Sebi's proposal to put cap on fee to put investment advisers in a lurch

Industry participants need to reply to consultation paper in 15 days from issue date

The Securities and Exchange Board of India's (Sebi) proposal to put a cap on the maximum fees which investment advisers can charge has led to strong pushback from investment advisers (IAs).

Investment advisers say if the proposal is implemented in the current form, it can drive away participants from the newly-created category.

"This cap on fee is going to be a fixed number, hard-coded with no provision for any escalation, as per the current consultation paper. The upper cap of Rs 75,000 is low even today. It will be difficult to offer comprehensive advisory services for clients, as the fee