ADVERTISEMENT

Depositories, DPs Need To Preserve Records For At Least Eight Years: SEBI

Earlier they had to do so for only five years.

SEBI headquarters in Mumbai, India. (Photographer: Santosh Verma/Bloomberg)
SEBI headquarters in Mumbai, India. (Photographer: Santosh Verma/Bloomberg)

Depositories and depository participants now need to preserve the records and documents for at least eight years, according to India’s market regulator.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India has issued a corrigendum to its circular issued in October 2019, wherein it was mentioned that such records need to be maintained for five years. In the fresh circular, SEBI said, “Depositories and depository participants are required to preserve the records and documents for minimum period of eight years.”

Further, they are required to preserve original forms of documents either in physical form or an electronic record, copies of which have been taken by any enforcement agency during the course of their investigation.

Depositories allow investors to deposit securities by opening an account in electronic form (dematerialised), gets its revenues from transaction, account maintenance and settlement charges paid by depository participants as well as annual fees, corporate action and e-voting charges paid by companies whose securities are admitted in the depositories' system.