The Central government will press for passage of the new Securities Market Code during the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament 2025, which commenced on Monday, December 1, 2025. According to reports from The Economic Times, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, led by Bhartruhari Mahtab, is expected to table its report early in the session. The committee has held discussions on the code with industry bodies and experts and is scheduled to discuss it clause by clause with the finance ministry on 12 June before finalizing its report. Parliament is expected to convene for the monsoon session in the July-August period.
The Securities Market Code will replace three existing laws—the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, a seven-decade-old law, the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, a more than three-decade-old law, and the Depositories Act, another three-decade-old law. As reported by The Economic Times, the code proposes a principle-based rather than a highly prescriptive regulatory framework to reduce the compliance burden and improve regulatory governance. Chintan Hefa, executive director at Grant Thornton Bharat, noted that the code is designed to modernize and align the regulatory framework with current market realities and consolidating the three existing laws into a single framework will improve clarity and reduce fragmentation.
The code explicitly aims to support capital mobilization, investor protection and market development and introduces investor-focused provisions such as an investor charter and an ombudsperson. According to The Economic Times, companies will benefit from simplified, clear compliance and ease of business through decriminalization of minor issues and a statute of limitation. Investors will benefit from streamlined grievance redressal, enhanced transparency with market infrastructure institutions and stronger leadership accountability. The Code prescribes that Sebi cannot order investigations after eight years of a violation unless it has been referred to by another agency or the board believes it has had or could have systemic impact on the market.
Besides the Securities Market Code, the government will take up proposals to be finalized by two informal ministerial groups led by home minister Amit Shah and defence minister Rajnath Singh as part of its next set of reform measures. As reported by The Economic Times, reforming the regulatory architecture for the capital markets, including decriminalizing procedural breaches and cutting red tape, is a priority for the Modi administration to make the economy more appealing to investors. The finance ministry said in its monthly economic review for May that navigating FY27 will require agility across monetary, fiscal and structural dimensions to safeguard the growth momentum and keep inflation durably anchored.
Dharmesh Jadav, partner at Nangia Global, emphasized that key reforms in the code such as expanded definitions, revamped investor protection, elevated role of market infrastructure institutions and treatment to minor offences aim to elevate governance. According to The Economic Times, Jadav noted that the code's architecture is sound but execution will be crucial. He added that the Standing Committee on Finance has an opportunity to address gaps in the proposed code before it is enacted, with effectiveness depending on the quality of subordinate regulations and consistency in implementation across Sebi and intermediaries.
