Fewer retail traders are gambling on derivatives, but the ones who stayed are losing slightly more per person. The decline marks the first observed drop in retail F&O losses after years of relentless escalation, a shift driven largely by regulatory guardrails that the Securities and Exchange Board of India began installing in late 2024. The numbers tell two storiesThe headline figure, an 18% decline in total retail losses, looks like a win for regulators. Over the three fiscal years leading up to FY24, retail investors accumulated cumulative net losses exceeding ₹1.81 trillion in equity derivatives. Prior studies had found that more than 90% of retail F&O traders were losing money.