Debashis Basu is a very recognized Indian financial journalist, author, Chartered Accountant and co-founder of the media portal Moneylife. He is more famous due to the co-authorship of the pioneering book “The Scam: Who Won, Who Lost, Who Got Away” with his wife, Sucheta Dalal. His research and studies on the topics have significantly influenced the financial ecosystem of India. Being the founder of Moneylife magazine and the Moneylife foundation, he remains to show investors authentic and unbiased information. He is an important personality in financial journalism because of his insight about markets coupled with his fearless reporting. In this article the biography of Debashis Basu will be discussed.
Debashis Basu: Biography
Debashis Basu was born in Kolkata on 1 August 1960. He is a legendary Indian financial journalist whose works are more than forty years old.
Sucheta Dalal’s husband, Debashis, got national fame after he co-investigated with Sucheta, the 1992 securities scam of Harshat Mehta that unraveled one of the biggest financial frauds in India. Besides investigative journalism, he established a reputation as a fine analyst, writer, lecturer, and educator. His contribution has influenced how normal investors perceive the financial markets.
| Attributes | Details |
| Name | Debashis Basu |
| Date of Birth | 1 August 1960 |
| Profession(s) | Journalist, Author, Chartered Accountant |
| Known For | Co-authoring The Scam, Running Moneylife |
| Birthplace | Kolkata, West Bengal |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Wife | Sucheta Dalal |
| Hometown | Kolkata |
| Controversy | NSE Defamation Case (2015–2017) |
Debashis Basu Age
Debashis Basu was born on 1 August 1960 in the intellectual city of Kolkata, West Bengal, which has a great intellectual legacy and academicism. He is 65 years old now and will turn 66 in August 2026 and his zodiac sign is Leo.
| Detail | Information |
| Age 2025 | 65 |
| Age (in August 2026) | 66 |
| Zodiac | Leo |
| Birthplace | Kolkata, West Bengal |
Debashis Basu Height, Weight & Physical Status
He is 5 feet 10 inches (approximately 178 cm) tall with a medium body structure and has black eyes and salt-and-pepper hair that reveals his age and long journalism and finance career.
| Physical Attributes | Details |
| Height in feet | 5’10” |
| Height in meter | 1.78 m |
| Height in centimeter | 178 cm |
| Eye Colour | Black |
| Hair Colour | Salt & Pepper |
| Weight | Not Known |
Early Life and Family Background
Debashis Basu was born in Kolkata in a culturally grounded Bengali family but there is no information about his parents and siblings publicly. He is married to well-known financial journalist Sucheta Dalal, who is also his long-term professional partner and co-author of the book ‘The Scam: Who Won, who Lost, who Got Away,’ and both of them live in Mumbai, where they own Moneylife magazine and the Moneylife foundation.
| Family Member | Information |
| Parents | Not Known |
| Siblings | Not Known |
| Wife | Sucheta Dalal |
| Childhood Interests | Finance, Reading, Writing |
Educational Qualifications
Debashis Basu has a commerce background and is professionally trained as a Chartered Accountant and his main education was in Kolkata. He attended Dumdum Airport High School, where his initial academic background influenced his future passion in finance and economics. After that, Basu enrolled in a Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) degree course at Goenka College of Commerce and Business Administration, which was a University of Calcutta-affiliated college. In order to enhance his skills in accounting, he proceeded to professional accounting after graduation and applied to the Chartered Accountancy program and became a CA in 1982.
| Qualification | Institution | Year(s) |
| Schooling | Dumdum Airport High School | – |
| Bachelor of Commerce | Goenka College of Commerce & Business Administration | – |
| Chartered Accountancy | Institute of Chartered Accountants of India | 1979–1982 |
Debashis Basu Wife: Sucheta Dalal
Debashis Basu and Sucheta Dalal are a married couple and are more commonly recognized as a journalist couple that also works together professionally. Sucheta Dalal and Debashis Basu are a well-known team of Indian business journalists, authors, and financial commentators known as financial scam investigators (such as the 1992 Harshad Mehta scam) and co-authors of some of the most successful business books, including The Scam and the Pathbreakers series. She is also the Managing Editors of Moneylife publication, a major financial literacy and independent news magazine in India and a co-founder of the Moneylife Foundation.
| Personal Detail | Information |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Wife | Sucheta Dalal |
| Children | Not Known |
Debashis Basu Career
Debashis Basu has a career of 40 years of writing, investigation, analysis, and educating people.
Early Journalism Career (1984–1994)
He started to write financial columns in popular magazines like Business India, Business World, Financial Express, The Times of India and Business Today. His works did not take long to become widely recognized due to their straightforward form of writing, audacious opinions, and solid research supporting every point. These columns enabled him to establish a name as a journalist who was not afraid to challenge the might that was commanding him and also simplify complicated financial matters to the easy comprehension of the readers.
Notable Break-in: The 1992 Securities Scam
In 1992, Debashis helped his wife, Sucheta Dalal, to discover the 500 crore financial scam and fall of the big bull harshad Mehta in the account of SBI. This exposure saw the collapse of stockbroker Harshad Mehta and has altered the Indian financial regulations permanently.
Co-authored “The Scam” with his wife Sucheta Dalal
He co-published the legendary book “The Scam: Who Won, who Lost, who Got Away” in 1993 (which was also revised in 2001 to incorporate the Ketan Parekh scam of 2001). The book was one of the most cited financial inquiries in India.
Subsequently, a web series, “Scam 1992: The harshad Mehta Story,” also released in 2020 by director Hansal Mehta Jai Mehta and Mukesh Chhabra as Casting Director) were based on this book.
Actor Pratik Gandhi played the lead role of Harshad Mehta, Shreya Dhanwanthary played Sucheta Dalal and Faisal Rashid played Debashis Basu in this series.
Co-Founder of Moneylife Magazine (2006)
Basu co-founded Moneylife, which is a magazine dedicated to neutral financial journalism and the best interests of the investors. The subjects discussed in the publication are quite broad, such as mutual funds, insurance, stock markets, gold and consumer rights, which provide the reader with clear guidelines and practical information. Through Moneylife, Basu aimed to empower ordinary people with reliable information while exposing issues that affect financial transparency and accountability.
Launch of Moneylife Foundation (2010)
His nonprofit organization, Moneylife Foundation enhances financial literacy and equitable markets. It has held 385+ seminars for the general population.
Columns & Public Writing
He is a regular financial columnist at Business Standard and also a writer for The Economic Times.
Basu still writes regular articles, usually every two weeks, in Business Standard about such matters as new labor codes and GDP growth as late as November 2025. In June 2025, he made remarks about the economics of India and China through a Moneylife video.
He was sued by NSE in 2015 over a defamation claim on high-frequency trading reporting, which the Bombay High Court dismissed in 2017 and ordered the Bombay High Court to pay him and Dalal costs.
| Year | Career Highlight |
| 1984 | Started writing for financial magazines |
| 1993 | Co-authored The Scam |
| 2006 | Started Moneylife |
| 2010 | Founded Moneylife Foundation |
| 2015 | Received Sanlam Award |
| 2020 | Scam 1992 released |
Debashis Basu Books
Apart from being an Indian financial journalist and a CA, he is also recognized as an Author, who co-wrote several books on business and finance, among which the bestsellers are included. Debashis and Sucheta co-authored the book “The Scam: Who Won, Who Lost, Who Got Away” in 1993. Revised edition of this book called “The Scam: From Harshad Mehta to Ketan Parekh,” published in 2001.
In 2003, Debashis also wrote ‘Face Value: The Creation and Destruction of Shareholder Value in India.’ ‘Growth Alchemy: Why Smaller Businesses Fail to Find Finance and How Market-Based Solutions Can Help,’ and Plain Truth Series on Stocks, Mutual Funds, and Investments.’
‘Pathbreakers 1,’ published in 2007, and ‘Pathbreakers 2,’ published in 2008, were also co-authored by Debashis and Sucheta. These books are based on deep insights, unknown truths, and intriguing events in the lives of 51 great achievers, presented in their own words.
Debashis Basu Books
| Year | Book Title | Authorship | Co-Author(s) | Notes |
| 1993 | The Scam: Who Won, Who Lost, Who Got Away | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | First edition covering the Harshad Mehta scam. |
| 2001 | The Scam: From Harshad Mehta to Ketan Parekh | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | Revised and expanded edition including the Ketan Parekh scam. |
| 2003 | Face Value: Creation and Destruction of Shareholder Value in India | Solely authored | – | First Indian book on shareholder value, analyzing corporate history from 1992-2002. |
| 2005 (Est.) | Growth Alchemy: Why Smaller Firms Fail to Find Finance and How Market-Based Solutions Can Help | Solely authored | – | Backed by SIDBI and NSE, based on SEBI Task Force involvement. |
| 2006 (Est.) | Plain Truth Series on Stocks, Mutual Funds and Investments | Solely authored | – | A series of guides on financial investments. |
| 2007 | Pathbreakers 1 | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | Autobiographical narratives of top achievers in their own words. |
| 2008 | Pathbreakers 2 | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | Continuation of the Pathbreakers series covering 51 great achievers in total across both volumes. |
| 2014 | The Scam: From Harshad Mehta to Ketan Parekh (8th Edition) | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | Digital/Kindle edition including JPC Fiasco and Global Trust Bank Scam. |
| 2021 | ABSOLUTE POWER – Inside story of the National Stock Exchange’s amazing success, leading to hubris, regulatory capture and algo scam | Co-authored | Sucheta Dalal | Published in June 2021. Chronicles NSE’s rise and controversies. |
He co-authored “ABSOLUTE POWER – Inside story of the National Stock Exchange’s amazing success, leading to hubris, regulatory capture and algo scam” in June 2021.
(No new book has been published between 2022 – 2025 based on current records).
Awards and Achievements
His work has been appreciated due to its sincerity and richness. His talent to make complex financial issues simple and still deliver analytical perfection was a reason why the Sanlam Award 2015 was awarded to him especially. He received the Shriram Sanlam Award for Excellence in Financial Journalism. He earned this award for his outstanding financial columns in Business Standard.
Debashis Basu Net Worth
Debashis Basu, co-founder of Moneylife, is a reputable financial journalist and author, author of such books as The Scam, yet his individual net worth is not publicly disclosed; his financial prosperity is the result of journalism, book sales (more than financial scams), and his media enterprises, but the specifics are confidential.
Social Media Profiles
He is not active on any other social platforms, just on Twitter, with 61.2K followers.
| Platform | Profile Name | Followers (Approx.) |
| Twitter (X) | @Moneylifers | 61.2K+ |
| Not Listed | ||
| Not Active |
Debashis Basu Controversies
NSE Defamation Case (2015–2017)
Moneylife had published an article which accused brokers of getting unfair high-speed access to the trading systems of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), thus creating a rather opaque market scenario. As an immediate reaction, NSE lodged a ₹100-crore defamation suit against the publication.
However, in 2017, the Bombay High Court decided that the journalists reporting was in the public interest and therefore, their team comprising Debashis Basu and Sucheta Dalal was its beneficiary. The court ordered the NSE to pay ₹1.5 lakh each to the two journalists and also donate ₹47 lakh to their trust, thus marking a big win for investigative journalism.
| Controversy | Year | Outcome |
| NSE vs. Moneylife Defamation Case | 2015–2017 | NSE withdrew; Court fined NSE |
Conclusion
Financial journalism would certainly be poorer without the penetrating insight of Debashis Basu. His professional life is a testament to his doggedness, moral principles, and dedication to let’s call it ‘investor-education’. Apart from setting up the Moneylife Foundation and educating the masses, his work spans from exposing frauds to informing people, and India has never been the same in terms of its comprehension of financial markets. In fact, presently, he is among the few who make the sector trustworthy and transparent.
FAQs
A1. He is a journalist, an author, and a Chartered Accountant, basically a financial fraud exposer.
A2. By co-authoring The Scam, establishing Moneylife, and popularizing investor education.
A3. The spouse is Sucheta Dalal, a widely honored investigative journalist.
A4. Yes, the NSE defamation case (2015–2017).
A5. Yes, he is present on Twitter where he tweets his views on finance and public policy.
Article Code: Adarsh 1125-397
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