SEBI Panel to Recommend Easing Commodity Derivative Rules, Lifting Agri Bans

• A SEBI panel will recommend easing rules for commodity derivatives to attract institutional investors.
• The panel suggests lifting the ban on derivatives trading for seven agricultural commodities, arguing it has little impact on prices.
• Recommendations include defining the GST tax rate for commodity derivatives and allowing colocation for trading firms (likely excluding agri-commodities).
• The panel also proposes reducing margins for agricultural commodities to boost trading.
• SEBI plans to approach the government and RBI to allow banks, pension funds, and insurance companies to trade commodities after receiving the report.

Why It Matters: SEBI panel's recommendations could liberalize commodity markets, impacting investors and prices.