Sebi uncovers Rs 173 crore insider trading in IEX shares

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has uncovered insider trading worth over Rs 173 crore in shares of the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) and barred eight people from the market after search operations last month.

Sebi found that confidential details from Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) meetings on market coupling were leaked and used for trading. The regulator has sent its order to CERC for action.

Those barred include Bhoovan Singh, his parents Amar Jit Singh Soran and Amita Soran, his aunt Anita, and Narender Kumar, Virender Singh, Bindu Sharma, and Sanjeev Kumar. Sebi has impounded their gains and directed the creation of fixed deposits under its lien.

The group earned Rs 173.14 crore in illegal profits, led by Bhoovan Singh with Rs 72.03 crore, followed by Narender Kumar with Rs 34.53 crore and Amita Soran with Rs 31.59 crore.

Sebi said Singh and his family were connected to Yogeita S. Mehra, Chief of the Economic Division at CERC, who had access to unpublished price-sensitive information.  

The case began after CERC announced market coupling rules on July 23, 2025, which led to a 29.58% fall in IEX shares the next day. Sebi found unusual trades in IEX options ahead of the announcement and launched searches between September 18 and 20, 2025.

Sebi said the investigation is ongoing and warned that such actions damage market integrity and disadvantage retail investors.