Stock Market · Futures Trading

Lot size, margin, and leverage

Futures are not traded in individual units. They trade in fixed lot sizes, and you only need to put up a fraction of the total contract value as margin. This creates leverage.

Lot size

Every futures contract has a minimum lot size set by the exchange.

Nifty 5065 units per lot

Bank Nifty30 units per lot (subject to periodic revision by NSE)

Reliance futures250 shares per lot

If Nifty is at 22,000 × 65 lots = ₹14.3 lakh contract value. You cannot buy 'half a lot.'

Margin

You don't pay ₹14.3 lakh to hold a Nifty futures position. You pay margin. A security deposit that covers potential daily losses.

• SPAN margin: minimum required by exchange (typically 5–10% of contract value)
• Exposure margin: additional buffer charged by broker
• Total margin: typically 10–15% of contract value for index futures

For Nifty: margin ≈ ₹1.4–2.1 lakh for a ₹14.3L contract.

The leverage implication

₹1.5 lakh margin controls ₹14.3 lakh worth of Nifty. That's 9.5× leverage.

Nifty moves 1% = ₹14,300 profit or loss on your ₹1.5 lakh capital. That's a 9.5% move on your capital for a 1% market move.

> Leverage amplifies everything. A 1% adverse move = 9.5% capital loss. A 5% adverse move = 47.5% capital loss on your margin.

Margin calls

If losses reduce your margin below the maintenance margin level, your broker will call you to deposit more. Immediately. If you don't, they auto-square off your position at market price.

Takeaway. Lot size is fixed (Nifty = 65 units). Margin is 10–15% of contract value, so the leverage is its inverse: about 7–10x, which turns a 1% market move into a 7–10% gain or loss on your capital.