A Times Square Billboard Flashed Congratulatory Message for India's NSE. Here's Why Nasdaq wished the Indian exchange for becoming the world's largest derivatives trading exchange by volume

By Shipra Singh

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

NSE Twitter

Otherwise glittering with commercials of luxury brands, television shows and movies, one of the digital billboards at the world-famous Times Square in New York on Thursday displayed an unusual congratulatory message.

The message was from US' Nasdaq—the world's second-largest stock exchange in terms of market capitalization—to wish the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) on becoming the world's largest derivatives trading exchange by volume. "Nasdaq congratulates NSE on becoming the world's largest derivatives trading exchange," read the message.

As per the statistics published by derivatives trade body Futures Industry Association (FIA) earlier this month, the Mumbai-based bourse has surpassed US' CME Group to top the future and options table by volume for the calendar year 2019. This means that NSE traded the most contracts in the world last year.

The FIA data shows that NSE's derivative volume grew 57.27 per cent between 2018 and 2019 to touch 5.96 billion contracts in 2019. In comparison, CME Group's volume stood at 4.83 billion contracts in 2019, dropping a marginal 0.31 per cent from 2018.

Top 5 Exchanges by Number of Contracts Traded and/or Cleared, 2019

Source: FIA

Mahindra group chairman Anand Mahindra, who is also a former director of the NSE, took to twitter on Thursday to shout-out to the NSE team for the achievement.

In a separate development, data published by the World Federation of Exchanges showed that NSE becomes the third-largest exchange in cash equities segment by the number of trades.

Vikram Limaye, MD and CEO at NSE, said the milestone is a matter of great pride for the country as the domestic stock exchange has emerged as a global leader and has achieved this unique distinction of being the largest derivatives exchange in the world and the third-largest exchange in cash equities.

"We are grateful to the government, regulators and all our stakeholders for the support extended to us over the years," he said in a statement.

Shipra Singh

Entrepreneur Staff

Freelance Journalist

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Branding

Creating a Brand: How To Build a Brand From Scratch

Every business needs good branding to succeed. Discover the basics and key tips to building a successful brand in this detailed guide.

Innovation

It's Time to Rethink Research and Development. Here's What Must Change.

R&D can't live in a lab anymore. Today's leaders fuse science, strategy, sustainability and people to turn discovery into real-world value.

Marketing

How to Better Manage Your Sales Process

Get your priorities in order, and watch sales roll in.

Business News

AI Agents Can Help Businesses Be '10 Times More Productive,' According to a Nvidia VP. Here's What They Are and How Much They Cost.

In a new interview with Entrepreneur, Nvidia's Vice President of AI Software, Kari Briski, explains how AI agents will "transform" the way we work — and sooner than you think.

Starting a Business

Passion-Driven vs. Purpose-Driven Businesses — What's the Difference, and Why Does It Matter?

Passion and purpose are both powerful forces in entrepreneurship, but they are not the same.