Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate has strongly criticized the Securities and Exchange Board of India for its delayed response to Jane Street’s alleged market manipulation, which resulted in massive losses for small investors.
According to Shrinate, Jane Street, an American algo trading company, manipulated the Indian stock market through algorithms and made thousands of crores in illegal profits in the Futures and Options market.
Shrinate stated that Jane Street operated simultaneously in the Direct Equity market and the Futures and Options market, blatantly and illegally manipulating stock prices in the direct equity market.
The firm allegedly engaged in “marking the close”, determining the closing price of stocks at market close, which is completely illegal worldwide, including in India. This manipulation led to massive losses for ordinary retail investors, with 93 percent of small and retail investors in the Futures market incurring losses and an average loss of Rs 1.25 lakh per investor.
The SEBI passed a 105-page interim order on July 3, 2025, banning Jane Street Capital and four affiliates from trading in India and freezing Rs 4,844 crore – the alleged unlawful profits. However, Shrinate pointed out that this amount is a fraction of the total Rs 43,289 crores profits Jane Street made from derivatives/F&O trading in India between January 2023-March 2025.
Shrinate raised several questions, including, Who permitted Jane Street to bring thousands of crores into India for investment? Which authority allowed it to transfer profits amounting to tens of thousands of crores made illegally back to its country? Why did SEBI take four and a half years to wake up and act? What steps are being taken to recover the alleged illegal profits made by Jane Street?
Questioning the role of the government and SEBI in protecting small investors, Shrinate said: “The reality is that for four and a half years, an algo trader was allowed to manipulate India’s markets and rob small investors. Now, when everything has been plundered, the government and SEBI are merely going through the motions.”
Meanwhile, as per SEBI’s investigation, Jane Street manipulated stock prices in the direct equity market and used these manipulated prices in the Futures and Options market through Put and Call Options, earning massive illegal profits. The firm’s actions allegedly resulted in significant losses for small investors, with 93 percent of retail investors in the Futures market incurring losses, and an average loss of Rs 1.25 lakh per investor.
SEBI chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey has assured that market manipulation will not be tolerated, and the regulator is enhancing its surveillance to scrutinize manipulation in derivatives trading. However, the delay in taking action against Jane Street has sparked concerns about SEBI’s ability to effectively regulate the market.
“Market manipulation will not be tolerated,” Pandey had said, emphasizing the regulator’s commitment to strict enforcement and regulatory reform.