MediaNama’s Take
The Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) crackdown on fake finfluencer Avadhut Sathe is yet another wake-up call, even for those who did not buy or invest in his courses. His firm, Avadhut Sathe Trading Private Limited (ASTAPL), was running live trading rooms where participants received recommendations on specific stocks, effectively making them unwilling participants in market manipulation.
Sathe sold paid courses to several individuals and asked them to invest part of their capital in specific stocks, assuring them of higher returns than fixed deposits (FDs). He gave buy and sell recommendations, resistance levels, stop-loss points, trading strategies, and expected intraday movements in WhatsApp groups. Overall, Sathe collected Rs 601 crore in fees from investors who took his courses, out of which Rs 546 crore were prima facie deemed “unlawful gains.”
What’s more alarming is that students appeared to follow Sathe’s cues instantly, without verifying the facts. During one trading session, Sathe introduced a homemaker to his students, claiming she had earned over Rs 1 crore trading Nifty Bank options. However, SEBI said she had only made Rs 4.2 lakh in that period.
The Sathe episode further exposes gaps in regulation, with finfluencers devising new ways to abuse the market while the law plays catch-up. Social media platforms are awash with rogue finfluencers pushing risky investments to youngsters. While SEBI’s action against Sathe is well-intentioned, singling out a few bad actors is not enough. What we need is the implementation of a clear, comprehensive policy.
What’s the News?
Last week, SEBI barred finfluencer Avadhut Sathe and his firm ASTAPL from dealing in the securities market and impounded ill-gotten gains worth over Rs 546 crore.
In its interim order, the regulator observed that Sathe and his firm were not registered as investment advisers or research analysts. Despite this, they provided investment advisory and research analyst services under the guise of stock market education to a large number of investors.
Between July 25, 2015, and October 9, 2025, the company collected over Rs 601 crore in fees for its courses. Out of this, SEBI found evidence of unregistered activity in eight courses offered to the public between January 1, 2020, and October 9, 2025. The unlawful gains allegedly earned through these courses amounted to more than Rs 546 crore.
How Avadhut Sathe Ran Into the Crosshairs of SEBI
A SEBI investigation into the activities of ASTAPL and Sathe during the financial year 2023–24 revealed that the academy was publishing selective profitable trades of investors, claiming that participants who took its course consistently made profits and that its trainers were experts in the stock market.
However, SEBI’s analysis showed that all such investors were in net losses. The regulator issued a warning to the company against misrepresentation…
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