SEBI Chief Announces Urgent Push for NRI KYC Access
SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey has declared establishing easy and secure KYC access for Non-Resident Indians as an urgent priority to boost their participation in Indian securities markets.
Key Takeaways
- SEBI to streamline NRI KYC process as urgent goal
- Only 9.5% of Indian households actively invest despite 63% awareness
- Comprehensive cybersecurity framework being implemented
Addressing NRI Market Access Challenges
Speaking at the BFF Capital Market Confluence 2025 in Mumbai, Pandey acknowledged that while SEBI has simplified KYC norms and permitted immediate transactions upon completion, the system for NRIs requires further streamlining.
“We have a long way to go in investor awareness. We have simplified KYC norms and permitted transactions and securities as soon as this process is completed. However, we are yet to establish an easy and secure KYC access for NRIs to facilitate their participation in the security market this will be an urgent goal for us,” Pandey said.
Concerning Investor Participation Gap
A recent nationwide survey revealed significant gaps in market participation. While 63% of households are aware of securities products, only 9.5% actively invest. Urban participation stands at 15%, compared to just 6% in rural areas.
More concerning, only 36% of investors possess high or moderate knowledge of securities markets, indicating substantial awareness deficiencies.
Massive Market Infrastructure
Pandey highlighted the scale of India’s market operations, noting stock exchanges process an average of over 1,600 crore messages daily, peaking at 2,900 crore messages during the last financial year.
“Behind these numbers is the trust of crores of investors. This is the trust we must always protect,” he emphasized.
Technology and Cybersecurity Focus
The SEBI chief outlined technology as a key pillar for market resilience, noting the rapid growth of algorithmic and high-frequency trading in equity and derivatives markets.
On cybersecurity, Pandey warned that attacks on single institutions could destabilize the entire ecosystem. SEBI has issued a comprehensive cybersecurity framework and is conducting live disaster recovery drills with Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs).
“We have implemented redundancy models for peering corporations and are examining safety nets for depository participant outages, as done for soft brokers,” he added.
