New Delhi, Feb. 16 -- For evidence of the financial immaturity of Indian investors you don't need to dig beyond this data. Indian investors have left unclaimed about Rs.323 crore of funds and Rs.182 crore of shares as of 31 January, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).

The markets regulator has now proposed guidelines to ensure that such unclaimed assets are not misused and returned to investors at the earliest. In a consultation paper, Sebi has outlined a process involving brokers and stock exchanges. Here is how this will work.

Defining 'unclaimed'

If unutilized funds or securities cannot be credited back from a client's broking account to their bank or demat account in the normal course of business, or the...