The National Stock Exchange of India said it could not isolate the effect of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lending restrictions on proprietary trading as its cash-market turnover fell 13% quarter over quarter.
At its Nov. 3 earnings call, NSE Chief Business Development Officer Sriram Krishnan said average daily turnover was ₹135,949 crore in April-June 2026 and ₹118,377 crore in July-September. The latest figure was 13% lower quarter over quarter but 24% higher year over year. Krishnan said other developments, including geopolitical factors, made it difficult to attribute a market effect to the RBI measure. The figure covers NSE’s wider cash market and does not show proprietary-trading volume separately.
The RBI’s directions prohibit banks from financing securities purchases by capital-market intermediaries for their own accounts, including proprietary trades. Banks can still guarantee proprietary trading when the guarantee is fully backed by cash, cash equivalents and government securities. Cash or fixed deposits held with the lending bank must make up at least 50% of the collateral. Existing loans and guarantees can remain through maturity, while new facilities and renewals must follow the updated terms.
The RBI issued the directions Feb. 13, 2026, with an April 1 start date. On March 30, it delayed implementation to July 1 after requests from banks, capital-market intermediaries and industry associations.
NSE separately reported consolidated revenue from operations of ₹4,066.80 crore and profit after tax of ₹2,577.62 crore for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026. Its published results imply sequential declines of about 10.8% in revenue and 17.4% in profit.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) introduced a closing auction session on Aug. 3, 2026. Krishnan said it had a greater effect on settlement-price determination for expiring index options than on cash-market activity. SEBI’s changes to settlement-price calculations for expiring stock and index derivatives are scheduled to take effect Dec. 7, 2026.
