Overview

• SEBI’s interim ex-parte order bars Sanjiv Bhasin and 11 others from buying, selling or dealing in securities until further notice.
• The regulator has directed joint deposit of ₹11.37 crore in fixed deposits with a SEBI lien to prevent dissipation of alleged unlawful gains.
• An investigation from January 2020 to June 2024 found Bhasin buying shares via entities like Gemini Portfolios and Venus Portfolios before recommending them on TV and social media.
• SEBI identified key enablers including Lalit Bhasin and Ashish Kapur and noted that connected entities mirrored Bhasin’s trades to profit from non-public recommendation timing.
• The interim order also freezes the noticees’ bank and demat accounts, prohibits asset sales without SEBI approval and signals further penalties under PFUTP norms.