SEBI Directs Stock Exchanges to Provide Certain Basic Facilities to Investors at ‘Investor Service Centres’

Circular No. SEBI/HO/MRD/MRD-POD- 3/CIR/P/2023/104; Dated: 26.06.2023

SEBI has directed stock exchanges to provide certain basic minimum facilities to the investors at Investor Service Centres (ISCs) and upgrade the knowledge of officials working at these centres.

In order to reach out to investors across India, SEBI has instructed stock exchanges to use existing ISCs and open additional centres, wherever required. The ISCs can be set up either by one stock exchange or jointly by two or more stock exchanges as per their mutual agreement. The circular shall be effective from 24.09.2023.

With regard to basic minimum facilities for investors, ISC would be required to provide a dedicated desktop or laptop with internet connectivity to enable the investors to access various relevant information available in the public domain and also to access SEBI’s and stock exchange’s grievance redressal portals.

ISCs will have to give facilities for receiving investor complaints in both physical and electronic form. One dedicated staff shall be posted at the ISC to register investor complaints and also to guide and counsel the investors. The updated status of all complaints shall be maintained in electronic form.

Such investors’ centres need to provide four financial daily newspapers with at least one in the regional language of the place where the ISC is situated. In case, the financial newspaper is not available in the regional language of the place, any leading newspaper in that regional language shall be provided.

Further, all ISCs must have an arbitration and appellate arbitration facility including a video-calling facility for investors for attending their online arbitration (including appellate arbitration) or grievance redressal meetings.

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