India’s markets regulator, Sebi, has introduced simplified oversight measures for intermediaries and revised its regulatory framework, as the primary market remains buoyant with active IPO activity despite tighter supervision.
India’s markets regulator has moved to simplify oversight of market intermediaries, with the Securities and Exchange Board of India mandating joint inspections by stock exchanges and depositories and cutting its own inspection target for financial year 2026-27 to roughly a third of the previous year’s level. The new framework follows consultations with market infrastructure institutions and the Supervisory Body for Investment Advisers and Research Analysts, and is intended to reduce duplication while keeping supervision coordinated. The change comes as Sebi has been widening a broader regulatory overhaul across the market system, including reforms to broker oversight and intermediary rules.
That wider reset has included revisions to the long-debated “fit and proper” framework for market intermediaries. In February, Sebi proposed a more detailed regime that would narrow automatic disqualifications, give affected parties a right to be heard and soften rules around group entities and control. By April, according to reports from Moneycontrol and Fortune India, the regulator had amended the framework so that criminal complaints, FIRs or charge sheets in economic offence cases would no longer trigger automatic disqualification on their own. The changes were framed as a move towards greater procedural fairness and less regulatory uncertainty.
Separately, Sebi has also cleared a fresh batch of public offerings. The regulator issued observations for nine initial public offerings, including those of Jakson Green, Laxyo, Rediff.com India, Expression 360 Services, Adroit Industries, Garuda Aerospace, Naini Papers and Playsimple Games. Business Standard reported that India has seen 39 companies raise ₹51,221 crore through IPOs so far in 2026, underlining how active the primary market has remained despite a more demanding regulatory environment.
Investor appetite was also evident in the latest public issue to close. Ardee Industries’ ₹426 crore IPO was subscribed 133.66 times by the end of bidding on Friday, according to NSE data, with bids for 7,80,88,19,433 shares against 5,84,22,516 on offer. Non-institutional investors were the most aggressive participants, subscribing their reserved portion 255.24 times, a sign that demand for select mid-sized offerings remains strong even as Sebi tightens its supervisory playbook.
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