SEBI bans actor Arshad Warsi and his wife, Maria Goretti

They have been banned from trading in the securities markets for up to 5 years, as per reports.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has banned actor Arshad Warsi and his wife Maria Goretti and others from trading in the securities markets for up to 5 years, as reported by news agency PTI.

Arshad Warsi and his wife, Maria Goretti, were banned by SEBI.

The couple and others have been banned for up to five years, according to reports by PTI. The ban follows an investigation that revealed their involvement in a scheme to manipulate the stock prices of Sadhna Broadcast, now known as Crystal Business System Ltd. Arshad and Maria were fined ₹5 lakh each and banned from the securities market for one year. SEBI stated that Arshad made a profit of ₹41.70 lakhs, and Maria earned ₹50.35 lakhs through these trades. The market regulator also fined the other 57 entities between ₹ 5 lakh and ₹5 crore each. The group has now been asked to return ₹58.01 crore in illegal profits, along with 12% interest per year from the end of the investigation period until full payment is made.

The probe by SEBI in the matter.

According to SEBI’s final order issued on Thursday, misleading videos were posted on YouTube channels urging people to invest in Sadhna Broadcast. These videos made the stock appear promising, creating artificial demand and driving up its price. SEBI described the scheme as a typical “pump-and-dump.” In this strategy, using false information, prices are inflated, and once they rise, the manipulators sell their shares for a profit, leaving regular investors with losses.

Ashwani Bhatia, SEBI’s whole-time member, as reported by PTI, said, “The price was systematically pushed upward through collusive trading, followed by aggressive promotional activity to draw in retail investors, and finally, a coordinated sell-off by the promoters.” The investigation identified Rakesh Kumar Gupta, Gaurav Gupta, and Manish Mishra as the central planners of the operation. Mishra also operated YouTube channels such as Moneywise, The Advisor, and Profit Yatra, which were utilised to disseminate promotional videos during the second phase of the scheme. The 109-page SEBI order concluded that all 59 entities broke rules meant to stop fraud and unfair practices in the market.