India tightens conflict rules
SEBI overhauled its conflict‑of‑interest framework for top officials, tightening employee trading restrictions and raising the bar on enforceable conflict-management — a useful benchmark for boards reviewing policies even outside India. (indianexpress.com) (thehindubusinessline.com)
SEBI’s board adopted the high‑level committee’s recommendations at its March 23, 2026 meeting, formalizing changes that the committee—chaired by former CVC Pratyush Sinha—had proposed after being constituted in March 2025. (indianexpress.com)) The regulator has explicitly brought the SEBI chairperson and whole‑time members within the statutory definition of “insider,” subjecting them to insider‑trading norms and barring direct investments in equities outside permitted mutual fund holdings. (moneylife.in)) The revised code widens the definition of “family” and extends investment and disclosure limits to spouses and dependents, while requiring public disclosure of assets and liabilities by the chair and WTMs. (thehindubusinessline.com)) The committee recommended—and SEBI approved in principle—the creation of a dedicated Office of Ethics and Compliance at the executive‑director level to monitor recusal, disclosures and enforcement. (thehindu.com)) Several of the stricter norms affecting board appointees will be sent to the Union government for statutory amendment so they become legally binding on future and incumbent government‑nominated members. (economictimes.indiatimes.com)) Legal practitioners and governance experts flagged that the framework relies heavily on recusal mechanisms and internal disclosures, noting limited mandatory public transparency and potential enforcement gaps. (thehindubusinessline.com)) The overhaul traces back to conflicts that surfaced around former chair Madhabi Puri Buch and related scrutiny (including a Hindenburg Research episode), which prompted SEBI to set up the HLC and pursue legally enforceable ethics rules. (moneylife.in))
