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The Indian bond market, despite its size, has often been underutilized by retail investors. Bonds have traditionally been seen as complex financial instruments with limited access and transparency. Retail investors, in particular, have struggled to navigate the market due to the lack of awareness and difficulty in accessing information. This is where Bond Central comes in
Historically, bond markets were dominated by institutional investors, with individual investors having limited participation. There was a lack of clarity around bond pricing, bond ratings, and available bond options for retail investors. Additionally, many bonds were offered through private placements, restricting access to retail investors. With Bond Central, SEBI aims to address these challenges and provide a comprehensive, transparent platform that empowers retail investors to make informed decisions in the bond market
SEBI’s Efforts to Attract Retail Investors to Bonds
Bond Market development over the years
SEBI has long recognized the need to develop a robust framework to make the bond market more accessible to retail investors. Over the last four years, the regulator has taken significant steps toward increasing retail participation and making the bond market more transparent and user-friendly
2020 – Launch of the “Retail Direct Scheme”: SEBI took a landmark step in 2020 by launching the Retail Direct Scheme, which allowed individual investors to directly invest in government securities (G-Secs) through an online platform. This initiative aimed to simplify bond investments and provide easy access to government bonds
2021 – Enhancing Bond Market Transparency: In 2021, SEBI implemented new measures to improve transparency in the bond market. It introduced stricter disclosure norms for issuers, ensuring that all bond-related information—such as pricing, interest rates, and risk ratings—was available to the public. This increased the level of trust among investors and attracted more retail participation
2022 – Streamlining Bond Trading Platforms: SEBI also worked on streamlining bond trading platforms, making it easier for retail investors to trade bonds on recognized stock exchanges. This shift made bonds more accessible to the retail investor by eliminating intermediaries and reducing complexity in the process of buying and selling bonds
2023 – Regulatory Changes for Better Pricing and Information: SEBI introduced comprehensive guidelines around pricing and trading of bonds in 2023. It required issuers to publicly disclose detailed information about bond issues, including the price at which the bonds were issued, the yields, and the maturity terms. These measures ensured that retail investors could make informed choices based on available data
2024 – SEBI introduced key regulatory changes to enhance retail participation in the bond market, making it more accessible, transparent, and liquid. The minimum ticket size for privately placed corporate bonds was reduced from ₹1 lakh to ₹10,000, lowering entry barriers for retail investors. Regulations for Online Bond Platform Providers (OBPPs) were strengthened to improve transparency and investor protection, while a proposed liquidity window facility aimed to provide investors with exit options before maturity.
However, higher tax rates on unlisted bonds, market-linked debentures (MLDs), and debt mutual funds reduced their appeal, shifting investor focus toward listed bonds. These efforts collectively make bonds a more flexible and attractive investment option, despite evolving tax policies.
You can read in detail about the bond market developments happened over the last year in Aspero’s article here
The culmination of these efforts is the recent launch of Bond Central, which now serves as the primary platform for retail investors to access bond-related information with transparency and ease
Introducing Bond Central: Features, Limitations, and Benefits
Bond Central is a centralized platform designed to provide comprehensive, accurate, and up-to-date information on bonds in India. It aims to empower retail investors by providing them with detailed bond-related data, fostering transparency, and increasing investor confidence in the bond market
What you can find on Bond Central:
Listed Bonds: These bonds are available for trading on recognized exchanges like the NSE and BSE. Bond Central offers real-time pricing, interest rates, maturity dates, and credit ratings of listed bonds, allowing investors to assess them easily
Public Placement Bonds: These bonds are issued to the public through a public offer, and retail investors can buy them. Bond Central lists details of these bonds, including issuance terms and pricing, helping investors track and evaluate available investment opportunities
Private Placement Bonds: Private placement bonds, typically available to institutional investors or select high-net-worth individuals, are also listed on Bond Central. While retail investors might not always have direct access to these bonds, the platform ensures transparency by providing details about these offerings
Bond Pricing and Risk Ratings: One of the key advantages of Bond Central is that it offers detailed information about bond pricing and risk ratings. Investors can easily view the current market price of a bond, as well as its credit rating, enabling them to make well-informed investment decisions
What you can’t find on Bond Central:
Non-Listed Bonds: Bonds that are not listed on recognized exchanges or that are part of private placements are not available for retail investors on Bond Central
Private Placements Not Open to Retail Investors: While the platform provides details about private placements, retail investors cannot directly invest in these bonds unless they meet specific eligibility criteria
How to Search on Bond Central
Bond Central by SEBI
Searching on Bond Central is straightforward. The platform allows users to filter bonds based on a range of factors such as:
Bond Type: Choose from listed, unlisted, or private placement bonds
Issuer: Filter by the issuing entity (e.g., government, corporation, etc.)
Credit Rating: Choose bonds based on risk tolerance, selecting AAA, AA, etc
Interest Rate and Maturity: Investors can also filter bonds based on their desired returns and investment horizon
This intuitive search functionality makes it easy for retail investors to find bonds that match their preferences and financial goals
Online Bond Investment Platforms (OBPPs)
In addition to Bond Central, several online bond investment platforms (OBPPs) have emerged, providing retail investors with the ability to purchase bonds digitally. These platforms complement Bond Central by offering a direct avenue for investment in bonds
These platforms allow investors to buy and sell bonds online with ease. Bond Central, however, serves as the ultimate information hub, offering detailed data on these platforms’ offerings, making it a vital tool for any retail investor in the bond market
A Game-Changer for Retail Investors
Bond Central is a groundbreaking initiative by SEBI that is set to transform how retail investors interact with the bond market. With its emphasis on transparency, easy access to detailed bond information, and up-to-date pricing, Bond Central solves many of the issues that have historically hindered retail investor participation. This initiative aligns with SEBI’s long-term vision of increasing retail access to the bond market, which has been a slow-moving, opaque space for individual investors
By providing a one-stop platform for bond data, SEBI’s Bond Central will undoubtedly encourage greater participation in bond markets and foster investor confidence. As awareness grows and investors become more familiar with the bond market, we can expect Bond Central to be a catalyst for deeper engagement with India’s financial markets. This will not only boost retail investments in bonds but also provide a much-needed level of clarity and transparency in an often-overlooked segment of the market
Bond Central truly represents the future of bond investing in India, making it easier and more accessible for all investors