Inside SEBI’s New Common Advertisement Code

On 8 October 2026, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) notified a Common Advertisement Code (Code) for specified regulated entities, published in the Official Gazette on 9 October 2026. It replaces existing fragmented, entity-specific frameworks and moves from mandatory prior approval of advertisements to post-issuance reporting. Celebrity endorsements are now permitted at the brand or entity level, subject to prior approval and safeguards.

SEBI has inserted the Code as a new Chapter IIID (Regulations 16G to 16Q) of the SEBI (Intermediaries) Regulations, 2008 (Intermediaries Regulations).^[1] A separate notification issued the same day amends the SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, 2026, omitting the Fifth Schedule (Advertisement Code) and replacing references to it in Regulations 28 and 81(l) with references to Chapter IIID.^[2]

SEBI considered the feedback on its consultation paper of 23 June 2026, and the SEBI Board approved the Code at its meeting on 24 September 2026.

SEBI’s Common Advertisement Code: Key Highlights

1. Commencement: It comes into force on the 180^th day from gazette publication, i.e., 7 April 2027, as do the amendments to the Mutual Funds Regulations.
2. Applicability: All advertisements issued by a regulated entity in respect of products or services under SEBI’s purview are covered. Regulated entities are stock brokers, depository participants, online bond platform providers, investment advisers, research analysts, mutual funds, asset management companies, portfolio managers and such other entities as SEBI may specify. The Code specifies supervisory bodies for the named categories (stock exchanges, depositories, IAASB, RAASB, AMFI and APMI, as applicable).
3. What qualifies as an advertisement?
   Definition: Any communication, endorsement or representation, in any form and through any channel (print, broadcast, digital, outdoor or similar), issued directly or indirectly by or on behalf of a regulated entity in connection with, or having the primary effect of, promoting, inviting or soliciting in respect of its products or services, or promoting its brand or entity.
   Carve-outs: The Code also lists communications not treated as advertisements, including educational or informational content (with minimal, incidental branding and no promotional call-to-action), research shared with existing clients without performance claims, essential communications arising from regulatory requirements, responses to client requests, greetings and condolences, and feedback surveys. However, any communication that promotes products or services or solicits interest is treated as an advertisement.
4. Celebrity endorsements: A “celebrity” is broadly defined and includes persons in the top 50 of a recent celebrity index, lead actors, influencers exceeding the ASCI followership threshold on any single platform, national or international sportspersons, TV hosts or anchors, winners or runners-up of popular competitive shows, virtual influencers, and anyone SEBI or the supervisory body considers capable of influencing viewers. Founders, promoters, directors, KMPs and senior management appearing in their own entity’s advertisements are excluded.
   Conditions: Endorsements must be at brand or entity level; they may include the name of products or services but must not make any inducement or claim about a specific product or service. Celebrity advertisements require prior approval of the supervisory body (or SEBI, where none is specified), must carry specified disclaimers, and their costs cannot be passed on to clients or charged to mutual fund schemes.
5. Mandatory disclosures: All advertisements must contain the entity’s name, SEBI registration number and logo (if any), and SEBI-specified disclaimers. Where short-format messages (such as SMS, pop-ups or push notifications) cannot accommodate these, a hyperlink to them on the entity’s official website must be provided.
6. General obligations: Advertisements must be true, fair, accurate, complete and unambiguous, and must not be so framed as to exploit the lack of experience or knowledge of investors. Entities may not offer incentives, vouchers or similar inducements to trade, invest or download apps, and may not advertise while suspended. Where a third party advertises without consent, the entity must initiate appropriate action within seven days from when it comes to its knowledge, inform the supervisory body of the action and outcome, and prominently disclose the incident on its website.
7. Ratings or rankings: Only ratings or rankings assigned by a Past Risk and Return Verification Agency (PaRRVA) may be used, subject to prescribed conditions.
8. Prohibitions: Entities must not engage in dark patterns listed in Annexure I of the CCPA’s Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. Advertisements must not contain, among others, false, misleading or exaggerated content, testimonials, assurances of guaranteed, risk-free or indicative returns, unfair comparisons, SEBI or MII logos without permission, past performance except as SEBI specifies, or adjectives such as high yield or high returns.
9. Reporting: Mandatory prior approval has been done away with, except for celebrity endorsements. Advertisements will instead be subject to post-issuance reporting, required within three working days as decided by the SEBI Board, in the manner SEBI specifies.
10. Non-compliance: In case of any violation, SEBI may take action as it deems fit, including under Chapter V of the Intermediaries Regulations, and may also direct supervisory bodies to take appropriate action.

Preparing for April 2027

The transition period is likely to see the shaping of the implementation architecture, including further directions from SEBI and the setting up of reporting and monitoring systems by supervisory bodies. Regulated entities would do well to use this time to review their advertising practices, including checking the interfaces through which they advertise for any of the dark patterns listed in Annexure I of the CCPA’s 2023 Guidelines, and prepare for the new framework.

References:

[1] SEBI (Intermediaries) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2026, available here.

[2] SEBI (Mutual Funds) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2026, available here.