SEBI chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey called for greater awareness of derivatives-trading risks at the NaBFID Annual Infrastructure Conclave on September 17, 2026. Akashvani reported him saying that many retail investors continued to incur losses even after three to four years of trading in futures and options. He described persistent losses as a concern and urged investors to assess their preparedness for that market.
Pandey also described a different role for securities markets: supplying large-scale, patient capital for infrastructure. According to Akashvani, he said household savings, institutional investment, foreign capital and other long-term funds could complement government spending and bank finance across an asset's lifecycle. He cited more than Rs100 lakh crore raised through equity and debt over the preceding decade.
His warning came while SEBI was reviewing the expiry-day settlement mechanism for derivatives. Its September 12 consultation identified concerns about traders reacting to indicative auction prices before transactions were finalised. One proposed method would blend actual trades from the final 30 minutes of continuous trading with ten minutes of the closing auction; another would initially exclude auction transactions from expiry settlement.
The consultation also proposed restrictions on cancelling auction orders priced more than 1% away from the reference price, while retaining the overall 3% band and permitting price-improving changes. It invited comments by October 3. These were proposals under consultation, separate from Pandey's reported warning about continuing retail losses.
At the same conclave, the organiser recorded panels on insurance investment, credit enhancement and recycling operating infrastructure assets. A state-focused discussion covered infrastructure investment trusts and using monetisation proceeds for new construction. Two reports were launched, addressing domestic and global infrastructure capital and India's bond market, according to NaBFID's September 18 event release.
