Manappuram Finance Faces Insider Trading Code Breach with Rs 20,000 Fine
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Mumbai, April 8 (NationPress) - On Wednesday, Manappuram Finance Limited disclosed a breach of its insider trading code involving a transaction executed via the portfolio management services (PMS) account of one of its independent directors. The company reported that the trade was associated with Abhijit Sen, an Independent and Non-Executive Director who also chairs the Audit Committee.
The violation occurred on February 3, 2026, when 2,111 shares were purchased, amounting to approximately Rs 6.15 lakh.
Manappuram Finance explained that the transaction resulted from an operational error by the PMS provider, despite explicit instructions from the director to prevent trading in the company's shares.
The shares were meant to be categorized as 'prohibited' to prevent any transactions, yet this restriction was not properly enforced at the system level.
The company confirmed that the director was not involved in the execution of the trade and had not authorized it. He also asserted that he had no access to any unpublished price-sensitive information at the time and did not intend to breach insider trading regulations.
However, the trade lacked prior approval from the compliance officer, a requirement for transactions exceeding a specific limit as per the SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015.
Following an internal review, the issue was presented to the Audit Committee and the board. After careful consideration, the company classified the incident as a technical and unintentional violation.
A written explanation was requested from the director, and a penalty of Rs 20,000 was imposed in accordance with the internal code of conduct.
This penalty was deposited into the Investor Protection and Education Fund of the Securities and Exchange Board of India on April 7, 2026.
The company noted that no similar violations had been reported since the last financial year.
In the meantime, shares of Manappuram Finance concluded trading at Rs 270.60 on Wednesday, reflecting an increase of Rs 14.75 or 5.77% on the BSE.