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SEBI Update – SEBI Launches ‘Validated UPI Handles’ and ‘SEBI Check’ for Secure Investor Payments

SEBI Update – SEBI Launches ‘Validated UPI Handles’ and ‘SEBI Check’ for Secure Investor Payments

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”), vide Press Release No. PR No.64/2025,[1] dated October 01, 2025, has announced the operational rollout of 2 (two) major investor protection initiatives:

  1. Validated UPI Handles
  2. SEBI Check

These initiatives aim to enhance payment security, prevent fraud, and ensure investor confidence while transacting with SEBI-registered Investor-Facing Intermediaries (“IFIs”).

1. Validated UPI Handles (“@valid”)

    • SEBI, in collaboration with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has introduced a distinct UPI identifier i.e., ‘@valid’ handle for SEBI-registered intermediaries. These are structured to enable investors to easily identify and transact with authorised market entities.
    • The ‘@valid’ handle shall be exclusive to SEBI-registered IFIs and includes various  category-specific suffix for easy identification, as more particularly described in the said press release.
    • Payments through a valid handle will display a thumbs-up inside a green triangle icon, indicating its authenticity. Absence of the icon may signal risk.
    • A specially designed QR code with the same ‘thumbs-up’ logo at its centre is available to ensure error-free and secure transactions.
    • Over 90% (ninety percent) of the brokers and all mutual funds have adopted the new UPI handles as of the release date.

    2. SEBI Check – Online Verification Tool

    • SEBI has launched a new verification tool, SEBI Check, enabling investors to verify the authenticity of any payment channel used to interact with SEBI-registered intermediaries.
    • The tool is accessible via the SEBI check portal or the SEBI Saarthi App. This tool is applicable not only to UPI payments but also to traditional payment modes such as NEFT, RTGS, and IMPS.

    3. Core Benefits to Investors

    • Assured Security: Payments shall be routed only to verified intermediaries.
    • Fraud Prevention: Immediate red flags shall be indicated when the verification icon is missing.
    • Enhanced Transparency: Investors gain a simple and trustworthy method to validate payment channels.

    [1]https://www.sebi.gov.in/media-and-notifications/press-releases/oct-2025/sebi-rolls-out-validated-upi-handles-and-sebi-check-for-secure-investor-payments_97020.html