A recent Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) order has pulled back the curtain on how stock market “education” can blur into unregulated investment
advice. At the centre of the action is Avadhut Sathe Trading Academy, a popular finfluencer-led platform that the market regulator says crossed legal boundaries while operating under the guise of training programmes. The SEBI order cites excerpts from a live trading session conducted on April 28, 2025, for batch ASTA: GEO–SMM, including the following lines: “So, I am just telling you how I built my view and took a few trades today…Like I have sold put, futures long kiya hai 21 ke average se (went long on futures on an average of 21)… Doosra hai crude oil (second is crude oil), this I have gone long on 40 lots at 5,417...I just received a buy order. So, I will tell you, you know how to take orders and how to buy. Toh mere ek commodity ka example hai aur ek normal stock ka example hai (So, I've an example of a commodity and a normal stock).” According to SEBI, such content went well beyond education and amounted to live buy-and-sell recommendations. The regulator has directed the academy to return Rs 546 crore, shut down these programmes, and cease market-related activities. However, Sathe has denied giving investment advice and plans to challenge the order, according to a report from The Economic Times. From Warnings To Enforcement This is not the academy’s first brush with SEBI. In 2024, Sathe received a warning over alleged misrepresentation, but SEBI says the practice of offering unregistered advice continued. The regulator found that the academy routinely shared entry and exit points, stop-loss levels, targets, and live trade signals, often through WhatsApp groups, the report added. “Catch ’Em Young” Strategy A key aspect highlighted by SEBI is how the academy attracted and retained participants. Regular stock recommendations and trade updates were shared with 1,683 members across paid WhatsApp groups, each costing Rs 30,000 annually, claims the report. More controversially, the academy promoted stories of children aged 10–15 years being introduced to trading, even featuring them in social media videos to draw in more students. Big Course Sales, Small Trading Gains Since 2015, the academy reportedly earned Rs 601 crore by selling courses to about 410,000 students, with nearly 75 per cent of revenue coming from its GEO (Get Edge Over Others) programme, priced at Rs 72,000. Yet, SEBI noted that despite this massive income, the academy itself made little money from actual trading. Students (many of them young and working) were encouraged to trade derivatives daily, often resulting in losses. The regulator examined accounts of 186 students and found a cumulative loss of Rs 1.93 crore. False Claims And Cult Appeal SEBI also flagged misleading advertisements that showcased large profits by the students. In one case, a claimed monthly profit of Rs 4–5 lakh was contradicted by an actual loss. Another ad spoke of doubled capital, while records showed losses instead. Despite losses, many students remained silent, contributing to the perception of success. Graduation-style ceremonies and Sathe’s guru-like status helped cement loyalty, making the academy’s appeal hard to resist.
