NSE Increases Lot Sizes for Index Derivative Contracts

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) announced that the lot sizes for index futures & options (F&O) contracts have been increased. Following the new Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regulations, NSE has increased the lot sizes of Nifty 50 from 25 to 75, while the Bank Nifty lot size has been increased from 15 to 30. The new measures will come into effect on November 20, 2024.

SEBI had previously announced measures to curb the rise in speculative trading in the F&O segment. One measure called for increasing the lot sizes of index derivatives to a minimum of Rs 15 lakh. As a result, the NSE increased the lot sizes for all five of its index derivatives.

The lot size for the Nifty Financial Service index has been increased from 25 to 65, while the Nifty Midcap Select lot size will be more than doubled to 120 from 50. The Nifty Next 50 lot size will be increased from 10 to 25.

The NSE circular also stated that the changes in the lot sizes will apply to all new index derivative contracts, including weekly, monthly, quarterly, and half-yearly contracts.

According to the circular, the existing weekly and monthly expiry contracts will continue with the existing lot sizes till their respective expiry dates. Quarterly and half-yearly existing expiry contracts will be transitioned to the new lot sizes on December 24, 2024, for Bank Nifty, and December 26, 2024, for Nifty.

How Will This Impact Traders?

An increase in the lot size has a significant impact on traders, as they will now have to pay more to enter into a trade.

For example, previously, if a trader wanted to buy a Nifty 50 option with a premium of Rs 100, the trader would have to pay Rs 100 x lot size. So, Rs 100 x 25 = Rs 2,500 per lot. With an increase in the lot size, the trader will now have to pay Rs 100 x 75 = Rs 7,500 per lot.

Similarly, option sellers will require higher margins for their trades. For example, if a trader previously required a margin of Rs 70,000 to sell one lot of a Nifty 50 option, the higher lot size will push the margin requirements to approximately Rs 2,10,000.

In a recent circular, SEBI said, “Given the inherent leverage and higher risk in derivatives, this recalibration in minimum contract size, in tune with the growth of the market, would ensure that an inbuilt suitability and appropriateness criteria for participants is maintained as intended.”

In addition to the higher lot size, SEBI has also implemented measures such as the removal of the calendar spread benefit and the reduction of weekly expiries to just one per exchange. The changes are expected to have a considerable impact on trading volumes.  

Last week, SEBI also increased the position limit for index derivative contracts to Rs 7,500 crore, or 15% of the open interest. The changes in the position limit and index derivative lot sizes will be applicable to both brokers and clients.

Disclaimer: This blog is solely for educational purposes.