Archive · 23 Aug 2026
SEBI Study Finds Younger Derivatives Traders Face Higher Losses
India’s derivatives market is attracting more young people than it did four years ago.
In FY26, people under 30 made up 43% of individual traders.
However, about 89% of these young traders lost money.
Many traders also came from lower-income groups and smaller towns.
Investors earning below ₹5 lakh a year made up about three-fourths of traders.
This group contributed more than half of all recorded losses.
Most traders had very small equity portfolios, or no equity holdings at all.
Some traders made very large derivatives trades despite having less than ₹1 lakh in equity investments.
SEBI said the study shows relationships between these factors but does not prove that one factor caused the losses.
Traders under 30 made up 43% of individual derivatives participants in FY26, up from 31% four years earlier.
About 89% of traders below 30 incurred losses, compared with 81% of traders above 60.
Nearly three-fourths of individual traders earned below ₹5 lakh annually; they accounted for 53% of aggregate losses.
Investors from smaller towns represented about two-thirds of individual traders and nearly half of derivatives turnover.
The individual trader base fell 18%, from 1.06 crore in FY25 to 87.5 lakh in FY26.
- Who
- Individual equity-derivatives traders, analyzed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
- What
- A SEBI study found that younger, lower-income and smaller-town traders were prominent in the derivatives market and experienced substantial losses.
- When
- The findings concern FY26 and FY25-26; the study was published on August 23, 2026.
- Where
- India, including smaller-town or B30 markets.
- Why
- SEBI examined how trading outcomes varied by age, income, location, trading activity and underlying equity-portfolio size.
- Young traders’ share
- Traders under 30 represented 43% of individual derivatives participants in FY26, compared with 31% four years earlier.
- Loss rate below 30
- About 89% of traders below 30 incurred losses.
- Lower-income participation
- About three-fourths of individual derivatives traders had annual income below ₹5 lakh.
- Lower-income losses
- The below-₹5-lakh income group accounted for 53% of aggregate losses.
- B30 participation
- Investors from smaller towns accounted for about two-thirds of individual traders and nearly half of derivatives turnover.
- Small equity portfolios
- About 78% of individual derivatives traders had equity portfolios below ₹1 lakh; this group accounted for 70% of aggregate losses.
- Trader-base change
- The individual trader base declined 18%, from 1.06 crore in FY25 to 87.5 lakh in FY26.