BSE crosses ₹5,000 cr revenue for first time in 150 years, options volume doubles, FPI count jumps 5x; what next?

BSE has closed its best financial year in its 150-year history, crossing ₹5,000 crore in top-line revenue for the first time ever — and its chief executive says the exchange has barely begun to tap its potential.

In an interview with ET Now, MD & CEO Sundararaman Ramamurthy laid out a year of record-breaking metrics, a pipeline of new derivative products, and a long-term ambition to make BSE Star MF the gateway for the next wave of Indian retail investors entering capital markets.

A year of milestones

₹5,000Cr+

Revenue: First time ever in 150-year history

2x
Options premium ADTV: ₹15,000Cr to ₹33,000Cr

5x
FPI participants: ~100 to ~520

84 cr
Record mutual fund transactions via Star MF

Options contracts traded more than doubled from 7.8 crore to 17.6 crore contracts, while notional average daily traded volume surged from ₹129 lakh crore to ₹269 lakh crore. The exchange also reported its highest-ever IPO count and capital raised, alongside record SME listings.

New product launches and the FPI push

1. Focused IT Index: launches May 11
2. Bankex monthly recovery underway
3. FPI target: 700–800 participants

The exchange is broadening its derivatives suite beyond Sensex and Bankex. The first new product — a Focused IT Index derivative — goes live on May 11, 2026, designed to give market participants a more precise instrument for taking sectoral IT exposure. Ramamurthy says this was built directly from market feedback and is the first of multiple planned additions to the product shelf in FY27.

The FPI growth story is among BSE's most striking achievements this year. From roughly 100 foreign portfolio investors at the start of the year, the exchange now has approximately 520 active FPI participants in its equity derivatives segment. Ramamurthy says scaling that number to 700–800 is a near-term goal, and as FPIs typically take time to ramp up operations, their contribution to Sensex options volume is expected to grow meaningfully from current levels.

We have just started scratching the surface. We have barely 3.5 lakh people participating regularly in Sensex options. The country is very big and hedging needs will only grow with wealth creation.

-Sundararaman Ramamurthy, MD & CEO, BSE

STT hike: too early to judge the impact

On the Securities Transaction Tax hike that took effect from April 1, Ramamurthy was measured. He acknowledged that global volatility and BSE's relatively small futures base make it difficult to isolate the STT effect at this stage. What he did confirm is that futures volumes at BSE continue to grow regardless — partly aided by the low base — and that the shift toward second-month contracts is a real and emerging trend, one the exchange is actively encouraging among participants with longer-term hedging objectives.

Star MF: the next decade's growth engine

Perhaps the most ambitious long-term vision Ramamurthy outlined was for BSE Star MF. India currently has around six crore individual mutual fund portfolios. He believes that number needs to grow at least tenfold given the country's median age, rising income levels, and expanding investment capacity — and Star MF, he says, is positioned to be the platform that makes that happen.

He specifically advocated for new investors entering capital markets through large-cap mutual funds as a safer on-ramp, rather than directly into equities. BSE is scaling up Star MF infrastructure on a modular basis to handle that demand as and when it arrives.

With co-location services generating over ₹100 crore in annual revenue, 100 additional racks being built as standby capacity, and a derivatives pipeline readying for launch, BSE's management is positioning the exchange not just as a record-breaker — but as a platform still in its early innings.