Before you take anyone's money advice, confirm they are allowed to give it. In India, fee-only advisers should be registered as SEBI Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs), and SEBI publishes a public list of registered RIAs you can search by name or registration number. A legitimate adviser will share their SEBI registration number without hesitation, so ask for it and look it up. Be cautious of anyone who is actually a distributor calling themselves an adviser, or a social media tipster with no registration at all. Also check for obvious red flags: guaranteed returns, pressure to act fast, or advice that always ends in a product sale. Registration is not a guarantee of good advice, but the absence of it is a real warning sign. This is general education, not a vetting of any specific person, so do your own diligence and, when in doubt, involve a CA or a trusted professional.
A curated summary to orient you, not advice. The resources below are the real value.
3 hand-picked resources, 3 India-specific, 2 link-checked. Pick how you want to dig in.
Why we picked it The market regulator own free investor-education portal: unbiased basics on investing, mutual funds, and avoiding scams, with nothing to sell you.
From SEBI by SEBI
Open investor.sebi.gov.in →Why we picked it The free, India-first grounding in what to do with cash once you have it: goals, allocation, SIPs, and not losing it to fees.
From Zerodha Varsity by Zerodha Varsity
Open zerodha.com →Why we picked it A trusted India-first place to compare funds and think about where cash goes once you have some to invest.
From Value Research by Value Research
Open valueresearchonline.com →
