Overview
- SEBI published the SEBI (Employees' Service) (Amendment) Regulations, 2026, establishing the new conduct framework that applies to current and former employees.
- The amendments impose a two-year cooling-off ban that prevents anyone leaving SEBI from appearing before or representing clients in proceedings, settlements or approval matters.
- Employees and specified family members are barred from making fresh direct investments in equities, equity‑convertible instruments or derivatives, with permitted exposure limited to regulated pooled vehicles such as mutual funds, InvITs and REITs.
- The rules cap exposure to certain regulated products at 25% of an employee’s investment portfolio, expand the definition of family and dependent to include adopted and stepchildren and substantially dependent persons, and require job‑talk disclosures within one month.
- SEBI raised the single‑person gift reporting threshold from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000, created limited exemptions such as spouse ESOPs and discretionary mandates, and shifted enforcement and disclosures into a digital ethics system as part of broader governance reforms.