Insider Trading Regulation In India: Integrating The Securities Markets Code, 2025 With Global Best Practices
- IJLLR Journal
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Umang Dubey, LL.M., School of Law, ITM University, Gwalior
Kaushal Sharma, Assistant Professor, School of Law, ITM University, Gwalior
ABSTRACT
Insider trading remains one of the most significant threats to the integrity, fairness, and efficiency of securities markets worldwide. It involves the exploitation of material, non-public information by corporate insiders or other persons in possession of such information for personal financial gain, often at the expense of ordinary investors who lack access to the same information. This practice not only distorts price discovery and market liquidity but also erodes public confidence in the capital markets, which are essential for economic growth and resource allocation. In India, the regulatory framework governing insider trading has evolved considerably over the decades, beginning with early committee recommendations in the post-independence period and culminating in the comprehensive SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015. Despite these advancements, challenges related to enforcement, definitional clarity, technological adaptation, and cross-border cooperation have persisted. The introduction of the Securities Markets Code, 2025 marks a transformative development by statutorily embedding the prohibition of insider trading within the broader concept of market abuse under Section 93, while introducing robust criminal penalties under Section 96. This article provides a detailed and critical examination of India’s insider trading regime, integrating insights from the Securities Markets Code, 2025 with comparative perspectives from the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union. It analyses the conceptual foundations, historical evolution, key provisions, enforcement mechanisms, and persistent gaps in the Indian framework. Drawing upon landmark judicial decisions and global best practices, the article proposes targeted reforms aimed at strengthening deterrence, enhancing surveillance capabilities, improving definitional precision, and fostering greater international regulatory cooperation. The ultimate objective is to ensure that India’s securities markets operate with the highest standards of integrity, transparency, and investor protection, thereby supporting sustainable capital formation and economic development.
