Retail F&O traders lost ₹91,685 crore in FY26 while algo desks netted the gains
India's retail futures-and-options traders lost ₹91,685 crore in FY26, per SEBI's latest F&O study, and active retail participation fell 18% to 87.5 lakh, its first retreat since FY16. The same data shows proprietary desks booked ₹44,483 crore in gross profits, nearly all of it from algorithmic trading, with the top 10 desks taking 74.5%. SEBI has quantified what derivatives trading has become: a wealth-transfer machine from retail to algo.