NISM Series VI Syllabus: Depository Operations
All 13 chapters of the Depository Operations workbook, with the weightage each carries in the exam.
The NISM Series VI workbook has 13 chapters. Two set the scene: the Indian capital market and what a depository is. One covers the depository's business partners. Then come five chapters on what a depository participant (DP) actually does for a client: opening accounts, running them, transmission and nomination, dematerialisation, and trading and settlement. Three chapters cover special services, and the last two are short ones on foreign portfolio investors and investor services.
Unlike some NISM series, Series VI has a published weightage for every chapter. The paper is 100 questions of 1 mark each, so a chapter's weightage is also the number of marks it is worth.
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Chapter weightage
From the workbook's own syllabus outline. Weightage is a percentage of the 100-mark paper.
| Chapter | Weightage (marks) |
|---|---|
| 1. Introduction to the Indian Capital Market | 5 |
| 2. Introduction to Depository | 10 |
| 3. Depository and its Business Partners | 12 |
| 4. Functions of DP: Account Opening | 12 |
| 5. Functions of DP: Account Operations | 3 |
| 6. Functions of DP: Transmission and Nomination | 5 |
| 7. Functions of DP: Dematerialisation | 9 |
| 8. Functions of DP: Trading and Settlement | 13 |
| 9. Special Services: Pledge and Hypothecation | 10 |
| 10. Special Services: Public Offering / Corporate Actions | 7 |
| 11. Special Services: Debt Instruments and Government Securities | 10 |
| 12. Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) | 2 |
| 13. Investor Services | 2 |
| Total | 100 |
Where the marks sit
Five chapters (2, 3, 4, 8 and 9) carry 57 of the 100 marks. Chapters 5, 12 and 13 together carry 7. The pass mark is 60, so the five heavy chapters alone cannot get you through: you need marks from across the paper.
What each chapter covers
Sub-headings as the March 2026 workbook lists them.
- 1. Introduction to the Indian Capital Market
- The capital market, the regulatory environment and the regulators of the securities market.
- 2. Introduction to Depository
- Why a depository system is needed, what a depository is, the legal framework (the Depositories Act, 1996 and the SEBI (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 2018) and the functions of a depository. India has two depositories, NSDL and CDSL.
- 3. Depository and its Business Partners
- Depository participants, clearing corporations, and issuers with their registrar and transfer agents (RTAs): who they are and how each connects to the depository.
- 4. Functions of DP: Account Opening
- Types of account, the beneficial owner (BO) account, the clearing member account, closure and freezing of accounts, changes in client details, the framework for accreditation of investors, and mapping the unique client code (UCC) to a demat account. The longest chapter in the workbook.
- 5. Functions of DP: Account Operations
- The Basic Services Demat Account (BSDA) and how a joint account is operated.
- 6. Functions of DP: Transmission and Nomination
- Transmission of securities after a holder's death, and nomination for securities.
- 7. Functions of DP: Dematerialisation
- The ISIN, the dematerialisation process, rematerialisation, converting mutual fund units held in Statement of Account (SOA) form into demat form and back, and credit of AIF units in demat form.
- 8. Functions of DP: Trading and Settlement
- Settlement of off-market transactions and of market transactions. The highest-weighted chapter.
- 9. Special Services: Pledge and Hypothecation
- The pledge and hypothecation procedure, recording a non disposal undertaking (NDU), and margin obligations given by way of pledge or re-pledge.
- 10. Special Services: Public Offering / Corporate Actions
- The concept of corporate actions, the key terms (such as record date and book closure), the procedure for corporate actions, and public issues.
- 11. Special Services: Debt Instruments and Government Securities
- Certificates of deposit, commercial paper and government securities held through the depository system.
- 12. Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI)
- Who an FPI is and the eligibility criteria for an FPI applying for registration to a designated depository participant.
- 13. Investor Services
- Redressal of complaints through SCORES, and transfer of shares to the demat account of the IEPF Authority.
Free account, this exam preselected.
Annexures
The workbook ends with four annexures: Aadhaar e-KYC of resident investors, the use of technology for KYC, the operational mechanism for margin pledge, and the framework for using a client's pledged securities for exposure and margin. They support chapters 4 and 9 and are worth reading alongside them.
What kind of paper this is
NISM's stated aim for Series VI is a common minimum knowledge benchmark for people who work at a DP. The workbook's examination objectives are the basics of the securities market and the depository system, the institutional structure, the regulatory framework for depositories and DPs, and the DP's functions: dematerialisation, trading and settlement, pledging and hypothecation, and account opening, including the documents required and the role of the Power of Attorney.
Most of the syllabus is procedure. Which form starts a process, who acts next, what the DP must check, and what happens when something is missing. The detail inside chapters 4 and 8 is where it gets hard.
Check the workbook version
This page follows the March 2026 workbook. NISM revises workbooks when SEBI rules change, and the exam follows the current version. Confirm the version on NISM's Series VI page before you start.
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