What is in a Name?

“What's in a name? that which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet.” That was William Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet. But in modern India, especially in the financial markets, the name matters a lot. Even how you spell your name also matters.

Recently I tried to get one of my friends, let us call him Rajan, to invest in mutual funds. The first step was KYC. And while submitting the documents, we realised that his name was written as N. Rajan on the PAN card and as Rajan Narayanan on the Aadhar card. We decided to keep the name in Aadhar as the way it would be written everywhere. So we had to get the name changed in PAN card. That involved submitting an application to the local PAN card service centre with supporting documents such as Aadhar card copy. The new PAN card was received in about two weeks or so.

The KYC was done and we thought that we were all set for his investment journey. Of course we had to get the bank details registered. A cancelled cheque leaf was submitted and lo and behold, it was rejected! Reason: his name as per bank records was Rajan N. Pillai. Now he is running around to get the name in bank records aligned with that in the Aadhar card.

I have come across different variations of the same situations. While in the earlier years, especially before Aadhar was introduced, one could get away with the name being written in different manner in different records, with more strict KYC process and electronic record verification systems being used everywhere, it is important to maintain the same name, with the same spelling, in all records. Having a single name across your key Identification cards like Passport, Aadhar Card, Driving License, Voter Id card, PAN card etc will save you trouble not just with your investments but in many other areas like travel, purchasing a property, execution of a will etc.

Getting back to Shakespeare, while the Rose by any other may smell just as sweet, as far as investments are concerned, it would help to be known by only one name, whatever that is.