Financial Health Crisis: Removing SEBI’s Barriers to Grow India’s “Money Doctors”

Here’s something we all do without thinking: when we’re sick, we head straight to a doctor. It’s automatic, right? But here’s what puzzles me when our finances are bleeding, most of us Indians have no clue where to turn.

I’ve seen this happen countless times. Families walk into bank RM’s  or call their accountants, hoping for financial advice. Now don’t get me wrong these folks are great at what they do. Bank staff know their products, and accountants are wizards with taxes. But asking them to fix your entire financial picture? That’s like asking a pharmacist to perform heart surgery.

What you really need is someone trained to look at your complete financial health. Someone who can understand the overview of your current financial position, risk profile and create a proper plan for your taxes, your future goals like kids’ education, kids’ marriage, your retirement, and insure your family if something goes wrong. That’s where certified financial advisers come in.

The Shocking Truth About India’s Adviser Shortage

Let me paint you a picture that might sound familiar. A middle-class family decides they want to invest their hard-earned savings. They walk into their neighborhood bank branch, expecting honest advice. But do they really give one? Most of the time they get pitched about the financial products of their bank through which they earn referral commission or incentives. The advice is not independent and certainly not what’s actually best for the family.

Research shows that more than 50% of bank relationship managers openly admit they recommend products mainly because of the commissions they earn. The result? Families end up with terrible investments, wrong insurance policies, or worse they fall victim to scams.

According to SEBI, India has just 985 registered investment advisers (Source: SEBI Recognised Intermediaries Data, as of Dec 27, 2025) serving over ~21 crore Demat (NSDL+ CDSL) account holders (Source: CDSL & NSDL combined data, approx. as of Nov 2025). Do the math, and you get one adviser for every 2.16 lakh investors. (0.0005%)

Think about that for a moment. What if the same was true for Doctors in the country? Scary right. If you’re looking for trustworthy financial advice, you’re competing with over a million other people for the same adviser’s attention. How well do you  think the said % of advisers can cater to the needs of such a large population despite their expertise? The solution: we need more Smart people to become Financial Advisers. 

Why Smart People Avoid Becoming Financial Advisers

People in India are smart. They can crack toughest of the toughest exams reaching positions of CEO in Top tech companies. But why don’t we have more advisers? The answer lies in the maze of regulations SEBI has created. The Govt of India promotes the Ease of Doing Business policies. But do they really mean it? SEBIs rules and Regulations are so strict that it is tough for people to enter this profession.

Let me walk you through what someone has to deal with if they want to become a registered adviser. First, they need expensive Annual Audits by Chartered Accountants or Company Secretaries. Then there’s the paperwork, five years of detailed client records that must be maintained for regulatory inspections. Every three months, they have to submit reports to SEBI’s Board of Approved Securities and Audit Licenses (that’s BASL, in case you’re wondering about the acronym).

But wait, there’s more. They need a professional website with all the legal disclosures, certificates proving client money is kept separate, and they have to pass tough exams IA Level 1 and Level 2 from the National Institute of Securities Markets (NISM) every three years. Oh, and here’s the kicker: they must park anywhere from ₹1 lakh to ₹10 lakh in a bank as a security deposit, depending on how many clients they plan to serve. 

Honestly, when I look at this list, I don’t blame qualified professionals for saying “thanks, but no thanks.”

What Exactly is SEBI Trying to Achieve

Before you think I’m just bashing SEBI, let me be clear these regulations weren’t created to be mean. They’re designed to ensure advisers are ethical, transparent, and actually work in their clients’ best interests. The goal is preventing fraud, protecting people’s money, and building trust in our financial system.

Compared to many other countries, India’s approach is particularly strict. While this demonstrates our commitment to investor protection, it also explains why we have so few advisers available. Too strict a policy leads to a deficit of available people to provide the said service. There should be a segregation of IAs based on the amount of Asset under Advisory (AUA). Is all this compliance required for a person who has the skill and is starting small with his own capital? Does it not demotivate him to enter this field with such high compliance? I’m not talking about throwing caution to the wind, but rather finding a better balance where there can be slab wise segregation for IAs to comply once a certain benchmark of AUA is breached or something of that sort such that it encourages young talent to enter this field and also ensure high stakes are not at risk.

Simple Changes That Could Transform Everything

They could start by reducing those hefty deposit requirements, especially for individual advisers just starting out. How about subsidizing some of the compliance costs or providing longer timeframes for new advisers to meet all requirements? SEBI could even create free, centralized platforms to handle all the paperwork and reporting. Imagine how much time and money that would save rather than each adviser individually creating their own data servers and websites leading to huge cash outflow.

These aren’t radical ideas. They’re practical solutions that would keep investor protection intact while making it possible for more qualified people to actually help families with their money.

Why This Should Matter to Every Indian Family

Picture this: what if India had as many financial advisers as doctors? Suddenly, getting trustworthy money advice wouldn’t be a luxury for the wealthy, it would be accessible to regular families like yours and mine.

More advisers means fewer people falling for scams. It means families getting the insurance they actually need, not what someone wants to sell them. It means smarter investment decisions and people feeling confident about their retirement plans and future goals.

This isn’t just about numbers and regulations. It’s about giving millions of Indian families the chance to build secure financial futures. Right now, we’re leaving too many people to navigate complex financial decisions alone, and that’s just not fair.

By making it easier for qualified experts to become advisers while keeping the important protections in place, SEBI has the power to create a network of trusted “money doctors” who can transform how Indians think about and manage their finances. 

• Dheeraj Nimmagadda

Note: The views and opinions expressed above are purely those of the writer, Dheeraj Nimmagadda, and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the publication.