Is a SEBI registered investment adviser the same as a mutual fund distributor?

No. A distributor earns commission from the fund houses whose products they sell, so their income depends on what you buy. A SEBI Registered Investment Adviser charges you directly and is barred from earning commission on the products they recommend. Both can be useful, but only one is paid by you alone.

Does SEBI registration mean my returns are guaranteed or protected?

No. Registration is a conduct and competence standard, not a guarantee. It means the adviser met qualification requirements, must act in your interest, must keep records, and can be acted against by SEBI for misconduct. Your investments can still lose money, and SEBI does not compensate for investment losses.

What does an INA number mean?

Every SEBI registered investment adviser is issued a registration number beginning with INA, for example INA000000037. It is the single identifier to check against SEBI’s register. Advisers registered in the GIFT City IFSC carry an INAIFSC prefix instead.

How much should an investment adviser cost?

SEBI caps adviser fees under two permitted models: a fixed fee per client per year, or a percentage of assets under advice. The cap is revised periodically, so confirm the current limits on SEBI’s website. What matters more than the headline number is that the fee is stated in writing before you sign anything.

Can an adviser take custody of my money?

A registered investment adviser advises; they should not be taking your money into their own account to invest on your behalf. Investments should be made in your own name, through your own accounts. Anyone asking you to transfer funds to them personally is a serious warning sign, registration or not.

What Is a SEBI Registered Investment Adviser?

A SEBI Registered Investment Adviser, usually shortened to RIA, is a person or firm licensed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India to give you personalised investment advice in exchange for a fee. The licence comes from the SEBI (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013. As on August 3, 2026 there were 1,038 of them in the whole of India, which is a strikingly small number for a country of this size.

That scarcity matters. Most people offering investment help in India are not registered advisers. They are distributors, relationship managers at a bank, insurance agents, or someone confident on social media. None of those roles carries the legal duty an RIA has toward you.

The distinction that actually matters

The single most useful thing to understand is how the person advising you gets paid, because that determines whose interest they serve when the two conflict.

	Registered adviser (RIA)	Distributor or agent
Paid by	You, directly	The product manufacturer, via commission
Can earn commission	No, prohibited on advised products	Yes, that is the business model
Duty to you	Must act in your interest, in writing	Must sell you something suitable
Registration number	INA prefix, verifiable on SEBI	ARN number, a different register
Qualification bar	Postgraduate or professional qualification plus NISM certification	A single certification exam

Neither is dishonest by nature. A good distributor can be genuinely helpful, and registration alone does not make someone good at their job. But if you are paying for advice, you should know whether you are the customer or the product.

What registration does and does not mean

Registration means SEBI has checked the adviser's qualifications, that they must assess your circumstances before recommending anything, that they must give you a written agreement and disclose conflicts, that they must keep records of the advice they give, and that SEBI can act against them if they breach those obligations.

Registration does not mean SEBI has vetted the quality of their advice, endorsed them, or guaranteed anything about your returns. It does not protect you from losing money on a perfectly sensible investment that simply did not work out. And it does not mean the adviser is a good fit for you specifically. A registered adviser who mainly serves retirees may be the wrong choice for a 26-year-old starting out.

How to verify an adviser in two minutes

Ask for the registration number. It begins with INA, or INAIFSC for advisers registered in the GIFT City IFSC.
Open the official SEBI register yourself. Do not use a link they send you.
Match the number against the name and the registered address. A mismatch is a reason to stop.
Search SEBI's orders page for the adviser's name to see whether there has been any enforcement action.

A certificate image, a screenshot, or a PDF sent over WhatsApp proves nothing. Those are trivially forged, and forged ones circulate widely.

Questions worth asking in a first conversation

What is your SEBI registration number, and can I verify it now?: A genuine adviser will give it without hesitation. Check it on SEBI’s site while you are still talking, not afterwards.
How exactly are you paid, and by whom?: You want a single answer: by you. If any part of their income comes from product manufacturers, the advice is not conflict-free.
Will investments be held in my own name, in my own accounts?: The answer must be yes. Advisers advise; they do not hold your money.
What happens to my plan if you stop practising?: Particularly worth asking an individual adviser rather than a firm, where continuity is built in.
Can I see the written agreement and fee schedule before I commit?: SEBI requires a written agreement. Reading it before paying is the point of having one.
Have you ever been the subject of a SEBI action?: Orders are public on SEBI’s site. Asking directly tells you how straight they are with uncomfortable questions.

Warning signs

Guaranteed or “assured” returns. Nobody can promise these legally.
Pressure to decide quickly, or a “limited window” on an opportunity.
A request to transfer money to the adviser's own account.
Reluctance to put the fee, or anything else, in writing.
Advice given before anyone asked about your income, goals, or existing commitments.
Screenshots of past profits as the main evidence of competence.

Where to go next

If you want to understand what an adviser is likely to recommend before you meet one, it helps to know the basics yourself. Our guides on portfolio diversification and valuation cover the ground most first conversations start from. Reading them will not replace advice, but it will make you much harder to sell to.

When you are ready, browse the 1,038 registered advisers by city.

Common questions

Is a SEBI registered investment adviser the same as a mutual fund distributor?: No. A distributor earns commission from the fund houses whose products they sell, so their income depends on what you buy. A SEBI Registered Investment Adviser charges you directly and is barred from earning commission on the products they recommend. Both can be useful, but only one is paid by you alone.
Does SEBI registration mean my returns are guaranteed or protected?: No. Registration is a conduct and competence standard, not a guarantee. It means the adviser met qualification requirements, must act in your interest, must keep records, and can be acted against by SEBI for misconduct. Your investments can still lose money, and SEBI does not compensate for investment losses.
What does an INA number mean?: Every SEBI registered investment adviser is issued a registration number beginning with INA, for example INA000000037. It is the single identifier to check against SEBI’s register. Advisers registered in the GIFT City IFSC carry an INAIFSC prefix instead.
How much should an investment adviser cost?: SEBI caps adviser fees under two permitted models: a fixed fee per client per year, or a percentage of assets under advice. The cap is revised periodically, so confirm the current limits on SEBI’s website. What matters more than the headline number is that the fee is stated in writing before you sign anything.
Can an adviser take custody of my money?: A registered investment adviser advises; they should not be taking your money into their own account to invest on your behalf. Investments should be made in your own name, through your own accounts. Anyone asking you to transfer funds to them personally is a serious warning sign, registration or not.

Compiled from SEBI's public register of Investment Advisers as on August 3, 2026. Registration details change: always confirm someone's current status on the official SEBI register before engaging them.

Inclusion in this directory is not an endorsement, recommendation, or assessment of any adviser. The Rational Investor is not affiliated with SEBI or with anyone listed, receives no payment for listings, and does not verify the services advisers offer. Read our full disclaimer.