"India's macroeconomic foundation remains solid": Angel One founder affirms confidence amid Jane Street probe

India Gazette

3 hours ago

New Delhi [India], July 6 (ANI): Dinesh Thakkar, Founder and Chairman-MD of brokerage firm Angel One, affirmed confidence in India's financial markets, asserting that the domestic market landscape is not dependent on any one firm.
These remarks from Thakkar come close on the heels of SEBI alleging Jane Street, a US-based investment firm, of index manipulation.
In the 105-page interim order dated July 3, SEBI has imposed to recovery of one of the highest ever illegal gains made by the Group worth Rs 4,843.57 crore.
'With millions of active retail traders and deepening institutional activity, India's market opportunity is structural, not cyclical and certainly not dependent on any one firm,' the Angel One founder wrote on LinkedIn, affirming bullishness on the market dynamics.
'India's macroeconomic foundation remains solid. Political stability, favourable demographics, strong domestic consumption, rising domestic capital flows and low inflation continue to support high liquidity and sustained market participation,' he added in his post. 'When one player exits, others step in and often, very fast!'
On Friday, Angel One Ltd shares closed at Rs 2,773.50, down 6 per cent.
Further, Thakkar also referred to a recent Reuters report that said global trading giants are expanding into India, setting up local entities, hiring talent, and investing in infrastructure.
These, according to Thakkar, will help shield India from global turmoil sparked by trade policies, given a large domestic consumer and investor base in India.
'Over the years, India has consistently evolved as a market built on transparency and investor protection. SEBI's clampdown will bring sharper compliance and more robust governance thus, strengthening market integrity and raising the bar for all. The way I see it: players may change, but India's capital market continues to deepen, diversify, and grow. The momentum is structural, and the opportunity enduring,' Thakkar's LinkedIn post concluded.
Earlier this week, Founder and CEO of stock brokerage firm Zerodha, Nithin Kamath, lauded SEBI for 'going after' Jane Street, the US-based investment firm that has been alleged of index manipulation.
'You've got to hand it to SEBI for going after Jane Street. If the allegations are true, it's blatant market manipulation,' Kamath wrote on X.
'The shocking part? They kept at it even after receiving warnings from the exchanges. Maybe this is what happens when you're used to the lenient US regulatory regime. Think about the structure of U.S. markets: dark pools, payment for order flow, and other loopholes that allow hedge funds to make billions off retail investors. None of these practices would be allowed in India, thanks to our regulators,' Kamath added.
On July 3, SEBI in its order noted that the US-based firm used a profit-maximising scheme to manipulate the market and booked substantial profits in index options, while incurring smaller losses in the cash and futures segments.
SEBI further stated that Jane Street Group entities, despite caution letters from NSE in February 2025 and their own commitments to refrain from certain trading behaviours, continued to deploy the same high-risk and market-distorting strategies.
SEBI sources later said that the interim order against the index manipulation matter concerning Jane Street, should not be considered a show cause notice. The investigations into the US-based investment firm will continue, the sources had added.
'It is difficult to estimate how long all this (probe) could take - the scope is quite large,' the sources had asserted. (ANI)