Rajveer-code/IndiaFinBench huggingface dataset:
Source: SEBI

Each scheme of the Alternative Investment Fund shall have corpus of at least twenty crore rupees. The Alternative Investment Fund shall not accept from an investor, an investment of value less than one crore rupees: Provided that in case of investors who are employees or directors of the Alternative Investment Fund or employees or directors of the Manager, the minimum value of investment shall be twenty five lakh rupees.

Question: What is the minimum investment amount an employee or director of the Manager of an Alternative Investment Fund must make in the AIF under SEBI AIF Regulations, 2012?
Answer: Twenty five lakh rupees
Source: SEBI

Regulation 8(2)(e) prior to 2025: price for infrequently traded shares was determined by 'the acquirer and the manager to the open offer'. Substituted by the SEBI (SAST) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, w.e.f. 03-01-2026, to require 'an independent registered valuer'. The same amendment also substituted similar references in Regulation 8(4) and Regulation 9(5). A 9-month transition period was provided for ongoing valuation assignments.

Question: What significant change did the SEBI Takeovers Amendment Regulations, 2025 make to who can conduct share valuations for open offers, and what transitional protection was provided for ongoing assignments?
Answer: The 2025 Amendment Regulations, effective January 3, 2026, replaced the requirement that valuations for infrequently traded shares (Regulation 8(2)(e) and 8(4)) and consideration shares (Regulation 9(5)) be done by the acquirer and the manager to the open offer (or an independent merchant banker/chartered accountant with 10 years' experience) with the requirement for an independent registered valuer as defined under section 247 of the Companies Act, 2013. A transition period of 9 months was provided for valuation assignments already underway before the amendment came into force.
Source: RBI

M3: Outstanding as on Feb 28, 2026: ₹30,298,040 crore. Variation over Financial Year 2025-26 so far: Amount ₹30,11,451 crore / 11.0%. Year-on-Year 2026: Amount ₹31,30,192 crore / 11.5%.

Question: As of February 28, 2026, what was the year-on-year growth rate of M3 (broad money supply)?
Answer: 11.5%
Source: SEBI

In an issue made through the book building process, the issuer may allocate up to sixty per cent. of the portion available for allocation to qualified institutional buyers to anchor investors in accordance with these regulations. One-third of the anchor investor portion shall be reserved for domestic mutual funds.

Question: Under SEBI ICDR Regulations, 2018, what fraction of the anchor investor portion in a book-built issue is reserved for domestic mutual funds?
Answer: One-third
Source: SEBI

Regulation 7(1): An individual investment adviser or a principal officer of a non-individual investment adviser registered as an investment adviser under these regulations or persons associated with investment advice, shall have the following minimum qualification, at all times — (a) A graduate degree or any equivalent educational qualification from a university or institution recognized by the Central Government or any State Government or a recognised foreign university or institution or association or CFA Charter from the CFA Institute, and relevant certification from NISM or from any other organization or institution accredited by NISM; or (c) A Post Graduate Program in the Securities Market (Investment Advisory) from NISM or a Post Graduate Program in Financial Planning from NISM or any other program of NISM as may be specified by the Board.

Question: What are the minimum qualification requirements for an individual investment adviser under the SEBI (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013 (as currently amended)?
Answer: Under Regulation 7(1), an individual investment adviser must, at all times, hold either: (a) a graduate degree (or equivalent) from a recognized university or CFA Charter from the CFA Institute, combined with relevant NISM certification or certification from an NISM-accredited organization; or (c) a Post Graduate Program in Securities Market (Investment Advisory) or a Post Graduate Program in Financial Planning from NISM, or any other NISM program as specified by the Board.
Source: SEBI

Regulation 10(d): Provided that for Category III Alternative Investment Fund, the continuing interest shall be not less than five percent of the corpus or ten crore rupees, whichever is lower.

Question: A Category III AIF (hedge fund) has a corpus of Rs 150 crore. What is the minimum continuing interest the Manager or Sponsor is required to maintain in this fund?
Answer: For Category III AIFs, the continuing interest must be the lower of: (a) 5% of corpus = 5% × Rs 150 crore = Rs 7.5 crore, or (b) Rs 10 crore. Since Rs 7.5 crore < Rs 10 crore, the minimum continuing interest is Rs 7.5 crore.
Source: SEBI

Eligibility criteria for appointment of asset management company. 21. (1)(f) Provided that where the sponsor does not fulfil the requirements provided in part (i) to (v) of the Explanation to clause (a) of regulation 7 at the time of making application, the asset management company shall be required to have a networth of not less than rupees one hundred crore deployed in assets as may be specified by the Board and the asset management company shall maintain such networth till it has profits for five consecutive years. Provided further that an asset management company of a mutual fund eligible to launch only infrastructure debt fund schemes, shall have a networth of not less than rupees ten crore.

Question: If a sponsor fails to fulfil all eligibility criteria at the time of application, what enhanced networth must the AMC maintain, and for how long must it maintain this higher networth?
Answer: Not less than rupees one hundred crore, maintained until the AMC has profits for five consecutive years
Source: RBI

Annex III — List of circulars repealed: DOR.ACC.REC.118/21-02-067/2025-26, dated November 28, 2025 — Reserve Bank of India (Small Finance Banks - Prudential Norms on Declaration of Dividends) Directions, 2025.

These Directions shall be called the Reserve Bank of India (Small Finance Banks - Prudential Norms on Declaration of Dividend) Directions, 2026. These Directions shall come into effect from Financial Year (FY) 2026-27.

Question: Which set of RBI directions on Small Finance Bank dividend norms was in effect during FY 2025-26 — the 2025 Directions or the 2026 Directions?
Answer: The 2025 Directions (issued November 28, 2025) were in effect during FY 2025-26. The 2026 Directions come into effect only from FY 2026-27 (i.e., from April 1, 2026).
Source: SEBI

The definition of 'non-convertible debt securities' in SEBI LODR Regulations was substituted by the SEBI (LODR) (Fifth Amendment) Regulations, 2021 w.e.f. 7.9.2021. Before substitution, clause (t) defined non-convertible debt securities as 'debt securities' as defined under the SEBI (Issue and Listing of Debt Securities) Regulations, 2008. After the amendment, it aligned with the definition under the SEBI (Issue and Listing of Non-Convertible Securities) Regulations, 2021.

Question: Before 7 September 2021, which SEBI regulations were cross-referenced in SEBI LODR Regulations 2015 for the definition of 'non-convertible debt securities'?
Answer: The SEBI (Issue and Listing of Debt Securities) Regulations, 2008
Source: SEBI

Regulation 4: The Board shall not consider an application under regulation 3 unless the applicant is promoted by a person belonging to any of the following categories: (a) a public financial institution; (b) a scheduled commercial bank included in the second schedule to the RBI Act, 1934; (c) a foreign bank operating in India with the approval of the Reserve Bank of India; (d) a foreign credit rating agency incorporated in a Financial Action Task Force (FATF) member jurisdiction and recognised under their law, having a minimum of five years' experience in rating securities; (e) any company or body corporate having continuous net worth of minimum rupees one hundred crores as per audited annual accounts for the previous five years.

Question: Who are the eligible categories of promoters for a credit rating agency under SEBI (CRA) Regulations, 1999?
Answer: Under Regulation 4, a credit rating agency must be promoted by one of the following: (a) a public financial institution; (b) a scheduled commercial bank in the RBI's second schedule; (c) a foreign bank operating in India with RBI approval; (d) a foreign CRA incorporated in a FATF member jurisdiction, recognised under their law, with at least five years' experience in rating securities; or (e) any company or body corporate with a continuous net worth of at least Rs 100 crore per audited accounts for the previous five years.
Source: RBI

Annex I: Illustration 1: Computation of maximum permissible dividend for FY 20X1-X2. Net profit (PAT) for FY 20X1-X2 (A): Rs17,000 crore. Net NPAs as on March 31, 20X2 (B): Rs6,500 crore. Adjusted PAT, i.e., (C) = (A) - 50% of (B): Rs13,750 crore. Tier 1 Capital ratio as on March 31, 20X1 (D): 11.72% (falls in Bucket B4). 75% of PAT (E): Rs12,750 crore. Max payable as per Table 1 (40% of 13,750) (F): Rs5,500 crore. Maximum Eligible Dividend (i.e., Lower of E or F): Rs5,500 crore.

Question: In Illustration 1 of the RBI SFB Dividend Directions, 2026, a bank has PAT of Rs17,000 crore, Net NPA of Rs6,500 crore, and Tier 1 ratio of 11.72%. What is the maximum eligible dividend?
Answer: Rs5,500 crore (40% of Adjusted PAT of Rs13,750 crore, which is lower than 75% of PAT of Rs12,750 crore)
Source: SEBI

Regulation 6(4): The Board may, on being satisfied that the applicant complies with the provisions of regulation 4 except those of clause (c) or clause (d) thereof, as the case may be, grant an in-principle approval to the applicant: Provided that the applicant shall comply with clause (c) or clause (d) of regulation 4, as the case may be, within six months from the date of grant of in-principle approval and upon compliance with the same, the Board may grant a certificate of registration. (5) An Alternative Investment Fund that has been granted in-principle approval may accept commitments from investors but shall not accept any monies till it is granted registration under sub-regulation (2) of this regulation.

Question: Under SEBI AIF Regulations 2012, what can an AIF that has received in-principle approval (but not yet full registration) do in terms of fundraising, and what is it prohibited from doing?
Answer: Under Regulation 6(5), an AIF that has been granted in-principle approval may accept commitments from investors. However, it shall not accept any monies (actual cash) until it is granted the full certificate of registration. The AIF must also comply with any remaining eligibility conditions (under Reg 4(c) or (d)) within six months from the date of in-principle approval to obtain full registration.
Source: SEBI

Passage A:
Regulation 2(1)(r) (original, pre-2020): 'representative' means an employee or an agent of an investment adviser who renders investment advice on behalf of that investment adviser.

Passage B:
Regulation 2(1)(r) (as substituted w.e.f. 30-09-2020): 'persons associated with investment advice' shall mean any member, partner, officer, director or employee or any sales staff of such investment adviser including any person occupying a similar status or performing a similar function irrespective of the nature of association with the investment adviser who is engaged in providing investment advisory services to the clients of the investment adviser. Explanation — All client-facing persons such as sales staff, service relationship managers, client relationship managers, etc., by whatever name called shall be deemed to be persons associated with investment advice, but do not include persons who discharge clerical or office administrative functions where there is no client interface.

Question: Do the original definition of 'representative' and the 2020-amended definition of 'persons associated with investment advice' cover the same set of persons within an investment advisory firm?
Answer: No
Source: SEBI

Category III Alternative Investment Funds shall invest not more than ten per cent of the investable funds in an Investee Company directly or through investment in units of other AIFs. The Alternative Investment Fund shall not accept from an investor, an investment of value less than one crore rupees. No scheme of the Alternative Investment Fund shall have more than one thousand investors.

Question: Under SEBI AIF Regulations 2012, if a Category III AIF scheme has investable funds of 500 crore rupees and invests the maximum permissible amount in a single investee company, how much can it invest in that company?
Answer: 50 crore rupees (10% of 500 crore = 50 crore)
Source: SEBI

Passage A:
The asset management company has a networth of not less than rupees ten crore.

Passage B:
The asset management company has a networth of not less than rupees fifty crore deployed in assets as may be specified by the Board.

Question: Do Passage A and Passage B set the same minimum networth requirement for an asset management company?
Answer: No
Source: RBI

B. Eligibility criteria. 7. A bank shall meet the following prudential requirements, to be eligible to declare dividends. (3) The bank shall have positive adjusted Profit After Tax (PAT) for the financial year for which the dividend is proposed. (4) The bank shall not be under any explicit restrictions for declaration of dividends from the Reserve Bank or any other authority.

Question: What profitability condition must an SFB satisfy to be eligible to declare dividends under the RBI SFB Dividend Directions, 2026?
Answer: The bank shall have positive adjusted Profit After Tax (PAT) for the financial year for which the dividend is proposed
Source: SEBI

The board of directors of asset management company must comprise at least fifty per cent of independent directors. The custodian in which fifty per cent or more of the directors represent the interest of the mutual fund shall not act as custodian for that mutual fund. An asset management company shall not invest more than ten per cent of the aggregate value of securities purchases or sales during any financial year through any single broker.

Question: Under SEBI Mutual Funds Regulations, an AMC's board has 8 directors. What is the minimum number who must be independent directors?
Answer: Four independent directors (at least 50% of 8 = 4)
Source: SEBI

Restrictions on business activities of the asset management company. 24. The asset management company shall,— (a) not act as a trustee of any mutual fund; (b) not undertake any business activities other than in the nature of management and advisory services provided to pooled assets including offshore funds, insurance funds, pension funds, provident funds, or such categories of foreign portfolio investor as may be specified by the Board, if any of such activities are not in conflict with the activities of the mutual fund.

Question: Under Regulation 24 of SEBI (Mutual Funds) Regulations, may an AMC act as trustee of any mutual fund?
Answer: No. An AMC shall not act as a trustee of any mutual fund.
Source: SEBI

The audit committee shall have minimum three directors as members. At least two-thirds of the members of audit committee shall be independent directors. All members of audit committee shall be financially literate and at least one member shall have accounting or related financial management expertise. The audit committee shall meet at least four times in a financial year and not more than one hundred and twenty days shall elapse between two consecutive meetings.

Question: Under SEBI LODR Regulations 2015, what is the maximum permissible gap between two consecutive audit committee meetings?
Answer: One hundred and twenty days
Source: SEBI

Regulation 29(1): Any acquirer, together with persons acting in concert with him acquiring shares or voting rights in a target company, which taken together aggregates to five per cent or more of the shares of such target company, shall disclose their aggregate shareholding and voting rights in such form as may be specified. (2) Any person who holds shares or voting rights entitling them to five per cent or more shall disclose the number held and change in shareholding or voting rights if such change exceeds two per cent of total shareholding or voting rights in the target company. (3) Such disclosures shall be made within two working days of the acquisition or disposal.

Question: Under Chapter V (Disclosure provisions) of SEBI Takeovers Regulations 2011, when must a disclosure of acquisition be made if the acquisition aggregates to 5% or more, and within what timeframe must the disclosure be filed?
Answer: An acquirer whose aggregate acquisition reaches 5% or more must disclose their aggregate shareholding and voting rights. Additionally, any person already holding 5% or more must disclose any change in shareholding exceeding 2%. All such disclosures must be made within two working days of the acquisition or disposal to every stock exchange where the target company is listed and to the target company at its registered office.
Source: SEBI

Regulation 8(10): Where the acquirer acquires shares during the period of twenty-six weeks after the tendering period at a price higher than the offer price, the acquirer shall pay the difference between the highest acquisition price and the offer price to all shareholders whose shares were accepted in the open offer, within sixty days from the date of such acquisition.

Question: An open offer at Rs 100 per share completed payment to shareholders on March 15, 2024. The acquirer then purchases shares in the open market at Rs 130 per share on August 20, 2024. Does Regulation 8(10) apply, and if so, by when must the difference be paid to shareholders who tendered in the open offer?
Answer: 26 weeks from March 15, 2024 is approximately September 15, 2024. August 20, 2024 falls within this window, so Regulation 8(10) applies. The acquirer must pay Rs 30 per share (Rs 130 minus Rs 100) to all tendering shareholders within 60 days from August 20, 2024, i.e., by approximately October 19, 2024.
Source: SEBI

Regulation 15(2): Every credit rating agency shall disseminate information regarding newly assigned ratings, and changes in earlier rating promptly through press releases and websites, and, in the case of securities issued by listed companies, such information shall also be provided simultaneously to the concerned regional stock exchange and to all the stock exchanges where the said securities are listed.

Question: How must a credit rating agency disseminate information about newly assigned ratings and rating changes under SEBI (CRA) Regulations, 1999? What additional step is required for listed company securities?
Answer: Under Regulation 15(2), a CRA must promptly disseminate information about newly assigned ratings and changes in earlier ratings through press releases and websites. For securities issued by listed companies, the information must additionally be provided simultaneously to the concerned regional stock exchange and to all stock exchanges where the securities are listed.
Source: RBI

Passage A:
Bucket B2: Tier 1 Capital Ratio above 7.5% and up to 9.5% — Dividend allowed: 20% of adjusted PAT.

Passage B:
Bucket B3: Tier 1 Capital Ratio above 9.5% and up to 11.5% — Dividend allowed: 30% of adjusted PAT.

Question: Under the RBI SFB Dividend Directions 2026, do Bucket B2 and Bucket B3 allow the same maximum dividend as a percentage of Adjusted PAT?
Answer: No
Source: RBI

Illustration 2: Adjusted PAT i.e., (C): 38,000 crore. Tier 1 Capital ratio (D): 15%. The CET1 ratio falls in bucket B5. 75% of PAT (E): 30,375. Max payable as per Table 1 (50% of 38,000) (F): 19,000. Maximum Eligible Dividend (i.e., Lower of E or F): 19,000. Maximum Eligible Dividend as percentage of PAT: 46.91%.

Question: In Illustration 2, with Adjusted PAT of ₹38,000 crore and Bucket B5 (50% limit), what is the maximum dividend allowed per Table 1, and what is 75% of PAT (₹40,500 crore)?
Answer: Maximum per Table 1: ₹19,000 crore (50% × ₹38,000). 75% of PAT: ₹30,375 crore (75% × ₹40,500). The Maximum Eligible Dividend is ₹19,000 crore, being the lower of the two.
Source: SEBI

An application in respect of any specified proceeding pending before the Board shall not be considered if it is made after sixty days from the date of service of the notice to show cause issued for initiation of such proceeding. Provided that no such delayed application shall be considered if the application is filed after one hundred and twenty calendar days from the expiry of the period specified in sub-regulation (1) or after the first hearing, whichever is earlier.

Question: Under SEBI Settlement Proceedings Regulations 2018, what is the absolute latest deadline — counted from expiry of the sixty-day window — after which no settlement application in a specified proceeding will be considered?
Answer: One hundred and twenty calendar days from the expiry of the sixty-day period, or after the first hearing, whichever is earlier
Source: SEBI

Regulation 13(e) (as amended w.e.f. 25-11-2025 by SEBI (Investment Advisers) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2025): individuals registered as investment advisers whose number of clients exceed three hundred at any point of time or the fee collected during the financial year exceeds three crore rupees, whichever is earlier shall — (i) immediately intimate the Administration and Supervisory Body and initiate the process of transition from individual to non-individual investment adviser; and (ii) apply for grant of in-principle approval for registration as non-individual investment adviser within 3 months from the date on which the threshold is reached. [Prior to this amendment, per the 2020 version]: individuals... shall — (i) apply for grant of in-principle registration as non-individual investment adviser; (ii) the in-principle registration shall be valid for a period of three months.

Question: What procedural change did the SEBI (Investment Advisers) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2025 make to the transition process for individual investment advisers who breach the 300-client or Rs 3 crore fee threshold?
Answer: The SEBI (Investment Advisers) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2025 (w.e.f. 25-11-2025) amended Regulation 13(e) to add a new intermediate step: upon breaching the threshold, the individual IA must first immediately intimate the Administration and Supervisory Body and initiate the transition process before applying for in-principle approval. The 2020 version of Regulation 13(e) only required directly applying for in-principle registration as a non-individual investment adviser. The 3-month window for applying for in-principle approval was retained by the 2025 amendment, but an explicit intimation obligation was added as a new first step.
Source: SEBI

Seventh Schedule — Restrictions on Investments. 9. No mutual fund [scheme] shall make any investment in— (c) the listed securities of group companies of the sponsor which is in excess of 25 per cent of the net assets, except for investments by equity oriented exchange traded funds and index funds and subject to such conditions as may be specified by the Board.

Question: What is the maximum investment a mutual fund scheme may make in listed securities of group companies of the sponsor?
Answer: 25 per cent of the net assets (with exceptions for equity oriented ETFs and index funds)
Source: SEBI

Seventh Schedule — Restrictions on Investments. 2. No mutual fund under all its schemes should own more than ten per cent of any company's paid up capital carrying voting rights or ten per cent of units of REITs issued by a single issuer, as the case may be.

Question: What is the maximum combined ownership stake that all schemes of a mutual fund may hold in any single company, in terms of paid-up capital carrying voting rights?
Answer: Not more than ten per cent of any company's paid up capital carrying voting rights