Sebi imposes Rs 5.2 crore penalty on OPG Securities in NSE co-location case

New order following SAT directions to recalculate the disgorgement and penalty amounts

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has imposed a total penalty of ₹5.2 crore on OPG Securities and its three directors in the NSE co-location case.

 

In an adjudicating order issued on Wednesday, Sebi highlighted that OPG did not adhere to the “standards of integrity, due skill, care and diligence in the conduct of its business”.

 

Sebi has also alleged that one of the directors failed to co-operate with the regulator and hampered investigations.

 

The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) had earlier affirmed that stock broker OPG Securities had gained unfair access to the National Stock Exchange’s secondary server, making unlawful gains.

 

The tribunal had then directed Sebi to re-consider the penalty and disgorgement amount while setting aside an earlier disgorgement order by a Sebi whole-time member of ₹15.57 crore on OPG.

 

In September 2024, the market regulator dropped charges against NSE and its former executives citing absence of evidence to support the allegations. However, it had revised the disgorgement amount for OPG to ₹85 crore.

 

While the disgorgement amount was raised higher, the fresh penalty is the same as Sebi’s order in 2021.

 

Before the fresh order, OPG urged Sebi to keep the proceedings under abeyance until the appeals in the Supreme Court are concluded.

 

The market regulator has pointed out that the fresh proceedings were limited to determining the penalty afresh as directed by the tribunal.

 

OPG has challenged earlier findings by Sebi in the SAT and SC. The appeals are pending.