SEBI approves common advertising code for regulated entities

MUMBAI: SEBI is giving the advertising rulebook a common script, replacing a patchwork of entity-specific requirements with one framework for several categories of regulated financial players. The Securities and Exchange Board of India approved the Common Advertisement Code (CAC) at its 215th Board meeting in Mumbai on September 24. The framework is designed to bring advertising requirements under a common set of rules as part of SEBI’s Ease of Doing Business initiative.

The CAC will apply to stock brokers, depository participants, investment advisers, research analysts, online bond platform providers, portfolio managers and mutual funds or asset management companies.

One of the more visible changes is the door opening for celebrities to feature in brand-level or entity-level promotions by regulated entities. Such advertisements, however, will require prior approval and will have to comply with prescribed safeguards.

For other advertisements, SEBI has moved away from mandatory prior approval. Regulated entities will instead have to report advertisements after they are issued, within three working days.

The framework also allows regulated entities to advertise ratings and rankings assigned by the Past Risk and Return Verification Agency.

The CAC draws a line between promotional advertising and routine, factual communication intended to provide investor services. SEBI has included an illustrative list of communications that will not be treated as advertisements under the framework.

The aim is to prevent routine investor-facing information from being treated in the same way as promotional material, while bringing promotional communication across different regulated entities under a more consistent framework.

SEBI said the common code was deliberated with the Industry Standards Forum representing the concerned regulated entities, supervisory bodies including stock exchanges and industry bodies such as the Association of Mutual Funds in India.

The regulator also incorporated feedback received on its consultation paper issued on June 23, 2026.

The CAC replaces advertising provisions that were previously spread across different SEBI regulations, master circulars and circulars issued by stock exchanges and supervisory bodies, giving regulated entities a single framework to work with.

The common code also follows SEBI’s earlier focus on how financial products are marketed online. In a consultation paper, the regulator had proposed changes to advertising rules for online bond platform providers as digital channels increasingly become a route for retail investors to access fixed-income products.

A key concern was advertising built around behavioural nudges and fear-of-missing-out messaging. SEBI had proposed that platforms should avoid promotions that create artificial urgency or encourage investors to act before properly assessing an underlying security and its associated risks.

With the CAC, SEBI is now bringing a broader set of regulated entities under one advertising framework, while changing the approval process and drawing clearer boundaries between investor information and promotional communication.