“I clearly stated in 2024 – the F&O market has become a playground for ‘big players,’ and small investors’ pockets are continuously being drained. Now SEBI itself is admitting that Jane Street manipulated thousands of crores. Why did SEBI remain silent for so long? At whose behest was the Modi government sitting with its eyes closed? And how many more big sharks are still shorting retail investors? In every case, it’s clear – the Modi government is making the rich richer and pushing ordinary investors to the brink of ruin,” said Rahul Gandhi in a post on X.
What is the Jane Street controversy?
Jane Street is a well-known proprietary trading firm based in the US, active in more than 45 countries. SEBI recently accused the firm of manipulating stock and index prices in India to benefit its options trades. According to SEBI, Jane Street made huge profits by first buying stocks to push prices up and then selling them off later in the day to make money from falling prices in the options segment.
The regulator has frozen over Rs 4,800 crore in profits linked to these trades and banned Jane Street and its India arm from participating in the market. SEBI has also frozen their bank and demat accounts as part of an ongoing investigation.
