Global Trading Firms Compete for India’s Derivatives Market Beyond Jane Street

Mumbai/New York, July 5, 2025 — India’s derivatives market, now the world’s largest by contract volume, is witnessing a fierce showdown. While Jane Street has grabbed headlines for massive profits and a sweeping regulatory crackdown, rivals like Citadel Securities, IMC Trading, Millennium, and Optiver are accelerating their expansion in India, aiming to tap into the market’s deep liquidity and burgeoning retail participation.

🏦 Market Growth & Opportunity

• Explosive volume surge: India accounted for nearly 60% of global equity derivatives volumes in April, with notional turnover up a staggering 48‑fold since 2018

• Retail boom: Retail investors now drive over 40% of trading activity, up from just 2% in 2018—fueling predictable patterns that HFT firms can exploit

🚀 Global Firms Go All‑In

• IMC Trading is ramping up its India team by more than 50%, targeting over 150 employees by 2026

• Optiver, which launched operations in 2024, aims to grow its staff to 100 by the end of 2025

• Citadel Securities continues to build its India presence, operating a lean team while deploying increasing capital

• Millennium Management is expanding its derivatives desk via hubs in Dubai and Singapore to support India activity

Other quant traders like Da Vinci and Qube Research are also actively recruiting, collectively hiring 300+ professionals across trading, tech, compliance, and legal in the past two years

⚙️ Tech & Infrastructure Arms Race

To support high-frequency and algorithmic trading, India’s main exchanges are upgrading infrastructure:

• NSE is set to install 2,000 new co‑location racks in the next two years

• BSE has invested ~₹4.5–5 billion and aims to deploy 500 racks by fiscal 2026

These enhancements substantially reduce trade latency—crucial for quant strategies.

⚠️ Regulatory Flashpoint

India’s regulator SEBI recently banned Jane Street and froze ~$570 million in alleged illicit gains, accusing it of manipulating index derivatives, particularly Bank Nifty, through large-scale trades and options positions 
This action underscores SEBI’s growing vigilance amid surging HFT activity and record retail losses.

💡 Market Implications

• Short‑term ripples: Regulators vow stronger oversight; increased co‑location capacity may temporarily strain exchange systems.

• Long‑term boom: The confluence of institutional capital, robust infrastructure, and a predictable retail market sets the stage for sustained growth. The crackdown on Jane Street could also trigger compliance upgrades and encourage more foreign entrants to establish local brokerages for flexibility

Verdict: India’s derivatives sector has become a global battleground—marked by unprecedented volumes, fierce hiring, fast infrastructure upgrades, and tightening regulatory scrutiny. As high-frequency and quant firms double down, regulators are walking a tightrope: fostering growth while protecting retail investors.