IFSCA successfully organised Conference on Consumer Awareness and Protection in the Digital Era during IOSCO World Investor Week 2026

Press Release IFSCA successfully organised Conference on Consumer Awareness and Protection in the Digital Era during IOSCO World Investor Week 2026 The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), in coordination with the Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs), organised a full-day Conference on “Consumer Awareness and Protection in the Digital Era” at GIFT City Club, GIFT City, on October 06, 2026. Held as part of the 10th edition of IOSCO World Investor Week, the Conference brought together financial-sector regulators, law-enforcement officials, market institutions, industry representatives and other stakeholders to discuss consumer protection across capital markets, fund management, banking and insurance.

The Conference focused on the principal themes of World Investor Week 2026— Investor Resilience, Digital Deception and Scam Alert – and examined the implications of Artificial Intelligence (AI), emerging fraud techniques and digital delivery of financial services for consumers and institutions.

In his Welcome Address and Introductory Remarks, Dr. Praveen Trivedi, Executive Director, IFSCA, highlighted the importance of consumer awareness and investor protection in an increasingly digital financial ecosystem. He outlined IFSCA’s initiatives to strengthen consumer protection and confidence, while drawing attention to emerging cyber risks, digital scams and the need for consumers to remain informed and vigilant.

He also highlighted the role of the IFSCA Academy in strengthening professional capabilities through specialised courses and capacity-building initiatives, and emphasised the importance of effective enforcement in maintaining a resilient and trustworthy financial market.

Delivering the keynote address, Shri K. Rajaraman, Chairperson, IFSCA, emphasised the importance of financial inclusion in achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat @ 2047. He highlighted that the information and protection available to retail consumers should be commensurate with the complexity of financial products. He also stressed the responsibility of financial institutions to maintain effective cybersecurity safeguards and train personnel in accordance with their responsibilities.

The Chairperson outlined five expectations from regulated entities: design products and processes from the consumer’s perspective; communicate clearly and disclose risks at Page 1 of 4the appropriate stage; incorporate security, privacy and fraud prevention into digital services from the beginning; use complaints to improve systems and services; and remain accountable for activities undertaken through technology, intermediaries and service providers.

The inaugural session featured Special Addresses by Shri Sandip Pradhan, Whole-Time Member, SEBI; Ms. Girija Subramanian, Whole-Time Member, IRDAI; and Shri R. Lakshmi Kanth Rao, Executive Director, RBI. Shri Pradhan discussed investor-awareness initiatives, the role of technology in market oversight and the need for regulatory collaboration. Ms. Subramanian highlighted policyholder-protection initiatives, including Bima-ASBA and Bima Bharosa, and the importance of using technology judiciously while maintaining human oversight. Shri Rao addressed responsible pricing and selling of financial products, safeguards against digital financial fraud and the role of technology and institutional coordination in fraud detection and prevention.

Concluding the inaugural session, Dr. Dipesh Shah, Executive Director, IFSCA, emphasised the role of trust in financial services and the collective responsibility of stakeholders to protect consumers.

Shri Hardik Makadia, ACP (Cyber Crime), Ahmedabad City, conducted a Special Session on combating digital frauds in the era of AI. Drawing on case studies, he explained fraud techniques involving digital-arrest scams, relationship investment scams, fraudulent investment advertisements, impersonation, voice cloning and instant-loan applications.

The session highlighted the importance of awareness, verification and secure digital practices.

The first panel discussion, “Consumer Protection in the Age of AI – Initiatives by Regulators and Institutions”, was moderated by Shri Ankit Bhansali, Chief General Manager, IFSCA. The panel comprised Shri G. Ram Mohan Rao, Executive Director, SEBI;

Shri Sashi Krishnan, Director, NISM; Shri V. Balasubramaniam, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, NSE IX; Shri Nagesh Srivastava, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, India ICC; and Shri Gopalan S. Raghavan, Executive Director, BSE. In his opening remarks, Shri G. Ram Mohan Rao emphasised the need for preventive safeguards and underlined that outsourcing technology does not absolve regulated entities of their responsibility towards investors. The discussion highlighted the importance of financial and AI literacy, verification of investment information and advice, responsible use of AI and safeguards for cross-border investing. Panellists emphasised the need to embed consumer protection in market systems and digital services, with institutions remaining accountable for the technologies and service providers they use.

In a session on global perspectives and IFSCA’s initiatives, Shri Arjun Prasad, Chief General Manager, IFSCA, discussed international consumer-protection principles and standards, regulatory cooperation, IFSCA’s complaint-handling process and the Consumer Charter. He highlighted the importance of meaningful website disclosures, Page 2 of 4compliance with regulatory requirements, consumer-awareness programmes and the use of technology to detect digital fraud.

The second panel discussion, “Digital Frauds & Scams in the Age of AI”, commenced with opening remarks by Shri K. Mahipal Reddy and Shri Supriyo Bhattacharjee, Executive Directors, IFSCA, who highlighted evolving fraud risks, effective fraud- management governance and consumer vigilance. Moderated by Ms. Ketaki Mehta, Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, the panel comprised Shri K. Satyanarayana Raju, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Indian Digital Payment Intelligence Corporation; Shri Shiv Bajrang Singh, Executive Director, Indian Bank; Shri Abhay Tewari, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company Limited; Shri Ashish Kashyap, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, INDmoney;

and Shri Siddarth Pai, Founding Partner, Chief Financial Officer and ESG Officer, 3one4 Capital. The discussion examined AI-enabled impersonation, stronger identity verification, information sharing, predictive fraud detection and early identification of mule-account risks. Panellists emphasised timely consumer alerts, appropriate due diligence and safeguards built into financial products and services. They also underscored the need for coordinated action across institutions and regulators to anticipate and prevent fraud.

Shri Pradeep Ramakrishnan, Executive Director, IFSCA, presented corporate-fraud case studies, emphasising effective internal controls, information sharing across organisational functions and the ability to contain and recover from fraud incidents.

During the Conference, the IFSCA Academy, the capacity-building unit of IFSCA, launched

certification courses through three institutional partnerships:

1. National Institute of Securities Markets (NISM): Certification Courses on Cyber Security and Cyber Resilience in GIFT IFSC—Basic and Advanced.

2. The Institute Of Company Secretaries Of India (ICSI): Corporate Governance in the IFSC.

3. Insurance Institute of India (III): Certification Course for Insurance Professionals in the IFSC.

The programmes aim to strengthen professional capabilities in areas relevant to institutional resilience, governance and consumer protection in GIFT IFSC.

The Conference also included an interactive quiz and an Open House Q&A session with various IFSCA regulated entities and intermediaries, where IFSCA officials clarified their doubts about the regulatory ecosystem.

The Conference concluded with a vote of thanks by Shri Arun Kumar Singh, General Manager, IFSCA, who emphasised the need for a coordinated response to financial fraud Page 3 of 4while safeguarding freedom of speech, privacy and ease of doing business, and thanked all dignitaries, speakers and participants for their contributions.

The Conference reinforced the importance of informed consumers, responsible institutional conduct and coordinated action against digital fraud. It formed part of IFSCA’s awareness and educational activities organised with MIIs and other stakeholders from October 05 to 09, 2026 at GIFT IFSC, under the global campaign of IOSCO World Investor Week 2026.

(A Consumer Education & Protection Initiative by IFSCA) Gandhinagar, October 06, 2026 ***** Page 4 of 4