235 entities registered as research analysts in FY16

In little over a year since Sebi made it mandatory for market research analysts to register with it, as many as 261 entities are now authorised by the regulator to operate in the capital markets.
As many as 235 new registrations were made in the last fiscal alone.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had registered 26 research analysts at the end of fiscal 2014-15, according to official data. The regulator had made it mandatory for market research analysts to get registered with it from December 2014.
Morgan Stanley India Company, Edelweiss Securities, Barclays Securities, Angel Broking, Ambit Capital, Standard Chartered Securities are some of the entities authorised to provide services as research analysts.

Sebi made registration mandatory to safeguard investors from misleading advice from unregulated entities and the new norms came into force from December 1, 2014.
Till December 1, 2014, market research analysts were operating as unregistered and unregulated entities and there were instances of them misguiding investors.

The norms help in regulating research analysts and those entities that make recommendations related to securities and public offers such as brokerage houses, merchant bankers and proxy advisors.
Under Sebi norms, foreign entities acting as analysts for domestic markets or India-listed companies need to tie-up with a locally incorporated registered entity, while domestic players are also subjected to strict disclosures and scrutiny.

Every individual/entity desiring to function as a research analyst has to get Sebi registration and meet a set of conditions like capital adequacy, setting up firewalls against conflict of interest, timely disclosures.
Investment advisers, credit rating agencies, portfolio managers, AMCs, fund managers of alternative investment funds or VCs are not required to be registered under these regulations.