Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) pulled the plug on influencer Mohammad Nasiruddin Ansari, the self‑styled “Baap of Charts,” after he resurfaced with a 4.4 million‑subscriber YouTube channel. Ansari promised Rs172 million ($1.8 mn) in “educational” workshops that actually delivered stock tips for his gain to a growing base of novice traders seeking quick returns and in India.

Since 2019, individual investors have tripled to 146 million, while the Nifty 50 climbed 50 percent. SEBI has banned or removed 162,000 posts or accounts from Instagram, Telegram and YouTube, citing fraudulent activity. The regulator’s AI tool, Sudarshan, claims a 40 percent boost in detecting illicit content across 20 languages and helping policymakers to target the most active channels.

Ansari’s scheme promised a 200‑300 percent profit, yet SEBI charged him Rs172 million for false returns. Similar cases, like Avadhut Sathe, collected Rs6 bn from clients while posting exaggerated market claims. Regulators warn that unlicensed finfluencers blur education and advice, risking millions in investor losses especially among young retailers who trust social media experts without verification checks daily.

SEBI’s crackdown shows the regulator’s intent to protect a swelling retail base that now dominates Indian capital markets, where foreign institutional ownership slid to 16.1 percent and mutual funds rose to 11.4 percent. The move signals a shift toward stricter oversight, aiming to curb misinformation and safeguard the integrity of India’s growing financial ecosystem for all participants.