unregistered advice feature.

A caution may lead to an order, but that is a separate step

SEBI can issue a caution and then later pass an order against the same entity. The order may direct the entity to stop its unregistered activity, refund money to investors, or pay a penalty. The order is a formal adjudication, while the caution is a preliminary warning. The table on this page shows cautions, not orders.

An investor who sees a caution should not assume that an order has been passed. The caution is evidence that SEBI has identified a possible violation, but the process may still be ongoing. SEBI may take months or years to investigate and pass an order, and the order may not be published in the same place as the caution.

This distinction matters because investors sometimes use the word 'caution' to mean any SEBI action. But the legal effect is different. A caution does not create a right to compensation or a finding of guilt. An order does. The investor should check SEBI's orders separately to see whether any formal action has been taken against the entity named in a caution.

A caution does not freeze an app or a bank account

When SEBI publishes a caution, it is telling investors that it has not authorised a person or a platform to offer investment advice or portfolio management. The caution has no direct effect on the app's availability in an app store, on a website staying live, or on a payment gateway accepting money. Enforcement action, if any, follows a separate process under securities law and may take its own course.

Readers sometimes expect that a caution will immediately stop the entity from operating or will block its bank accounts. That is not what the publication does. A caution is a notice to the public, not a freeze order. The entity may keep accepting clients until a formal order or a court direction says otherwise, and the caution itself does not change that.

The practical consequence is that you cannot treat the presence of a caution as a guarantee that your money is protected or that the platform will stop taking new users. If you see a caution about an app you have used, the first step is to stop adding funds and to seek a refund through the platform's own process, while keeping the caution as part of your record.