Sebi unveils mobile app contest; winner to get Rs. 3 lakh prize

Looking to pool ideas for investor awareness initiatives, Sebi has invited students to develop mobile applications for entertainment-based financial education with the best app set to get ₹ 3 lakh prize money.

Unveiling a 'Mobile Apps Development Contest', the market watchdog has invited graduate and post graduate level students from recognised educational institutions, to develop applications for financial education and investor education.

The students will have to develop gaming, educational applications for android-based mobiles in the initial phase.

'The objective is to use the modern technology and mobile, a means of mass communication, to make learning of securities market and financial education easy and entertainment based,' the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said.

The apps should be based on basic financial education or topics related to securities market so that individuals learn about the securities market and become financially educated while having fun, Sebi added.

Best selected applications among the developed ones would be awarded with a prize money of ₹ 3 lakh.

The second prize is set at ₹ 2 lakh, third prize at ₹one lakh and a ₹ 50,000 consolation prize.

Besides, next 10 qualified applications or games would be awarded with a ₹ 25,000 cash prize.

Sebi has asked interested students to send their entries, latest by May 15 to the regulator's Mumbai office.

Applications have to be developed for - Google Android 2.2 and above Jelly Bean (Android based devices).

The application developed should work offline without Internet or GPRS, the market regulator said.

All applications would have to be developed in English and should be convertible into Hindi or other regional languages.

The mobile applications submitted would be evaluated by a committee of experts appointed by Sebi. The evaluation criteria include ease of use, usefulness and availability.

Sebi said the applications should be free of advertisements and should not be able to access the private data of the user.

Sebi plans to carry forward its investor awareness and education initiatives through media, while it could also explore campaigns through other modes such as mobiles and the Internet, in 2014-15.