Sebi asks investors to link PAN with Aadhaar by Sep for smooth transactions

Capital markets regulator Sebi on Friday asked investors to link their PAN with Aadhaar number by September 30 for continual and smooth transactions in the securities market.

Failing to comply with this, a person's Permanent Account Number (PAN) card will become inoperative, which means incomplete Know Your Customer (KYC) details.

The development came after the Central Board of Direct Taxes through a notification in February 2020, said the PAN of a person allotted as of July 1, 2017, will become inoperative, if it is not linked with Aadhaar by September 30, 2021, or any other date specified by the CBDT.

Since, PAN is the sole identification number for all transactions in the securities market, in view of the CBDT notification, all Sebi registered entities, including market Infrastructure Institutions, should ensure compliance of the notification and accept only operative PAN (linked with Aadhaar number) by the client while opening new accounts post-September 30, the regulator said in a press release.

Also, all the existing investors have been asked to ensure linking of their PAN with the Aadhaar number before September 30 for continual and smooth transactions in the securities market, and to avoid any consequences of non-compliance of the notification on their transactions in the securities market.