Supreme Court upholds SEBI's ₹2.1 crore penalty on Kotak AMC, Nilesh Shah and others against Essel Group
Awaiting price reaction for this filing.
The Supreme Court upheld SEBI's ₹2.1 crore penalty on Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company (Kotak AMC), its trustee company, MD Nilesh Shah, and five other executives for mutual fund regulation violations linked to investments in Essel Group debt. The court ruled that market integrity takes precedence over investment outcomes, imposing ₹50 lakh on Kotak AMC, ₹1.6 crore on the trustee and executives (including ₹30 lakh on Nilesh Shah), plus litigation costs of ₹30 lakh and ₹20 lakh. The case involved Kotak AMC's ₹266 crore investment in Essel group entities backed by pledged Zee Entertainment shares, with delays in FMP redemptions leading to about ₹376 crore being paid to investors after schemes had matured.