Gold loan financier Manappuram Finance Ltd reported a violation of its code of conduct under the SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015, involving a trade in the company's shares through the discretionary portfolio management services (PMS) account of an independent director. According to the disclosure, the transaction occurred in the PMS account of Abhijit Sen, Independent and Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the Audit Committee, due to an operational lapse by the PMS provider despite specific prohibitory instructions.
The transaction took place on February 3, 2026, involving 2,111 equity shares of Manappuram Finance valued at ₹6.15 lakh. As reported by CNBC TV18, the designated person had issued explicit instructions to the PMS provider to classify the company's securities under the 'prohibited category' to prevent any dealing. However, the restriction was not implemented at the system level by the PMS provider, which resulted in the trade.
The director confirmed that the transaction was not undertaken pursuant to any instruction, decision or active involvement on his part. According to the disclosure, he also stated that he was not in possession of any unpublished price-sensitive information at the time of the trade and had no intent to contravene the PIT regulations or the company's code. The transaction was executed without obtaining prior pre-clearance from the compliance officer, as required under the code for trades exceeding the prescribed threshold.
Considering the circumstances, Manappuram Finance classified the instance as a technical and inadvertent non-compliance, obtained a written explanation from the designated person, and imposed a monetary penalty of ₹20,000 in accordance with its code of conduct. The amount has been remitted online to the SEBI Investor Protection and Education Fund (IPEF) on April 7, 2026 through Axis Bank Ltd, Thrissur branch. The company stated there have been no previous instances of such violations since the last financial year.
Shares of Manappuram Finance Ltd ended at ₹270.60, up by ₹14.75, or 5.77%, on the BSE today, April 8, 2026. According to CNBC TV18, the matter was examined by the compliance officer and placed before the Audit Committee and the board before the corrective action was implemented.
