NISM Series VII Syllabus: Securities Operations and Risk Management
All 8 chapters of the Securities Operations and Risk Management workbook, with the weightage each carries in the exam.
The NISM Series VII workbook has 8 chapters. It follows a trade through a stock broker's office: the market and its participants first, then how an order is taken, checked for risk, cleared and settled, and finally what happens when a client complains. The last chapter covers the other services a broker offers.
NISM publishes a weightage for every chapter, stated as a percentage of the paper. Because the exam has 100 questions of 1 mark each, the percentage is also the number of marks each chapter carries.
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All 8 chapters with weightage
Chapter names and weightage as printed in the July 2026 workbook.
1. Introduction to the Securities Market
Weightage
5%
What it covers
Primary and secondary markets, the money market and its instruments, products traded in India, International Financial Services Centres (IFSC)
2. Market Participants in the Securities Market
Weightage
10%
What it covers
Investors and issuers, stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories, trading and clearing members, custodians, SEBI and the key regulations
3. Introduction to Securities Broking Operations
Weightage
20%
What it covers
The trade life cycle; front office (client onboarding, KYC, UCC, DDPI, order types and matching); middle office (risk and surveillance); back office (contract notes, accounting, IT, STT, stamp duty, regulatory compliance)
4. Risk Management
Weightage
15%
What it covers
Margins in the cash and derivatives segments, liquid assets, pre-trade risk controls, client collateral, periodic reporting, running account settlement, the Core Settlement Guarantee Fund
5. Clearing Process
Weightage
15%
What it covers
Role of the clearing corporation, clearing banks, clearing members, custodians, depositories and DPs, the clearing process for cash and derivatives, the optional T+0 cycle
6. Settlement Process
Weightage
15%
What it covers
Settlement obligations, funds and securities settlement, auction and close out, settlement of equity derivatives, corporate action adjustments
7. Investor Grievances and Arbitration
Weightage
10%
What it covers
Grievance handling at the broker, exchange and SEBI (SCORES), online dispute resolution through SMART ODR, conciliation and arbitration, the Investor Protection Fund
8. Other Services Provided by Brokers
Weightage
10%
What it covers
IPO applications, mutual fund units, portfolio management, research and advisory, depository services, margin trading, internet and wireless trading, the stock broker code of conduct
| Chapter | Weightage | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Introduction to the Securities Market | 5% | Primary and secondary markets, the money market and its instruments, products traded in India, International Financial Services Centres (IFSC) |
| 2. Market Participants in the Securities Market | 10% | Investors and issuers, stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories, trading and clearing members, custodians, SEBI and the key regulations |
| 3. Introduction to Securities Broking Operations | 20% | The trade life cycle; front office (client onboarding, KYC, UCC, DDPI, order types and matching); middle office (risk and surveillance); back office (contract notes, accounting, IT, STT, stamp duty, regulatory compliance) |
| 4. Risk Management | 15% | Margins in the cash and derivatives segments, liquid assets, pre-trade risk controls, client collateral, periodic reporting, running account settlement, the Core Settlement Guarantee Fund |
| 5. Clearing Process | 15% | Role of the clearing corporation, clearing banks, clearing members, custodians, depositories and DPs, the clearing process for cash and derivatives, the optional T+0 cycle |
| 6. Settlement Process | 15% | Settlement obligations, funds and securities settlement, auction and close out, settlement of equity derivatives, corporate action adjustments |
| 7. Investor Grievances and Arbitration | 10% | Grievance handling at the broker, exchange and SEBI (SCORES), online dispute resolution through SMART ODR, conciliation and arbitration, the Investor Protection Fund |
| 8. Other Services Provided by Brokers | 10% | IPO applications, mutual fund units, portfolio management, research and advisory, depository services, margin trading, internet and wireless trading, the stock broker code of conduct |
Chapters 1 and 2: the market map
Together these carry 15 marks. Chapter 1 defines what counts as a security and walks through the products traded in India. Chapter 2 names every institution in the chain and what each one does, from the exchange and clearing corporation down to the custodian. It also introduces SEBI and the regulations the later chapters lean on.
This material is mostly definitions. It is quick to learn and it makes the operations chapters easier to follow, so read it first even though it carries fewer marks.
Chapter 3: broking operations, the largest chapter
At 20 marks this is the single biggest chapter, and it is long. It splits a broker's work into front office, middle office and back office. The front office section covers account opening, KYC registration agencies, the Unique Client Code, the Demat Debit and Pledge Instruction, order types and how orders are matched. The back office section covers trade enrichment and allocation, accounting, IT controls such as business continuity and cyber security, and charges such as securities transaction tax and stamp duty.
Questions here tend to test who does what and in what order. Learn the trade life cycle as a sequence, from order placement to settlement, and attach each department to its step.
Free account, this exam preselected.
Chapters 4 to 6: risk, clearing and settlement
These three chapters carry 45 marks between them, almost half the paper. Chapter 4 explains how margins are computed and collected. In the cash segment the clearing corporation collects VaR margin, which covers the largest loss expected on 99.9% of days, along with extreme loss margin and mark to market losses. The chapter also covers how a broker must settle a client's running account of funds, at most every 30 or 90 days depending on the client's choice.
Chapter 5 starts with novation: the clearing corporation becomes the buyer to every seller and the seller to every buyer. Chapter 6 covers the T+1 rolling settlement used in the cash market, the timings of pay-in and pay-out, what happens on a shortage, and how futures and options contracts are adjusted for bonuses, splits, rights and extraordinary dividends.
Chapters 7 and 8: investors and other services
Chapter 7 sets out the route a complaint takes: first to the broker; if unresolved, the investor can escalate on SCORES or start online conciliation and arbitration through SMART ODR, which needs the complaint to have gone to the broker first. It also explains the Investor Protection Fund. Chapter 8 covers the services a broker sells beyond trading, including margin trading, and closes with the code of conduct for stock brokers in Annexure 1.
Use the July 2026 workbook
NISM's note in the July 2026 workbook says it applies to candidates sitting the exam on or after September 15, 2026, and that the updates are highlighted in yellow. Rules on settlement timings, margins and grievance timelines change often, so notes written for an older edition may describe procedures that no longer apply.
FAQs
How many chapters are there in NISM Series VII?expand_more
8, from Introduction to the Securities Market (chapter 1) to Other Services Provided by Brokers (chapter 8), plus an annexure on the code of conduct for stock brokers.
Which chapter has the highest weightage in NISM Series VII?expand_more
Chapter 3, Introduction to Securities Broking Operations, at 20%. Chapters 4, 5 and 6 follow at 15% each.
Which chapters carry the least weight?expand_more
Chapter 1 at 5%. Chapters 2, 7 and 8 carry 10% each.
Is the Series VII syllabus the same as Series VI?expand_more
No. Series VI covers depository operations at a depository participant. Series VII covers a stock broker's operations: trading, risk management, clearing and settlement. Some topics such as depositories and corporate actions appear in both.
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