Finfluencer Avadhut Sathe's Karjat Trading Academy Raided by SEBI for 2 Days: Reports

Moneylife Digital Team 22 August 2025

Investor Interest

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has intensified its enforcement against financial influencers with a meticulously planned two-day search and seizure operation at the Karjat Trading Academy, run by financial influencer (finfluencer) Avadhut Sathe.

According to a report from Moneycontrol, the raid, conducted on 20th August and 21 August 2025, began in the early hours of Wednesday and continued till late Thursday evening. SEBI officials, led by a deputy general manager, confiscated digital devices, trading records, and other materials for forensic examination.

Sources familiar with the operation told the portal it as 'long planned and meticulously prepared', with prior court approvals, reconnaissance and surveillance of movement patterns carried out before the strike.

Finfluencer Sathe, popularly known as a 'market guru' on social media, runs the Karjat-based Avdhut Sathe Trading Academy (ASTA) and has a strong retail following, including nearly 9.4 lakh subscribers on his YouTube channel. His popularity and influence over retail investors have reportedly kept him on SEBI’s radar for several months.

Earlier, speaking at a FICCI-CAPAM event, SEBI's whole-time member (WTM) Kamlesh Chandra Varshney confirmed that the regulator had carried out 'a big search operation on a big name in this industry', without naming Mr Sathe directly. Mr Varshney emphasised that the action aimed to send a warning to market educators and influencers who mislead young investors under the guise of financial education.

“One cannot misguide the youth in the name of education by giving calls in classrooms, promising guaranteed returns, or using live trading data. Such activities require SEBI registration,” Varshney says.

Media reports indicate that SEBI had received complaints alleging that some trading academies collude with operators to push penny stocks. By weaving such stocks into classroom examples, these so-called 'gurus' may be helping operators artificially inflate prices.

The Karjat raid is part of a broader SEBI crackdown on unregistered finfluencers who provide stock tips, misleading financial advice, or promise guaranteed returns without authorisation. The market regulator has increasingly leveraged technology to flag violations in real time and has invested in specialist talent to monitor market manipulation tactics, including algorithmic trading abuses and gamma manipulations.

Commenting on the raids on X, Ashish Gupta, a trader alleges that Mr Sathe's ASTA may have earned Rs400 to Rs500 crore and likely to be penalised by the market regulator with a ban.

SEBI conducts search operations at ASTA’s facilities for illegal gains made.

ASTA illegal gain - 400-500 crore
Expected Fine - 40-50 crore
Ban from Markets - 2 years

Ab to hum technique jaan gaya hai ????

pic.twitter.com/jtwAxcJad7
— Ashish Gupta (@AshishGupta325) August 22, 2025

Earlier this year, SEBI issued restrictions prohibiting finfluencers from making claims about the returns or performance of any security. These restrictions also apply to advertisements, branding, and promotional content disseminated through third-party marketing agencies.

In 2024, the regulator removed over 15,000 content sites from unlicensed market educators and banned several finfluencers, including Mohd Nasiruddin Ansari and YouTuber Asmita Jitesh Patel, from accessing the securities market.

As retail participation in the Indian stock market grows, SEBI’s Karjat operation signals the regulator’s determination to crack down on misleading financial advice and ensure robust investor protection.

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