Description

NSE Clearing Limited updates the list of approved equity shares, ETFs, mutual funds, sovereign gold bonds, G-Sec/T-Bills, and empaneled banks for collateral purposes, effective March 2026.

Summary

NSE Clearing Limited (NCL) has issued a revised list of approved securities and empaneled banks for collateral purposes under the Securities Lending and Borrowing Scheme (SLBS). This circular supersedes the previous circular no. 011/2026 dated January 21, 2026 and is effective for the month of March 2026. The update covers approved equity shares, ETFs, mutual funds, sovereign gold bonds, G-Sec/T-Bills, and banks authorized to issue Bank Guarantees (BGs) and Fixed Deposit Receipts (FDRs).

Key Points

  • Annexure 1 lists approved equity shares forming the non-cash component of liquid assets, with applicable market-wide limits, member-specific limits, and VAR-based haircut rates.
  • Annexure 2 lists ETFs as non-cash component of liquid assets with market-wide and member-specific limits and haircut rates.
  • Annexure 3 lists ETFs as cash component of liquid assets with applicable limits and haircut rates.
  • Annexure 4 covers Sovereign Gold Bonds and GOI Securities (G-Sec/T-Bills) as cash component of liquid assets with haircut rates.
  • Annexure 5 lists open-ended mutual funds acceptable as collateral with market-wide limits and haircut rates.
  • Annexure 6 lists banks empaneled for issuance of BGs and FDRs.
  • G-Sec/T-Bills carry a shut period of two days; members must release them at least two days before maturity.
  • Banks that are also members must not reckon G-Sec provided as collateral for SLR purposes and must not use them for trading.
  • Value-based prudential norm: exclusion of a pledged security should not result in margin shortfall of more than 25% at a Clearing Member level.

Regulatory Changes

No structural regulatory changes introduced. This is a routine periodic revision of the approved securities list and empaneled bank list for collateral management under the existing SLBS framework.

Compliance Requirements

  • All Participants and Custodians must use only the securities listed in the updated annexures as approved collateral.
  • Members holding G-Sec/T-Bills as collateral must release them at least two days before maturity to account for the two-day shut period.
  • Member-banks must ensure that G-Sec submitted as collateral are not counted toward their SLR requirement and are not used for trading purposes.
  • Collateral pledging must comply with the value-based prudential norm (no more than 25% margin shortfall at Clearing Member level upon exclusion of any single pledged security).

Important Dates

  • Circular Date: February 20, 2026
  • Effective Period: March 2026
  • Previous Circular Superseded: Circular no. 011/2026 (NCL/CMPT/72433) dated January 21, 2026

Impact Assessment

This update is routine and operationally significant for clearing members and custodians who manage collateral positions. Members need to review the updated annexures to ensure their collateral baskets remain compliant. The inclusion or exclusion of specific securities in the approved list could require rebalancing of collateral portfolios. Members who are also banks face an additional compliance obligation regarding SLR treatment of pledged G-Sec. Overall market impact is low, but operational impact on clearing members’ collateral management teams is moderate.

Impact Justification

Routine monthly update to approved collateral securities list affecting clearing members and custodians; operationally significant for margin and collateral management but not a policy change.