Tale of the Tape 

Howdy folks. Markets were volatile AF today!

Nifty (-0.7%) and Sensex (-0.8%) ended in the red on heavyweight selling. Midcaps (+0.2%) and Smallcaps (+0.1%) posted minor gains. The advance-decline ratio was in favour of the bears (3:2).

It was a mixed-bag kinda day for sectors. PSU Banks (+0.3%) and Real Estate (+0.2%) saw muted buying. Meanwhile, FMCG (-0.9%) and Auto (-0.7%) witnessed the most selling pressure.

The BSE vs NSE expiry war may finally be over. Read our top story to get the lowdown.

Firstcry cracked -6% on a mixed Q4 show. Meanwhile, Info Edge (-1%) posted decent Q4 numbers. More details below.

Olectra Greentech was the top NSE 500 loser after Maharashtra govt cancelled a big e-bus order. Also, Prostarm Info Systems IPO is open for subscription! Check out our analysis below.

Block deals. Sagility India hit a -5% lower circuit after its promoters launched a Rs 2,671 cr OFS to offload a ~15% stake. Meanwhile, Interglobe Aviation (-2%) fell after promoter Rakesh Gangwal & family sold a ~5.7% stake for over Rs 11,000-cr in a big deal. 

Vedant Fashions was up +3% after JM Financial initiated coverage; it sees a +25% rally.

Jio Financial Services gained +3% after it received the mutual fund licence for its JV with BlackRock.

Q4 reactions. Bayer CropScience (+10%) was the top NSE 500 gainer after its PAT jumped +49% YoY. Meanwhile, Shriram Properties surged +15% after a blockbuster show.

Defence stocks extended their hot streak. Garden Reach Shipbuilders, BDL and Astra Microwave gained between 3%-4% each.

Market
Fight For Futures & Options

The derivatives expiry war is FINALLY coming to an end! SEBI has said exchanges will need to pick either Tuesday or Thursday for all of their equity derivatives contracts. This means both BSE and NSE will need to pick a day and eventually stick with it. This has big implications, so let’s get into it…

Recap time: In late 2024, BSE changed its expiry day from Friday to Tuesday. This allowed it to undercut NSE and see its index option premium market share jump from ~16% in December 2024 to ~24% in April 2025. This is partly why BSE has been able to weather the broader F&O crackdown by SEBI.

The only problem? NSE wants that market share back. It’s already tried to move its expiry day to Monday and will almost certainly move to Tuesday now. Goldman Sachs estimates that if this happens, BSE’s market share in premiums may drop to ~18% vs the current 22%.

So what should BSE do? Well, one option is to tough it out, stay on Tuesday and fight the NSE. The other option -- which analysts see as more likely -- is for BSE to shift to Thursday. This will prevent both exchanges from cannibalizing each other and allow BSE to grow by itself. But we’ll see how it pans out..

Go deeper: All of this is super important because we’re getting closer than ever to an NSE IPO! ICYMI - last week, SEBI chief Tuhin Pandey said all outstanding issues will be resolved soon. And reports say today that NSE is offering a cool $118 million to settle the co-location scandal. Tbh, the regulator can’t afford to wait much longer. The grey market for NSE shares has been POPPING. The stock is up over +10% in May and hit a record high of ~Rs 1,700 p/sh in the unlisted market.

Specials
HUGE Dividend Alert! 🚨

Who doesn't love dividend income? In our recent video, we cover 3 fundamentally strong stocks with substantial dividend payouts. Additionally, we also share targets on these stocks as provided by SEBI RAs. DO NOT MISS IT!