Examine SEBI’s role in deepening India’s capital markets, focussing on T+1/T+0 settlement, mutual fund SIP growth and small-investor protection.
Subtopic: Economy · Capital markets
How to structure your answer
Introduction: SEBI Annual Report 2023-24 records demat accounts crossing 18 crore; mutual fund AUM ₹68 lakh crore (Mar 2025 AMFI); India moved to T+1 (Jan 2023) and optional T+0 (Mar 2024).
Body: 1) Market infrastructure — T+0 pilot, ASBA for secondary, SCORES 2.0. 2) Retail participation — SIP inflows >₹26,000 crore/month; F&O risk (SEBI study Sep 2024: 93% retail F&O traders lose money). 3) Reforms — Investor Charter, OFS to retail, REIT/InvIT framework.
Way forward: Suitability framework for derivatives; expand financial literacy via SEBI's investor education fund; risk-based supervision of UCBs in equity participation.
Written within the word limit
127 words · target 150 words · 9 min
Introduction: SEBI's Annual Report 2024-25 records India's market capitalisation at $5.1 trillion (NSE-BSE, March 2026), the world's fourth largest, with retail demat accounts at 18.2 crore — up from 4 crore in 2020.
Body: SEBI, statutory under the SEBI Act 1992, compressed settlement to T+1 (January 2023) and rolled out optional T+0 from March 2024 — ahead of US and UK. Mutual fund SIP inflows reached ₹26,400 crore monthly (AMFI April 2026) versus ₹3,100 crore in 2016, channelling ₹3.2 lakh crore annually into equities. Investor-protection levers include the SCORES portal, Online Dispute Resolution (April 2023), risk-o-meter, derivative-suitability framework (October 2024, after F&O retail losses of ₹1.81 lakh crore in 2022-25), and IEPF. The BSDA-MF Lite framework democratises access.
Way forward: SEBI should operationalise full T+0 by FY27, tier F&O suitability under Master Circular 2024, and scale the Investor Awareness Programme to 5 crore retail participants.
What an examiner expects to see
- SEBI Annual Report 2023-24
- Demat accounts >18 crore
- MF AUM ₹68 lakh crore (Mar 2025)
- T+1 since Jan 2023, T+0 optional since Mar 2024
- Monthly SIP inflows >₹26,000 crore
- 93% retail F&O traders incurred losses (SEBI Sep 2024)
- SCORES 2.0 grievance redressal platform
Concrete cases, schemes and judgments
- ASBA for secondary markets pilot
- T+0 settlement
- REIT and InvIT regulations 2014
- AIF Cat I/II/III framework