Originally published at finovo.tech/blog/ap-onboarding-automation — the canonical version has the latest updates.
Authorised Persons (APs) — formerly called sub-brokers — are the field force of most Indian brokers. SEBI mandates a specific onboarding process before an AP can transact on a broker's behalf:
- Individual KYC of the AP
- NISM-VIII (Equity Derivatives) certification (where required)
- NSE and / or BSE registration as that broker's AP
- AP code allocation
- Indemnity bond
- Customer-handling permissions config
Each step used to be paper. Each one took 1-2 weeks. The full chain often took 4-6 weeks per AP — which is why brokers tend to onboard APs in batches and why APs sit idle for the first month or two.
AP onboarding compresses this to under 5 working days.
The KYC step
Same individual KYC flow as a customer, but on the AP onboarding flow. Aadhaar OTP + PAN + video PD. APs are typically professionals (CFP, MBA, etc.) so they tend to complete this in under 2 minutes.
NISM certification check
For APs handling derivatives, NISM-VIII certification is mandatory. The flow asks for the AP's NISM certificate ID and validates against the NISM database (NSE has a published API). If the AP doesn't have it, the flow blocks onboarding for derivatives but allows equity-only onboarding.
NSE / BSE registration
This is where the digital flow really helps. Each exchange has an AP registration system:
- NSE: NEAT-ID-based AP registration
- BSE: BTN-based AP registration
Both require the broker to file Form-A (or its modern digital equivalent) on the exchange portal, naming the AP. The exchanges return an AP code within 1-3 days.
The AP onboarding flow handles the form filing automatically. The broker's ops team sees the AP code arrive in their inbox; they don't have to type it into anything.
AP code allocation
Once the exchange returns the AP code, it's allocated in the broker's system to:
- A region (so geography-based commissions work)
- A team / RM (so reporting hierarchies work)
- A product permission set (equity-only / derivatives / both)
This is broker-policy work, not regulator work — but the flow has the config UI to do it.
Indemnity bond
The AP signs an indemnity bond protecting the broker from AP-side mistakes. Standard SEBI-approved bond template; we host it as a PDF, the AP signs via Aadhaar e-sign.
Customer-handling permissions
Once active, the AP gets:
- A unique customer-onboarding referral code (so customers brought in by this AP are automatically tagged to them)
- A login to the broker's RM dashboard (read-only by default; full access on broker policy)
- A commission-tracking page showing their revenue share in real-time
Bulk onboarding
Most brokers add APs in waves — 50-200 APs after a hiring round. The flow supports CSV upload of basic AP details; each AP then gets an SMS / email link to complete their own onboarding flow. This way the broker's ops team doesn't have 200 KYC sessions to chaperone.
Compliance reporting
SEBI requires brokers to report AP activity periodically. The AP onboarding flow captures the data points needed for the report — number of APs onboarded per quarter, geographic distribution, NISM certification rate — and outputs the SEBI-format CSV on demand.
For a deeper dive, see our trading automation api nse.
What it replaces
The typical AP onboarding workflow before:
- HR shortlists the AP
- HR hands a 30-page packet to the AP
- AP fills + signs + couriers back
- HR forwards to compliance
- Compliance forwards to NSE / BSE
- 1-3 weeks later, AP code arrives
- Compliance allocates the code to a region / team
- AP starts working
After:
- HR enters AP details into the dashboard
- AP receives a link, completes online flow in 30-45 minutes
- Exchange-side filing automatic
- AP code arrives in the dashboard (1-3 days, regulator latency)
- Allocation happens at AP-code arrival
- AP starts working
5-day vs 21-30-day onboarding. The customer-facing impact is that APs reach productive headcount faster.
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