MTF insights - March 2026: Top traded stocks using margin funding

The month of March 2026 was one of the most volatile months India's equity markets have seen in recent years. The conviction of all market participants in their trading strategies was put to the test by record FII outflows, escalating Middle East geopolitical tensions, and sharp corrections in benchmark indices.As a result, the margin trading facility (MTF) activity among Indian investors slipped into a risk‑off mode in March 2026, although blue-chips and some large-cap stocks continued to dominate the list of the most‑traded stocks using leveraged funding. But the industry-wide MTF book faced net liquidation of approximately ₹9,663 crore, as many traders de-risked these MTF positions due to increased volatility in equities.While the MTF book is still above ₹1 lakh crore, which means investors are still maintaining leveraged delivery positions as an integral part of their portfolio. Here we will explore the MTF insights from March 2026 in more detail.The industry MTF book in March 2026The industry MTF book stands at ₹1,05,870.30 crore as of 2nd April 2026, whereas it was at ₹1,15,533.86 crore as of 2nd March 2026. This means there was a liquidation of ₹9,663.56 crore, which indicated that more MTF positions were liquidated than created.The National Stock Exchange of India remained the leader in the MTF market, accounting for more than 95% of the total volumes. NSE's March MTF book rose by 58.6% year-on-year to ₹1.09 trillion, even as it declined marginally on a quarter-on-quarter basis. Additionally, CareEdge Ratings reported that the recent moderation in the MTF book is due to weaker market conditions, elevated volatility, and geopolitical uncertainties, which have led to a cautious approach and some pullback in leveraged positions. What is MTF, and why does this data matter?The Margin Trading Facility enables investors to buy eligible Group 1 securities listed on NSE and BSE by paying only a fraction of the total purchase value, usually between 20-30%, with the remaining balance being financed by the broker. The amount that is funded by the broker is subject to interest between T+1 day and the day the position is closed or squared off. MTF data provides insights into which stock investors have high confidence that they are leveraging positions for over days, weeks, or months by not only paying initial capital but also interest expenses as well. Top traded stocks using MTF in March 2026The following are the stocks that received the maximum amounts of funds under the MTF in the Indian stock markets: Sr.NoCompanyFunded Qty in March’26Funded Qty Change %Funded Amount (Cr)Funded Amount Change %Margin on Dhan1HDFC Bank16,943,711+53.28%1,435.84+40.93%4.55x2Reliance Industries9,556,362+25.49%1,337.55+21.07%4.55x3Hindustan Aeronautics2,852,183-19.86%1,260.03-21.06%4.17x4Jio Financial Services42,397,205-0.75%1,193.78-4.31%4.35x5ITC28,056,618-6.90%960.17-9.99%4.55x6Tata Consultancy Services3,207,941-15.06%945.12-17.28%4.55x7Vedanta15,162,625+6.72%926.47+8.65%4.13x8Nazara Technologies33,069,745-1.55%924.71-2.26%2.94x9Patanjali Foods16,946,003+10.19%909.65+8.40%4.35x10Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders3,302,551-14.30%908.59-15.94%3.36x11Nippon Silver ETF (SILVERBEES)35,900,476-16.06%877.41-20.24%2.42x12CDSL5,887,857-5.83%850.31-8.80%3.86x13Dixon Technologies676,567-5.19%822.90-8.36%3.68x14Bharat Electronics18,146,546+5.89%754.61+6.44%4.35x15Suzlon Energy144,117,745-8.92%746.99-11.14%3.77x16Eternal27,954,116-11.75%745.83-14.46%3.83x17Kaynes Technology India1,498,679-7.14%685.90-9.59%2.5x18Trent1,451,872-14.50%670.17-16.57%3.93x19Yes Bank312,882,415-11.85%667.09-14.25%4.17x20REC17,689,765-9.21%666.80-10.89%4.04x21Larsen & Toubro1,786,366+88.46%660.43+77.17%4.55x22Infosys4,481,530-18.18%637.45-19.10%4.55x23Nippon Gold ETF (GOLDBEES)49,797,056-34.12%619.28-36.55%3.34x24Sammaan Capital40,579,626+10.35%616.91+8.71%2.28x25Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles13,118,003+5.13%589.30-4.12%4.33x Where leveraged buyers added new MTF positionsIn addition to total funded holdings, the MTF snapshot also provides insights regarding the breakout stocks in which investors added new margin-funded positions in March. Some of the best additions included: Sr.NoCompanyAdded QtyAdded Qty Change %Added Amount (Cr)Added Amount Change %Margin on Dhan1Jubilant FoodWorks1,414,595+48.44%58.63+27.80%4.33x2Force Motors18,324+105.39%37.11+105.02%2.86x3Bank of India2,032,656-3.74%27.87-7.24%4.0x4Reliance Industries185,182+25.49%22.62+21.07%4.55x5Kalyan Jewellers381,308-17.99%16.20-17.87%3.49x6BSE41,192-29.75%14.31-29.19%3.21x7Shyam Metalics & Energy166,764+54.71%13.91+46.26%3.33x8Indo Thai Securities420,598+421.86%12.43+462.21%2.0x9Punjab National Bank1,168,069+22.79%11.90+18.90%4.31x10Mahindra & Mahindra38,071+13.28%11.10+7.54%4.46x Which stocks saw the highest number of MTF exits?On the flip side, March 2026 also experienced some significant liquidations in MTF-funded positions. The top‑exited stocks by funded value: Sr.NoCompanyLiquidated QtyLiquidated Qty Change %Liquidated Amount (Cr)Liquidated Amount Change %Margin on Dhan1Infosys-410,502-18.18%-54.29-19.10%4.55x2Vedanta-489,263+6.72%-32.35+8.65%4.13x3Tata Consultancy Services-107,296-15.06%-27.61-17.28%4.55x4Bharti Airtel-150,181-10.41%-27.13-12.61%4.55x5Wipro-1,143,924-15.80%-23.76-17.53%4.55x6Dixon Technologies-17,872-5.19%-19.60-8.36%3.68x7Tourism Finance Corporation of India-2,818,394+19.40%-19.42+18.10%1.12x8Oil & Natural Gas Corporation-490,772-34.99%-13.83-35.56%4.55x9Hindustan Aeronautics-33,696-19.86%-13.24-21.06%4.17x10HCL Technologies-90,949-17.75%-12.77-18.37%4.55x To wrap upThe March 2026 MTF data highlights that Indian retail investors are using margin funding selectively and are risk-averse, even though they have substantial leveraged positions in core large-cap names. Although the overall MTF book reduced in March 2026 due to the heightened market volatility, investors still continued to hold blue-chip stocks like HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries, indicating their belief in the long-term fundamentals of these stocks despite the short-term fluctuations.At the same time, the liquidations in IT and PSU‑linked stocks indicate that investors are willing to de‑risk when valuations or sentiment become stretched. These monthly insights will be significant to traders and analysts who want to know how leverage is being used in the Indian equity market as MTF becomes an increasingly visible barometer of retail sentiment.

MTF insights - March 2026: Top traded stocks using margin funding

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