SEBI Partners with DigiLocker to Minimize Unclaimed Assets in Securities
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), teams up with DigiLocker, a government-supported digital document storage platform, to minimize the unclaimed assets in the Indian securities market and enhance investor protection. This initiative will aid investors to store and access information on their Demat and Mutual Fund holdings through DigiLocker.
In the aftermath of this partnership, the DigiLocker users can now fetch and store their statement of holdings for shares and mutual fund units from their Demat accounts, along with their Consolidated Account Statement (CAS). This expands the existing DigiLocker services, which already include bank account statements, insurance policy certificates, and NPS account statements. Going ahead, the users can add nominees to their DigiLocker accounts, which allows the family members or legal heirs to access and manage the deceased's financial assets more smoothly.
In addition, the DigiLocker system will update the status of a user's account upon their demise using information from death certificates or details provided by KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs). After the user's death, DigiLocker automatically notifies the nominees via SMS and emails, helping them manage the deceased's assets. This access is expected to facilitate the initiation of the transmission process with the relevant financial institutions.
SEBI has directed asset management companies (AMCs), RTAs, and depositories to register with DigiLocker to allow investors to fetch their mutual fund and Demat account details.
KRAs will notify the information on investor deaths with DigiLocker.
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Over all, SEBI aims to reduce unclaimed assets in the securities market by addressing issues such as dormant accounts, lack of contact or bank details, and simplifying transmission norms. The circular would come into effect from April 1, 2025.