Margin Call on WebNotes

Risks of F&O trading on Zerodha

Sun, 21 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Futures and options trading carries risks that differ in kind, not just degree, from buying shares. A delivery investor in Zerodha can lose at most the money put in. An F&O trader using leverage can lose a multiple of the margin posted, can be forced out of a position at the worst possible moment by a margin call, and, in the case of a written call option, faces a loss with no fixed ceiling. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) studied the segment and found that most individual traders lose money: about 91 per cent posted net losses over three financial years, with the aggregate loss running to Rs 1.81 lakh crore.

Margin-call timeline at Zerodha

Wed, 20 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

When a Zerodha client’s margin used exceeds available margin, the broker follows a defined timeline of notifications and actions. Understanding the timeline helps avoid surprise auto-square-off and minimise shortfall costs.

Trigger: shortfall arises

A margin shortfall can arise from:

MTM losses on open positions reducing available margin.
SPAN file refresh increasing margin requirement.
Pledged collateral value falling.
New position opening without sufficient margin (rejected at order placement).

Immediate response: SMS / email alert

Within minutes of the shortfall:

How to interpret the margin shortfall SMS on Zerodha

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A margin shortfall notification from Zerodha indicates that the margin in the trading account is insufficient to cover the margin required for one or more open F&O positions. This can trigger a peak margin penalty, forced position close-out, or both. This guide explains how to read every element of the SMS, identify the root cause, and take corrective action promptly.

For the background regulatory framework see How to understand peak margin penalty . For maintaining margin proactively see How to calculate margin using the Zerodha SPAN calculator .