Sebi Chief Tuhin Kanta Pandey Issues Strict Warning For Market Manipulators

Securities Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chief Tuhin Kanta Pandey warned market manipulators that the market watchdog has zero tolerance for market manipulation. Pandey also cited several recent instances of market manipulation, such as the Gensol Engineering case, according to reports which cited the Sebi chairman’s speech delivered at the Financial Express CFO Awards.

The Sebi chief also mentioned in his speech that such scams should not be correlated with ‘ease of doing business’. Pandey said that the market regulator has cracked down on market manipulation earlier in the past and will continue to do so with zero tolerance for market manipulation.

“We will continue to watch. On market manipulation, we will come down very hard going forward. I mean, we have come hard earlier also, but I think going forward, market manipulation will be one which we will not tolerate,” Pandey said at the event.

Speaking about the case involving Gensol Engineering, the market regulator said that while the company had everything from a regulatory perspective, the diversion and misuse of investment resources by the company cannot be tolerated.

“Regulation-wise, there was everything in that company – a board, independent directors, chartered accountants, certified auditors and promoters who were well read, and the press was celebrating their startup… but we cannot celebrate the diversion and misuse of investment resources,” Pandey said at the event.

Earlier in May 2025, Gensol Engineering became subject to Sebi’s investigation after the company’s promoters were found to be involved in a scam. The market watchdog alleged in its order that the company’s books had financial irregularities and the promoters of the company diverted public funds for personal use, misled investors, and lied about receiving certain work orders. On the other hand the project financing companies such as IREDA and PFC also filed complaints against Gensol alleging loan-fraud.

“Swindling money, taking away investors’ money, misusing and abusing it is something which spoils the whole corporate governance. Effective surveillance, enforcement, and adjudication are key to addressing such issues,” Pandey said at the event. 

The Sebi chief also said that it is enhancing surveillance and enforcement of norms to curb practices that hurt investors. The capital market regulator also added that while regulation is crucial, ethical behaviour by all stakeholders in the securities market needs to come from ‘values’ and not just compliance with norms. Pandey emphasised that the market regulator is committed to the transparent functioning of the market and adaptive regulation.