STT Charges Increased AGAIN by Govt in Budget 2026 | Impact on Retail Traders

Описание: Securities Transaction Tax is not debated in Parliament the way income tax or GST is.

On one side, SEBI says nearly 90% of retail F&O traders are in losses.
On the other, the government continues to raise and project higher collections from Securities Transaction Tax (STT).

This video sits exactly at that contradiction.
If most participants are losing money, what does it mean to keep increasing a tax that applies even to loss-making trades?

This is not about opposing taxation.
It is about examining whether STT, as designed today, aligns with its stated objectives or simply operates as a silent revenue lever.

Over the years, STT increases have followed a clear pattern.

They are announced suddenly, explained weakly, and never rolled back. Explanations always come after the decision, never before it.

Calling this “Sarkari Tanashahi” is not abuse.
It is a description of unilateral action with no accountability loop, no impact review, and no evidence of reform outcomes.

If STT hikes were truly about reform, we would have seen white papers, behavioural impact studies, or at least sunset clauses.
None exist.

In Budget 2026, STT was increased sharply.
Futures STT rose from 0.02% to 0.05%, a 150% jump. Options STT on premium rose from 0.10% to 0.15%, and STT on option exercise also increased.

In simple terms, futures STT moved from ₹2 to ₹5 per ₹10,000 traded.
Options premium STT moved from ₹10 to ₹15 per ₹10,000 premium. These are statutory numbers, not interpretations.

For a normal retail futures trader with ₹8-12 crore annual sell-side turnover, this means an additional ₹3 lakh per ₹10 crore every year.
This is pure tax leakage, independent of profitability.

Options sellers are not spared either.
A trader selling ₹2 crore premium annually now pays ₹1 lakh extra STT, even if the year ends flat or negative.

Even positional and hedged traders feel the impact.
Rolling just one futures lot every month now costs about ₹36,000 extra per year, without any increase in risk or speculation.

The key problem is structural.
STT scales with turnover, adjustments, and risk management, not with recklessness or gambling behaviour.

This is where the government’s justification comes in.
STT hikes are defended as a way to “curb excessive speculation”, broaden the tax base, and promote market stability.

But logically, this does not hold up.
SEBI’s own reports show 89% of retail F&O traders were in losses in 2021, and 91% were in losses in 2023, despite multiple STT hikes.

Participation has increased, losses have worsened, and revenue has grown.
If STT were a deterrent, at least one of these trends should have reversed.

Instead, STT collections have exploded.
From around ₹20,000 crore in FY22, collections crossed ₹53,000 crore by FY25, more than 2.5× growth in three years.

A tax meant to discourage activity is simultaneously being treated as a growth-linked revenue pillar.
Both cannot be true at the same time.

The behavioural blind spot is obvious.
High-risk gamblers don’t calculate STT. Disciplined traders do and they pay it repeatedly.

By increasing friction for normal traders, STT raises break-even thresholds, shrinks margins, and ironically pushes behaviour closer to gambling, not away from it.

This issue has now entered the constitutional process.
A petition challenging STT’s structure and impact is listed before the Hon’ble Supreme Court, with the next date scheduled for 16 February 2026.

This video does not argue the merits of the case or predict outcomes.
It simply lays out the logic, the data, and the contradiction.

If STT does not reduce speculation, does not reduce losses, and does not reduce participation, then what exactly is it solving?

That question deserves scrutiny.

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0:00 Introduction
1:33 How STT Impacts You?
2:06 Budget 2026 on STT
3:35 Does STT impact Gambling Mindset?
4:31 Why Govt Increased STT?
5:33 Do Gamblers care about STT?
7:06 Tax broadening by Govt
8:03 Turnover 500 times than GDP
9:19 Revenue Projections on STT
11:50 Our STT Petition on STT
13:53 Conclusion