Retail derivatives inflows in NSE at 100x that of cash

Retail investors pumped in a hundred times more money into derivatives than shares on the NSE’s secondary market in the first half of FY24, and all indications are that the trend may continue into Samvat 2080 as well.

- Ram Sahgal

The reasons: Prevailing bullish sentiment in broader markets, heightened volatility ahead of elections, entry of a new breed of participants and the availability of more index options for trading almost daily.

Against ₹500 crore invested in NSE’s secondary market, direct retail pumped ₹50,500 crore into equity futures and equity options during April-September, NSE data shows. The inflows could exceed last fiscal year’s ₹60,000 crore, with six months left in FY24.

The trend is expected to have sustained in October and may continue into Samvat 2080 as well, with markets holding up well, despite the war in West Asia and the persistence of high interest rates in the US for longer, as underscored by the Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell on Thursday, and the assembly elections this year and the national election in 2024.