Policy · Agriculture & Food Systems

SEBI orders Growpital to wind up farm scheme

By Startup Enthusiast · 28 September 2026

What they do

Growpital let people put money into farming projects through LLPs, promising fixed returns that would be free of tax

SEBI ruled it ran an unregistered collective investment scheme that took ₹192.88 crore from 5,208 investors, and ordered refunds with 12% interest

Eight main parties are barred from markets for five years; about ₹50 crore held in escrow will be paid out first

SEBI passed a final order on 28 September to wind up Growpital's farmland investment scheme.
It found the platform ran an unregistered collective investment scheme (a pooled investment that needs SEBI approval).
Growpital and linked LLPs raised ₹192.88 crore from 5,208 investors.
All 28 parties named were found guilty, and eight were held directly responsible.
Those eight must jointly refund investors with 12% yearly interest, counted from 29 January 2024.
They are barred from securities markets for five years or until refunds end; 20 others are barred for three years.

Investors joined as LLP partners, but the land deals sat with Yotta Agro Ventures, so they did not own or control the land.
SEBI found about ₹95.6 crore moved to Yotta with no real business behind it.
Another ₹8.53 crore was used to buy a firm called Grobanana in Yotta's name.
The eight main parties are personally liable for any shortfall in refunds.

Growpital, run under Zetta Farms, sold retail investors a stake in farm projects such as red chilli, potatoes and tea.
It pitched fixed, tax-free returns of roughly 10 to 17 percent a year to individual savers.
The money was pooled and spread over several farm projects, locations and crops.
The market regulator ruled it an unregistered collective investment scheme (a pooled-money plan that needs a licence) and ordered it wound up.
About ₹192.88 crore came from 5,208 investors between April 2020 and January 2024, and the regulator ordered refunds with 12% yearly interest.
Its own website currently shows only a Launching Soon page.

A nodal officer will oversee refunds, starting with about ₹50 crore already in escrow.
Further money will come from receivables and assets of the entities, then from the eight main parties personally.