In a circular issued on Wednesday, Sebi prohibited the use of terms like ‘Best’, ‘No. 1’, ‘Top’, ‘leading’, and ‘one of the best amongst market leaders’, among others in any form of advertisement.
Along with a stringent list of dos and don’ts on terms and disclosures, the market watchdog has prescribed additional compliance requirements, including the need to retain the copy of advertisements for five years and refraining from reference of past performance.
The registered entities have also been directed not to engage in games, leagues, competitions or schemes which involve any kind of gift, medals or prize money.
Statements which directly or indirectly discredit other advertisements or makes unfair comparisons or ascribes any qualitative advantage over other intermediaries directly or indirectly, have also been prohibited.
These written-to-detail norms will be applicable on all forms of communication including print advertisements, circulars, brochures, research reports, sign boards, social media platforms, radio, any electronic mode, audio-visual mode, or any other form.
“In case the mode of advertisement is SMS/Message/Pop-up, social media etc. and the details such as full name, logo/brand name, full registered office address, SEBI registration number, membership number of a SEBI recognized supervisory body and standard disclaimer are not mentioned, then official website hyperlink should be provided in such SMS/Message/Pop-up, etc. and the website must contain all such details,” said Sebi.
Among the disclosures, the players have been asked to give information on their registration number, logo, office address and standard warning and disclaimers.
Separately, on Wednesday, stock exchanges also cautioned investors to avoid schemes or products that promised assured returns.