The new investor protection habit: Check before you pay

India’s investor story is often told as one of growth, and the numbers support that. But another story sits behind the headline numbers. Sebi’s Investor Survey 2025 found that 63% of Indian households were aware of at least one securities-market product, while only about 9.5% of households had invested in one or more such products.

Closing this gap needs more than awareness. Investors must also feel able to participate safely and with confidence. The survey shows why this matters: 59% of households selected fraud prevention as their preferred investor-education topic.

This also aligns with the broader objective of Sebi’s Project Jagrook, whose key campaign theme ‘Samajh Se Investing Simple’ encourages investors to understand their investments, use regulated channels, and remain vigilant against investment fraud.

Investor protection must therefore go beyond explaining products. It must also help people check who is asking for their money and whether the payment details are genuine before they act. Validation helps make ‘Samajh Se Investing Simple’ a regular investor habit.

Disguised as Something Familiar

Fraud rarely announces itself as fraud. It can look familiar enough to go unquestioned, whether it arrives through an unsolicited message or call, or through pressure to make a quick decision.

National Crime Records Bureau data cited in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha shows that recorded cyber-fraud cases rose from 10,395 in 2020 to 29,758 in 2024. In 2024, the categories included 4,659 online-banking fraud cases, 3,044 marketing or investment fraud cases, and 723 e-wallet or UPI fraud cases.

For an investor, the challenge is not simply knowing that scams exist. It is being able to distinguish a legitimate transaction from a fraudulent one at the point when a decision needs to be made.

Checking before Trusting

Traditional advice remains important: read carefully, understand the offer and verify the credentials of the person or entity involved. But when a fraudulent interaction can unfold in seconds, verification must also be quick and practical.

What is needed alongside caution is a simple way to turn doubt into a check before money moves, rather than after a complaint is filed.

SEBI Check, a verification facility provided by Sebi, enables investors to validate the payment credentials of Sebi-registered intermediaries before making transactions. SEBI Check adds a practical verification step. Before making a securities-market payment, an investor can scan the QR code supplied by the intermediary, manually enter the UPI ID, or check the bank account number and IFSC code. The facility is designed to verify payment channels linked to Sebi-registered intermediaries.

The significance lies in the simplicity of the action. Instead of relying solely on how credible a message, profile or communication appears, an investor can independently verify the payment details before proceeding.

The facility is available in 12 languages: English and 11 Indian languages. This is important because an investor-protection tool is more useful when people can use it in a language they understand.

Making Verification a Habit

Investor protection has traditionally focused on what investors should know: understand the product, assess the risks and be cautious about unsolicited offers. The next step is making it easier for investors to act on that knowledge.

A verification step before payment can turn caution into action. However, SEBI Check verifies payment details; it does not replace the need to understand the product, assess the risk, confirm the intermediary’s registration and avoid promises of assured or unusually high returns.

As securities-market participation and digital payments grow, “check before you pay” should become a standard investor habit. The tool now exists. The next step is to use it consistently.

(The author is Chief Regulatory Officer, CDSL. Views are personal.)