SC rejects plea to mandate public disclosure of AIF, FPI beneficiary details

The Supreme Court has declined to issue a directive to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to mandate the public disclosure of ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) details and portfolio holdings for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) and Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs).A bench comprising justices BV Nagarathna, R Mahadevan, and DK Upadhyaya ruled that the court cannot issue a writ of mandamus in the absence of an existing legal or regulatory framework requiring such transparency.The court's decision follows a public interest litigation filed by Mahua Moitra, which argued that the lack of disclosure norms creates risks related to market manipulation, money laundering, and tax evasion.The Supreme Court noted that while entity-wise investments are currently disclosed to regulators and custodians to facilitate oversight, there is no legal basis for making this data public. The bench indicated that it is for the government and SEBI to evaluate the matter further in light of the transparency concerns raised.