SEBI Probes Jane Street After $2.3 Billion Revenue Surge from Indian Derivatives Market – Economy News

Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is probing Jane Street Group LLC after it generated more than $2.3 billion in net revenue from Indian equity derivatives in 2024. The firm has been accused of market manipulation.

According to Bloomberg, this marks a sharp rise from 2023 and highlights India’s growing importance in the firm’s global operations. The New York-based trading giant earned over 10% of its record $20.5 billion global trading revenue from India alone, reports Bloomberg.

SEBI launches investigation; NSE ended another investigation on Jane Street

SEBI has launched a probe into Jane Street’s derivatives trading following complaints from market participants alleging manipulation by the firm.

A separate investigation by the National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended last month after Jane Street’s Indian trading partner submitted a response.

According to Bloomberg, Jane Street has declined to comment on both the SEBI probe and the revenue it earned in India.

Options trading in India booms after the pandemic

Equity options trading in India surged after the COVID-19 pandemic. The country now has the world’s largest derivatives market by the number of contracts traded.

Global firms like Citadel Securities and Optiver have also entered India, attracted by the booming market. Between 2020 and March 2025, options premiums in India rose 11 times, driven largely by retail investors.

Jane Street used a special “Secret” trading strategy

According to the SEBI study the companies trading through Jane Street made about $7 billion in profits in the 12 months leading up to March 2024. 

The recent boom in options trading has been very profitable for foreign investment firms and Indian companies that use advanced computer algorithms. 

One of the top earners was Jane Street, which made $1 billion in 2023 from trading options in India. This detail came out accidentally during a court case with another firm, Millennium Management. Jane Street used a special “secret” trading strategy to earn this amount.

Bloomberg reports that Jane Street’s success is largely due to its technology-based trading style and the fact that it uses its own money to trade — so it’s not restricted by bank rules. This has given it an edge over others in India, where it mostly places directional trades (bets on which way the market will move). The company now has more than a 2% share of the total derivatives market in 18 countries, including India.

SEBI steps in to protect retail investors

SEBI has recently taken steps to cool down the overheated options market. New rules, such as higher investment limits and larger lot sizes, were introduced in November to protect retail investors — 90% of whom lost money trading options.

As a result, growth in NSE’s options trading fees slowed to just 2% this year through April, compared to 92% during the same period last year.

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