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SEBI on Thursday passed its first consent orders in the IPO case. Twelve financiers named by the regulator as involved in the scam coughed up over Rs 71 crore towards disgorgement and penalty to have proceedings against them dropped under consent terms.These consent orders set a benchmark, giving an indication of how the financiers in the IPO scam are going to be dealt with, said a legal expert. There are 82 financiers and 21 key operators named by SEBI in its interim order of April 2006 on the scam. These entities had been barred from accessing the securities market, and proceedings were going on against them.  At least 25 more financiers and one “key operator” have applied to settle through consent orders, it is reliably learnt. The concept of the consent order was introduced by SEBI so that entities with matters pending before the regulator or the Securities Appellate Tribunal can opt to settle the dispute through “consent terms” involving payment of a monetary penalty in place of other forms of punishment.The current consent orders are also distinctive in that they involve a “disgorgement amount” as well as penalty.  When an applicant files for consent, a high-powered committee presided by a retired High Court judge recommends the case for consent. Based on the recommendations, the SEBI Board examines the case for issuing consent orders. The current consent orders have been signed by the SEBI Chairman, Mr C.B. Bhave, and Board member Mr T.C. Nair, as they have to be approved by two whole-time members. Currently SEBI has no other whole-time members, reports The Hindu Business Line.