How to Check an Indian Startup's SEBI Registration Claim

Checking an Indian startup's SEBI registration takes three steps. First, work out exactly which SEBI category the startup claims. Second, find the entity in that category's list on SEBI's website. Third, make sure the money trail goes to the same registered entity. Stock-tip apps, advisory subscriptions, portfolio tools, trading communities and "wealth" products often say "SEBI registered" in a footer or an app store description. SEBI keeps more than twenty separate intermediary lists, and the phrase alone does not tell you which one, if any, applies.

This guide shows how to read the claim narrowly, check it against SEBI's public records, and record only what they support. It is a research method for founders, editors and careful customers, not legal or investment advice, and it does not decide whether an activity needs registration.

"SEBI registered" is a category, not a badge

SEBI's Recognised Intermediaries page is the starting point. Instead of one combined register, it has separate lists for each type of intermediary, including:

• Investment Advisers
• Research Analysts
• Registered Portfolio Managers
• Registered Stock Brokers (one list per market segment)
• Registered Mutual Funds
• Registered Alternative Investment Funds
• Registered Depository Participants (NSDL and CDSL)

Each list shows the date it was last updated. When we checked on 13 October 2026, most lists said "as on Oct 12, 2026". A few specialised lists showed older dates, so always note the date that appears next to the list you actually used.

The practical consequence is simple. A startup that says "SEBI registered" has not told you anything checkable yet. A startup that says "SEBI Registered Investment Adviser, registration no. INA…" has. In the lists we checked, investment adviser numbers began with INA and research analyst numbers with INH. Use the prefix to choose a list, but confirm the full number inside the record, not just the first few letters.

Sort the claim before you search

Copy the claim word for word, with the page or app listing where it appeared and the date. Then put it in one of these buckets.

Claim wording	What it points to	What you can check
"SEBI Registered Research Analyst, INH…"	The startup's own registration in a named category	Name, number and contact details in the Research Analyst list
"SEBI registered" with no category or number	Unknown	Ask which category and registration number, then check
"Trades executed through our SEBI-registered broker partner"	Someone else's registration	The partner's record. This says nothing about the startup's own advice or tips
"Registration applied" or "awaiting SEBI approval"	An application, not a registration	SEBI's Processing Application Status page, then revisit later
"Selected for a SEBI sandbox / hackathon / programme"	Participation in an initiative	The organiser's announcement. Record it as participation, not registration

The third row is the one most often blurred. A trading app that connects to a registered stockbroker can be entirely legitimate, but that does not make the startup a registered adviser or analyst. Keep the partner's registration in its own evidence column.

Step 1: find the legal entity behind the brand

SEBI's lists record registrations under the registered name of the person or company, which is often not the product name. Before searching, confirm who operates the app or website. Look at the privacy policy, terms of use, invoices, app store developer name and the footer. Then confirm the company with the MCA company master data method or the GST legal and trade name check. For mobile products, the app store identity check helps tie the listing to a real publisher.

Some registrations are held by individuals rather than companies. A founder may personally hold an adviser or analyst registration while the product runs under a private limited company. That is not automatically wrong, but write down exactly whose name the registration is in and which entity takes your money.

Step 2: search the right SEBI list

Open the category list from the Recognised Intermediaries page and search by name, or browse alphabetically. A matching record shows the registered name, the registration number, a contact email, a telephone number, an address and, for many categories, a contact person and a correspondence address.

Compare four things with what the startup shows publicly:

1. Name: does it match the legal entity or individual from Step 1?
2. Registration number: does every character match, not just the prefix?
3. Contact email domain: does it belong to the startup's real domain, or to a different business?
4. Category: is the registration in the category the activity needs? An investment adviser registration and a research analyst registration are different lists for different activities.

Write down the list name, the "as on" date and your check date. If you cannot find the name, search for spelling variants and the individual founder's name before you conclude anything. Then record it as "not found in the [category] list on [date]", not as "fake".

A clone is a specific risk in this sector. Someone can copy a real adviser's name and registration number onto a Telegram channel, a WhatsApp group or a look-alike website. A matching number does not prove that the person in front of you is the registered entity. That is why Step 3 matters.

Step 3: check where the money goes

This is the newest and most useful part of the check. SEBI announced in press release PR No. 31/2025 that from 1 October 2025, SEBI-registered investor-facing intermediaries who collect funds from investors would get a structured, validated UPI address. According to that release:

• The UPI ID has a readable username followed by a category suffix, such as .brk for a stockbroker or .mf for a mutual fund.
• The handle includes the exclusive @valid identifier together with the bank's name. NPCI allocates these handles only for payment collection by SEBI-registered intermediaries.
• When paying through such a handle, investors see a thumbs-up icon inside a green triangle, and intermediaries must also provide a QR code carrying that logo.

SEBI also launched SEBI Check. It lets you verify a UPI ID by typing it in or uploading a photo of the QR code, and check bank account details before an NEFT or RTGS transfer.

That gives you a strong cross-check. If a "SEBI registered" advisory service asks subscribers to pay a personal UPI ID or an account that does not verify in SEBI Check, the registration and the payment route do not line up. Record the mismatch exactly as observed. A billing partner may explain it, but the startup should be able to show that link in writing.

Some products have nothing to check here. A free content app or a tool that never collects investment-related fees may not use a validated handle at all. In that case, write "no payment route to compare" rather than counting it against the startup.

Step 4: look for warning signals in SEBI's other lists

Two more SEBI pages are useful:

• Entities Permitted to Send Stock Tips using Bulk SMS helps if a startup sends stock recommendations by SMS. Check whether the sender appears there.
• The Intermediaries / Market Infrastructure Institutions hub links to lists such as default or expelled stock brokers and regulatory actions taken by market infrastructure institutions. These are useful context, but a name match needs the same legal-entity care as Step 1.

Complaints about a registered intermediary belong in SEBI's SCORES portal, not in your research notes.

What a confirmed SEBI registration does and does not tell you

A confirmed record supports a narrow conclusion: on a stated date, a named entity appeared in SEBI's list for a named category, under a stated registration number.

It does not tell you:

• that the startup's recommendations are good, profitable or suitable for anyone
• that every product or channel using the brand is run by the registered entity
• that the company is financially healthy, or that its other licences are in place
• anything about lending, payments or deposits, which fall under other regulators. Use the RBI authorisation check for those claims

Keep the SEBI result in its own evidence column, next to company, tax, security and other regulatory checks. An ISO certificate check, for example, answers a completely different question.

For founders making the claim

If you hold a SEBI registration, make it easy to check: put the category, exact registered name and full registration number in one line on your website, app listing and invoices, and show your validated UPI handle where it applies. If you rely on a partner's registration, say so plainly: "Orders are placed through [partner], a SEBI-registered stockbroker." When you list your company on SuperLaunch, use the same wording so editors can confirm it quickly.

Researcher checklist

1. Save the exact SEBI claim, where it appears, and the date.
2. Sort it: own registration, unnamed claim, partner's registration, application, or programme participation.
3. Confirm the legal entity or individual behind the brand.
4. Open the matching category list and note its "as on" date.
5. Match the name, the full registration number, the category and the email domain.
6. Try spelling variants and founder names before recording "not found".
7. Compare the payment route with the registered entity, and use SEBI Check where a UPI ID or bank account is involved.
8. Keep partner registrations and other regulators in separate columns.
9. Publish only the conclusion the record supports, with your check date.

FAQ

How do I check if a company is SEBI registered?

Find out which category it claims, open that list from SEBI's Recognised Intermediaries page, and match the registered name and full registration number. Note the list's "as on" date and your check date.

What does @valid mean in a UPI ID?

According to SEBI's June 2025 press release, @valid handles are allocated by NPCI only to SEBI-registered intermediaries for collecting payments from investors. You can verify a specific UPI ID with SEBI Check.

A startup's name is not in any SEBI list. Is it operating illegally?

Not necessarily. It may not need a registration for what it does, it may use a partner's registration, or the registration may be under a founder's name. Record "not found on [date]" and ask the startup for the exact registration.

The practical rule

Treat "SEBI registered" as the start of a question, not an answer. Match the claim to a category, the category to a list, the list entry to the legal entity, and the entity to the account that takes the money. When every link holds, cite it with your check date. When one is missing, say so plainly. To find companies worth researching, browse the SuperLaunch directory, use the source-first verification workflow for every other claim, and read SuperLaunch's editorial policy for how sources and corrections are handled.

Sources checked on 13 October 2026

• SEBI: Recognised Intermediaries (category lists and "as on" dates)
• SEBI: Investment Adviser list (record fields)
• SEBI: Research Analyst list
• SEBI: PR No. 31/2025, Validated UPI Handles and SEBI Check
• SEBI Check (UPI ID and bank account verification)
• SEBI: Intermediaries / Market Infrastructure Institutions hub
• SEBI: Processing Application Status
• SEBI: Entities Permitted to Send Stock Tips using Bulk SMS
• SEBI SCORES complaints portal