Sebi proposes allowing shared contact details for non-individual clients

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To enhance ease of compliance, Sebi on Monday proposed broadening its guidelines on shared contact details by allowing non-individual clients, such as HUFs, partnerships, trusts, and corporates, to use the same mobile number or email address under exceptional circumstances.

Currently, this exception applies only to individual clients within a family.

"Under exceptional circumstances, the stock broker may, at the specific written request of a client, upload the same mobile number/email address for more than one client provided such client belong to one family (in case of individual clients) or such client is the authorised person of an HUF, Corporate, Partnership or Trust (in case of non-individual clients)," Sebi said in its consultation paper.

Under the current rule, stock brokers are required to upload certain details of their clients, including a separate mobile number and email address for each client.

However, under exceptional circumstances, the stock broker may upload the same mobile number/email address for more than one client provided such clients belong to one family.

"Family" for this purpose means self, spouse, dependent children and dependent parents.

Currently, the exception provided above covers only individual clients and it does not cover other categories of clients such as HUF, partnership, trust and corporate. Hence, in a move to enhance ease of compliance for non-individual clients, it has been proposed to create an exception for non-individual clients also.

This has been proposed following the representation received from Brokers' Industry Standards Forum (ISF) The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has sought comments from the public till November 18 on the proposals.