SEBI bars former Zee executives from markets for one year

India's securities market regulator has barred former executives of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. from accessing the securities market for one year following an investigation into the unauthorized pledging of a company asset. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) issued the order on Friday, July 31, 2026, after concluding that ZEEL's Hyderabad land parcel was secretly used to secure loans for promoter-linked entities without board approval or proper disclosure.

Former chairman and non-executive director Subhash Chandra and former managing director and chief executive officer Punit Goenka were found to have orchestrated a scheme where the land was pledged as security for loans worth 726 crore rupees availed by four closely held borrowing companies from lender Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd. in 2016. SEBI’s quasi-judicial authority, N. Murugan, stated the executives participated in a deceptive device involving fraud in connection with dealing in ZEEL's securities. ZEEL itself was not a borrower and received no part of the loan proceeds.

The regulator's findings detail that on December 27, 2018, a declaration and acknowledgement was executed in ZEEL's name,...