Sebi intervention in F&O marks 20% decline in individual investors

The number of individual investors in the F&O segment has dropped by 20% to 6.7 million, with mounting losses and regulatory tightening contributing to the decline in participation

The results of the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi’s) interventions in the futures and options (F&O) market are beginning to show. The total number of unique traders in the F&O segment has declined by 20 per cent to 6.7 million, according to a study released by Sebi. This count is for the period between December 2024 and May 2025, compared to the same period a year ago.

 

Meanwhile, individual investors’ turnover in equity derivatives has dropped by 11 per cent to ₹56,000 crore, compared to ₹62,700 crore during the same period a year earlier.

 

Traders with a total