FUTURES & OPTIONS · EDUCATION + EXCHANGE-FILE DATA
Futures & Options in India, without the noise
Derivatives are where Indian retail traders lose the most money — SEBI's study of individual equity-derivative traders found the overwhelming majority ended up in loss. This section exists to explain the machinery in plain language and to publish the factual, exchange-sourced data a derivatives-curious investor actually needs. No tips, no trade calls, no "sure-shot" strikes — that isn't caution theatre, it's the law, and it's also just honest.
F&O ban list today
Which stocks are in the ban period this session, what entered and exited, and what the ban actually means.
See today's list → FULL SEGMENT LISTF&O stocks & lot sizes
Every security in the NSE derivatives segment with its current market lot, plus index contract lots.
Browse the list → FROM THE CONTRACT FILEExpiry calendar
Upcoming index and stock expiry dates read from NSE's own derivatives file — correct even when expiry days move.
See the dates → FREE TOOLOptions payoff calculator
Breakeven, maximum profit and loss, and the full expiry payoff for any call or put, lot-aware.
Open the calculator →Start with the machinery, not the adrenaline
A futures contract is an obligation to transact at a fixed price on a fixed date; an option is the right, not the obligation, to do so. Both trade in fixed lots — you trade a contract of 65 NIFTY units or 475 Adani Ports shares, never one share — which is what makes derivatives levered: a small price move works on the whole contract value while you post only margin.
That leverage is the entire story of retail F&O outcomes. Start with the guides:
- What is Futures and Options? — the machinery, both contract types, and who carries obligation.
- Options trading, explained properly — premiums, both sides of the trade, and one honest worked example.
- How to read an option chain — OI, IV and strikes in plain English.
- Option Greeks, simply — delta, gamma, theta and vega without the formulas.
- SEBI's F&O rules — every change since 2024 and why the regulator moved.
- Tax on F&O trading — business income, turnover, audit thresholds and loss set-off.
F&O basics
What are futures and options?
Futures and options are derivative contracts whose value comes from an underlying stock or index. A futures contract obliges both sides to transact at a set price on a set date; an option gives the buyer the right, without the obligation, to buy (call) or sell (put) at a set price before expiry. Both trade in fixed lots on the exchange.
What is the difference between futures and options?
A futures position carries symmetric obligation — gains and losses both scale with the full contract, and margins are marked to market daily. An option buyer risks only the premium paid but must overcome that cost to profit, while an option seller collects the premium and carries the larger, margin-backed risk.
Is F&O trading profitable for retail traders?
SEBI’s own analysis of individual traders found that the overwhelming majority — over nine in ten in its equity-derivatives study — lost money in F&O, and the losses concentrated among the most active traders. Treat derivatives as a risk-management and research subject first; the statistics on trading them casually are unambiguous.
What is the F&O ban list?
When the combined open interest in a stock’s derivatives crosses 95% of its market-wide position limit, the exchange bars new positions until interest cools below 80%. The daily list of such stocks is the ban list, published by NSE each session.