SEBI issues Show Cause Notice 7 years after 2016 trading period

SEBI examined whether the individual used small, repeated buy orders to artificially inflate the stock price.

Who it concerns: Bhavin Sureshbhai Thakkar (individual); Evexia Lifecare Limited (company, formerly Kavit Industries Ltd.)

What SEBI found or ordered

• SEBI alleged violations of Section 12A of the SEBI Act and PFUTP Regulations 2003.
• Investigation period: August 11, 2016 to November 11, 2016.
• SEBI found the Noticee contributed ₹59.48 to total market positive Last Traded Price (LTP), representing 40.85% of the market's positive LTP.
• SEBI noted that 179 of the Noticee's trades were single-share buy orders placed after sell orders were already available in the market.
• SEBI alleged the Noticee contributed ₹5.02 to the New High Price (NHP), which was 37.80% of the total market NHP.
• The Noticee claimed to be a day trader testing market depth, but SEBI alleged the pattern indicated manipulative intent.
• The order text provided is truncated and does not contain the final penalty amount or final direction.

Also in the document

• The Show Cause Notice was issued in December 2023, approximately 7 years after the trading period in question (2016).
• The Noticee argued that the delay in issuing the notice was 'inordinate' and cited Supreme Court and SAT precedents regarding reasonable time limits for SEBI actions.
• The investigation was initiated based on a Suspicious Transaction Report from FIU-IND regarding another entity, Ethan Constructions Pvt. Ltd., which led to a broader analysis of Evexia's trading.