Sebi Resolves 6,327 Complaints Via SCORES Platform In October

New Delhi: Capital markets regulator Sebi has disposed of 6,327 complaints against companies and market intermediaries through its grievance redressal platform SCORES in October. As many as 15 complaints were pending for more than three months on SCORES as of October-end, involving entities such as Angel One, Groww Invest Tech, Jainam Broking, Computer Age Management Services Ltd, CAMS Investor Services and Lml Ltd, according to Sebi data. The number of pending complaints slipped to 6,490 as of October 31 from 6,685 as of September 30, as 6,132 fresh complaints were received on the platform last month. SCORES is a grievance redressal system launched in June 2011. It is designed to help investors lodge their complaints online with Sebi, pertaining to the securities market, against companies, intermediaries and market infrastructure institutions. Sebi, in April this year, launched a new version of SCORES with additional features.

The average resolution time for complaints processed by entities was nine days, while the average time for addressing complaints undergoing a first-level review stood at five days, the regulator said in a public notice. Sebi said that pending complaints include cases where entities and designated bodies have submitted their Action Taken Reports (ATRs) within the stipulated time, but the complaints remain in a pending state to allow investors an opportunity to escalate if dissatisfied.

Under SCORES 2.0, complaints are automatically forwarded to the relevant entity, which is required to submit an ATR to the investor within 21 days. If the investor is dissatisfied, they can seek a first-level review within 15 days, which brings the complaint back to the pending list. Designated bodies then handle such complaints and provide their ATRs. If the investors are unsatisfied after the first-level review then they can opt for a second-level review. Alternatively, complaints may also be resolved through the Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) mechanism. Complaints which not escalated by investors within the specified time frames are treated as resolved.