SEBI Raids Trading Guru Avadhut Sathe’s Karjat Academy

• 22 Aug 2025
• 501 Views

On 20 August 2025, the enforcement team of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) launched a search and seizure at Kartjat, a well-known weekend getaway in Sahyadri Hills. The team, led by SEBI deputy general manager, knocked on the doors of trader and market influencer Avadhut Sathe at 6:30 am on 20 August. Sathe had been under the regulator’s scanner for several months before the raid was finally conducted.

A person familiar with the search and seizure operation defined it as a ‘long planned and meticulously prepared’ operation. The operation stretched till Thursday evening. For the operation, the approval from the court had been obtained beforehand and the movement patterns of Sathe were tracked. Reconnaissance was carried out prior to the strike. According to sources, the digital devices and trading data of the trader were seized for the purpose of forensic analysis.

Later, at FICCI-CAPAM event, SEBI whole-time member Mr. Kamlesh Chandra Varshney confirmed that the regulator had conducted a major search operation on a big name in the market. While he did not name the trader, Varshney said the move was aimed at sending a signal that the market regulator is intensifying enforcement against market influencers that misguide retail traders in the name of education.

Varshney mentioned, “If you are misguiding the youth in the name of education, promising guaranteed returns, giving calls in the classroom, using live data to trade… you cannot do that without Sebi registration.” He further added, “ The idea is to create fear in the market that there is a regulator which is watching you.” 

The Karjat search and seizure operation that ran for two days is a part of broader SEBI crackdown on the financial market influencers. The regulator is working towards tightening rules on the financial market education and social media influencers who guarantee quick profits or persuade investors without possessing a SEBI license or registration. 

The officials hope that the raid conducted by SEBI will deter others in the space. The raid on the premises of Sathe is one of the most visible actions by the market regulator against finfluencers. On social media platforms, Sathe is often braided as a market guru. He runs a trading academy known as ‘Karjat Trading Academy’ and has established a wide following among retail investors in the country. He has approx. 9,36,000 subscribers on YouTube. 

Source: MoneyControl