Regulation 23 - Requirement and criteria of fit and proper - Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 2018

1 [Requirement and criteria of fit and proper 23(1) (a) The fit and proper person criteria shall apply to the applicant, depository, its shareholders, directors and key management personnel at all times. (b) The depository shall ensure that all its shareholders, directors and key management personnel are fit and proper persons at all times. (2) For the purpose of these regulations, an applicant, or a depository shall be deemed to be a fit and proper person, if - (a) such a person has a general reputation and record of fairness and integrity, including but not limited to (i) financial integrity; (ii) good reputation and character; and (iii) honesty; (b) such a person has not incurred any of the following disqualifications (i) conviction of the person by a court for any economic offence or an offence of the securities laws; (ii) an Order for winding up has been passed against the person; (iii) the person has been declared insolvent and has not been discharged; (iv) an Order; restraining, prohibiting or debarring the person from dealing in securities or from accessing the securities market, has been passed by the Board and a period of three years from the date of the expiry of the period specified in the Order has not elapsed; (v) any other Order against the person which has a bearing on the securities market, has been passed by the Board and a period of three years from the date of the Order has not elapsed: Provided that for the purpose of sub-clauses (iv) and (v), any Order passed by the Board against a depository shall not affect the operation of such a depository unless expressly mentioned in the Order. (vi) the Board has initiated recovery proceedings under the Act or the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (15 of 1992) that are pending; (vii) the person is not financially sound or has been categorized as a willful defaulter; and (viii) any other disqualification as may be specified by the Board from time to time. (3) For the purpose of these regulations, the shareholders, directors or key management personnel of the depository, shall be deemed to be fit and proper if,- (a) they fulfil the criteria specified under sub-regulation (2) of this regulation; and (b) they have not been found to be of unsound mind by a court of competent jurisdiction and have not been declared a fugitive economic offender; and (c) they have not been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude. (4) If any director or key management personnel of a depository is not deemed to be fit and proper under sub-regulation (3), the depository shall replace such a person within thirty days from the date of such disqualification, failing which the fit and proper person criteria may be invoked against the depository. (5) Any disqualification of the depository under sub-regulation (2) shall not have any bearing on the fit and proper status of the directors or key management personnel unless the directors or key management personnel are also found to incur the same disqualification in the said matter. (6) An order passed against the person by any other regulatory authority may be taken into account by the Board while determining the fit and proper person criteria. (7) If any question arises on the decision of a depository as to whether a person is a fit and proper person, the decision of the Board on such question shall be final. ] ************* NOTES:- 1. Substituted vide Notification No. SEBI/LAD-NRO/GN/2023/147 dated 22-08-2023 before it was read as, Requirement of fit and proper 23. (1) The depository shall ensure that all its directors and key management personnel are fit and proper persons at all times. (2) For the purpose of determining whether an applicant, depository, its shareholder, director, key management personnel or a participant, is a fit and proper person under these regulations, the criteria specified under regulation 20 of Securities Contracts (Regulation) (Stock exchanges and Clearing Corporations) Regulations, 2018, shall be applicable (3) If any question arises on the decision of a depository as to whether a person is fit and proper, the Board s decision on such question shall be final.