SEBI New Initiative: Investors Can Store Demat, MF Holdings In DigiLocker From April 1

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has collaborated with DigiLocker, a digital document wallet, to address the issue of unclaimed assets in the Indian securities market, effective April 1, 2025. This collaboration aims to enhance transparency and streamline access to financial documents for investors and their legal heirs.

DigiLocker has already gained popularity among users for storing important documents like Aadhaar, PAN, driving licenses, and death certificates. With the inclusion of mutual fund, and demat holding statements, as well as consolidated account statements (CAS), investors can now consolidate their entire financial portfolio within a single digital account, making financial management more convenient and secure.

To maximize the benefits of this initiative, investors are encouraged to become DigiLocker users and specify nominees for their DigiLocker accounts. This is in addition to the nominations made in their demat accounts and mutual fund folios. While designating a nominee, users must provide the nominee's mobile number and email address for authentication and communication purposes.

Process In Case Of Investor's Demise

In the event of an investor's demise, DigiLocker will update the user's status based on official death records from the Registrar General and Census Commissioner or upon receiving verified information along with the death certificate.
The designated DigiLocker nominee(s) will be automatically notified and granted access to the deceased user's DigiLocker account after identity authentication. The nominee(s) will then be able to view and retrieve the stored financial documents.

If the DigiLocker nominee is also the designated nominee in the investor's mutual fund folio or demat account, they can directly initiate the transmission of financial assets. Otherwise, the nominee(s) will be responsible for passing on the holding statement information to the surviving joint holder, the designated nominee in the folio/account, or the legal heir of the deceased investor. This mechanism aims to facilitate a seamless transition of assets and prevent financial holdings from becoming unclaimed assets (UA).

Mandates For AMCs, RTAs, And Depositories

To implement this system effectively, the market regulator has directed all Asset Management Companies (AMCs), their Registrar and Transfer Agents (RTAs), and recognized Depositories to register with DigiLocker as 'Issuers.' This will enable investors, at their discretion, to fetch:

• Holding statements as of the date immediately preceding the fetching request.
• Transaction statements for the last 30 days of mutual fund units and demat accounts.
• The latest generated or last available Consolidated Account Statement (CAS) within the previous 12 months.
• An option to fetch CAS automatically on the 1st of January each year.

Role Of KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs)

KYC Registration Agencies (KRAs) have been directed to electronically share details of investor demise instances with DigiLocker while ensuring adequate data security measures. The technical specifications and data-sharing modalities will be mutually determined by the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), SEBI, and KRAs from time to time.

This initiative marks a significant step towards digitization and security in the financial sector, ensuring smoother transmission of assets and minimizing the occurrence of unclaimed investments.