Sebi mulls use of biometrics for trade

New Delhi, Apil 23: With an aim to enhance cyber security, markets regulator Sebi is looking to put in place a new set of guidelines, wherein fingerprint or eye-scan will be required for stock trading through mobile apps.

The markets watchdog has sought comments from market participants like brokers, traders and bourses in this regard, and a final regulation will be put in place after taking into account views of all the stakeholders, regulatory sources said.

In case of applications installed on smartphones and tablets, traders and retail investors may need biometric authentication to buy and sell stocks, according to the proposal.

Further, it has been proposed that after few failed log-in bids, investors’ account might be locked till fresh authentication is completed. For fresh authentication, an e-mail or one-time password may be sent to investors.

According to experts, small brokers, who operate on low margins, may face difficulties in implementing the proposed guidelines. The development comes against the backdrop of instances of cyberattacks on systems in different parts of the world including India.

The Sebi is of the view that sophisticated cyber security and resilience measures are required for the capital market.

The markets watchdog has been taking several steps to safeguard markets from cyberattacks. This included forming a high-level panel on cyber security in May last year to suggest measures to ring fence capital markets from such attacks.

Also, Sebi is beefing up its IT team with experts from the cyber security arena to ensure stronger firewalls against such attacks and faster corrective measures. — PTI