The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has proposed extending the facility of Direct Market Access (DMA) to all categories of investors, a move that could allow retail and other investors to directly access trading platforms without routing orders through brokers.
Currently, DMA is available mainly to institutional investors. The market regulator, in a consultation paper issued on Monday, said technological advancements have created opportunities to extend the benefits of DMA to other investor categories, subject to appropriate risk management measures.
DMA enables investors to place buy and sell orders directly into stock exchange trading systems, reducing dependence on traditional broker-based order execution.
Sebi said the existing guideline stating that DMA is available only for institutional clients may be removed to provide greater clarity. The regulator noted that Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs) have suggested harmonising DMA provisions across market segments.
In May 2023, Sebi had permitted registered Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to use DMA for participating in Exchange Traded Commodity Derivatives (ETCDs). The regulator has now proposed extending DMA access in ETCDs to other categories of investors as well.
Under the proposal, exchanges would be allowed to decide from time to time the categories of investors eligible for DMA access in commodity derivatives, similar to the framework followed in other market segments.
DMA usage has been gaining momentum in Indian markets. In the NSE cash market segment, DMA’s share of trading activity increased by 91 basis points month-on-month to 4.7% in May, marking a nine-month high. The rise coincided with increased participation from foreign investors.
Meanwhile, other trading channels saw limited movement, with co-location accounting for 43.4% of market activity and mobile trading reaching a five-year high of 22.9% in FY27 up to May 2026.