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India's capital markets are in the middle of a high-stakes face-off between market regulator SEBI and global trading firm Jane Street.

A detailed 105-page interim order issued by SEBI has laid out serious allegations of market manipulation, particularly on Bank Nifty options expiry days.

The order has led to a trading suspension and asset freeze amounting to Rs 4,843 crore.

Between January 2023 and March 2025, Jane Street Group made a total net profit of Rs 36,502 crore on NSE of which Rs 43,289 crore was attributable to index options.

SEBI found that Rs 17,319 crore—about 40 per cent of the profits from index options—came just from Bank Nifty options, indicating a concentrated strategy on India’s most liquid index derivatives.

On 17 Jan 2024, Jane Street bought Rs 4370 crore banking stocks and futures during the morning (Patch I), creating a staged market recovery, then sold aggressively by the afternoon (Patch II), procuring Rs 734.93 crore in profits from pre-determined bearish options.

Intra-day Index Manipulation: Buy to raise prices in the morning, then sell all at once in the afternoon to cash in on put options.

Extended Marking the Close: Sell a large volume just before the market closing to manipulate the settlement price.

While total profits were higher, SEBI has frozen Rs 4,843 crore in alleged unlawful gains so far. This amount could rise as investigations continue into other trades and indexes.

With over 125 billion contracts traded on NSE in FY24, India’s F&O segment is the largest globally. This liquidity made Bank Nifty an ideal target—Bank Nifty options alone see participation from over 16 lakh traders.

SEBI’s FY25 study shows retail traders suffered Rs 1,05,603 crore in net losses, up 41 per cent from FY24. Over 91 per cent of traders in equity derivatives made losses, raising concerns about fair access to markets.

In an internal memo, Jane Street told employees that it only executed “basic index trading” and is preparing a formal response. The firm said it had tried to engage with SEBI since February 2025, but was “rebuffed.”

SEBI has named four Jane Street entities:

Jane Street Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Jane Street Asia Trading Ltd.

JSI Investments Pvt. Ltd.

JSI2 Investments Pvt. Ltd.

While no other firms have been named yet, SEBI’s language suggests wider scrutiny of expiry-day trades and algorithmic strategies by other global entities.

At this moment, SEBI's action is made under the PFUTP (Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices) framework and is an interim order, not a criminal charge. Depending on the final findings, Jane Street could be ordered to return any gains made, penalisd, or settled.

Industry watchers are calling for increased surveillance, clarity on expiry-day rules, and possibly a dedicated body for looking at high-frequency strategies.

The Jane Street case is not just about one firm's trading—it's about the respect of India's options market at a time when retail is at an all-time supplying. As the case continues, it could have devasting implications for how expiry-day trading, algo strategies, and surveillance frameworks are handled across Indian exchanges.

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