SEBI hikes registration fee for registered advisors by 400 percent

The registration fee for corporates and limited liability partnerships has gone up by 400% from Rs. 1 lakh earlier to Rs. 5 lakh now.

Despite the lackluster response from distributors to register as Investment Advisers, market regulator SEBI has hiked the registration fee by 400% for those wanting a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) status. 

While the application fee and registration fee for individuals and firms (partnership firm) remains unchanged, corporates and those having LLP structure have to cough up a higher amount if they wish to register with SEBI. Individuals and partnership firms have to pay Rs. 5,000 as application fee and Rs. 10,000 as registration fee, which is the same as earlier.   

However, corporates and limited liability partners have to cough up Rs. 25,000 as application fee and Rs. Rs. 5 lakh as registration and renewal fee. Earlier, they had to pay Rs. 5,000 as application fee and Rs. 1 lakh as registration fee.

Advisors have to pay the renewal fee every five years to retain their license.

The hike in fee for LLP category is likely to hurt advisors because many of them are changing their legal structure from individuals and Pvt. Ltd to LLP of late. Advisors are questioning the rationale of such a substantial hike in fee. “No professional like doctor or chartered accountant requires capital adequacy. I don’t understand the need for hiking fee. This will create more entry barriers. There are so many anomalies in the SEBI Investment Adviser Regulations. This is deterring advisors from registering with SEBI,” said a SEBI registered IA from Mumbai wishing anonymity.

Advisors say that the cost and entry barrier will increase with the upward revision in fee.

“Such a quick and sharp revision in fee is not justified. IFAs who are contemplating to become RIAs will shelve their plans. Corporates need to have net worth of Rs. 25 lakh and on top of that the registration fee has been hiked to Rs. 5 lakh. It would be difficult for advisors to recover this cost. It is justifiable if they link the fee with the income from advisory business,” says M S Shabbir of SenSage Financial Services.

Suresh Sadagopan of Ladder 7 Financial Advisory said “The hike is ill-timed. Advisors are finding it difficult to charge fee from clients. This will increase the cost for us. The fee could have been hiked after a couple of years. It is too early. So far only 150 have registered but going forward not many would even consider becoming a RIA.”

Melvin Joseph of Finvin Financial Planners says that the concept of IA has many loopholes. “Many IFAs and corporates have shifted their distribution business to another ARN and have registered as RIAs. How can they give sound advice? Their main source of income continues to be from distribution. The ‘arm’s length distance’ criteria defeats the whole purpose of investment advisor. Also, the fee hike is unreasonable”

Costs and complexities associated with RIA have deterred many advisors from registering with SEBI. Out of the 80,000 ARN holders, only 156 have registered with SEBI as Investment Advisers.

Rising cost