SEBI Crackdown: YouTuber With Over 19 Lakh Subscribers Directed To Refund Rs 9.5 Crore

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has fined YouTube influencer Ravindra Balu Bharti and his firm, Ravindra Bharti Education Institute. The market regulator has charged the influencer for conducting an investment advisory business through his channel without registration. Bharti has been banned from accessing the securities market till April 4, 2025. Additionally, the influencer has also been directed to refund Rs 9.5 crore, the amount which Bharti has generated through the unregistered advisory business.

The SEBI found in its investigation that Bharti lured new and amateur investors into the stock market and offered services such as investment advice, trade recommendations and other execution services without the requisite registration. The markets regulator claimed that Bharti used his 19 lakh subscriber strong influence to promote investments. The influencer’s 19 lakh subscriber base is spread across two YouTube Channels.

Bharti marketed ‘high returns’ without disclosing the risks associated with such an investment and operating without the SEBI-mandated registration. The markets regulator also said that the channel employed manipulative tactics, such as selling multiple investment plans to individual investors, limiting their decision-making autonomy.

The SEBI order highlighted that Bharti's channel violated securities laws and did not fulfill its fiduciary duty to prioritise clients' best interests.

Apart from being banned from all trading activities till April 2025, Bharti and his associates have also been prohibited from offering investment advisory services without proper SEBI registration. Additionally, a penalty of Rs 10 lakh has also been levied on Bharti and his associates.

Earlier this year in August the SEBI amended its norms to regulate unregistered financial influencers amid growing concerns regarding the potential risk associated with such persons.

The SEBI directed persons regulated by it and agents of such persons to not have any association with any other person who, directly or indirectly, provides advice, recommendation or makes an explicit claim of return. The nature of the association includes financial transactions, referral of clients and interaction via information technology systems.