Sebi fines 'Baap of Chart' Rs 17.2 crore

Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has banned Mohammad Nasiruddin Ansari from the securities market and has directed him to deposit ₹17.20 crore unlawful gains allegedly made through fees collected from his 'educational courses' on markets. Ansari runs a profile on various social media platforms including X (formerly Twitter) by the name of 'Baap of Chart' (BoC) where he provides buy and sell recommendations.

The regulator alleged that Ansari was acting as an investment adviser without registering with it.

The regulator said it observed that Ansari is promoting himself as a stock market expert on various social media platforms and luring investors to enrol for various 'educational courses' offered by him and inducing them to invest in securities market by promising them the prospect of making profits with near certainty if the recommendation is followed.

BoC is a proprietorship firm with Ansari being the sole proprietor.

Further, it was observed that Ansari has uploaded his 'educational courses' on apps wherein he is collecting money for enrolment in the said courses and providing access to his 'classes' to investors.

Also, Ansari is found to be providing buy and sell recommendations in private groups of his clients. It was observed that the amount collected for 'educational courses' was credited into the bank accounts of Nasir and BoC, Sebi said.