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Sebi considers cutting margin for longer-dated derivatives
Sebi cited concerns that retail activity is concentrated in index options, after a study showed 87.7% of individual traders lost money in equity derivatives in FY26.
India’s market regulator is considering whether it can reduce margin requirements for longer-dated derivatives to broaden participation across segments like stock futures, stock options, and longer-tenor contracts, according to LiveMint Markets.
Sebi chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the regulator is prepared to look into margin issues for longer-dated derivatives, adding that more work is needed to develop such products, amid concerns about how retail trading is concentrated in index options.
The decision follows an August Sebi study showing that 87.7% of individual traders incurred losses in equity derivatives in FY26, compared with 90.9% in FY25. It also found aggregate losses among individual traders fell to ₹91,686 crore in FY26 from ₹1.12 trillion a year earlier, while the average loss per trader increased 2% to ₹1.17 lakh.
Sebi said the goal is to develop the derivatives market with more balanced participation rather than introducing changes that could unnecessarily disrupt trading, noting that the number of individual traders fell 18% to 8.77 million in FY26 and that about 1.86 million traders participated only in derivatives without cash-market turnover in FY26.