New Delhi, Feb. 20 -- Proprietary traders (prop), or brokers transacting for themselves, have surpassed the market share of individual or direct retail investors on the National Stock Exchange's (NSE) equities cash segment for the first time in over two decades, according to exchange data.

Prop share of cash segment turnover surged to 34.3% in January, up 340 basis points (bps) month-on-month from 30.9% in December and 360 bps higher than January 2025's share of 30.7%. A basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.

For the first time in 22 years, prop market share was higher than the 32.5% share of individual or retail investors last month, per NSE data.

Proprietary traders emerged as the dominant category, surpassing individual...