Securities Operations & Risk ManagementCertification Guide.
Covers securities market operations, clearing & settlement, risk management, margining, and regulatory framework. Core certification for brokerage operations teams.
Difficulty
Beginner
Suggested prep: 15-20 days
Negative marking
25%
Avoid blind guessing.
Validity
3 years
Computer-Based Test (CBT)
Priority
Rank 14
Operations track
What this certification is really testing.
This template pulls directly from the NISM database so the article stays factual, structured, and easy to scan before you register.
Ideal for
Operations and risk management staff at brokerages
Middle-office and compliance professionals
Career paths
Risk Manager at Brokerage
Operations Manager
Margin/Surveillance Analyst
Compliance Officer
Mandatory for
Associated persons of trading members (operations/risk management)
Study by chapter weightage, not by guesswork.
The highest scoring chapters carry 75% of the paper. Start there, then use the low-weight chapters for polish.
High-weightage focus
Risk Management and Margining
18%Trading Operations
15%Clearing and Settlement
15%Regulatory Framework
15%Market Microstructure
12%Key concepts to remember
T+1 settlement cycle: Trade on Day 0, settlement on Day 1 (India moved from T+2 to T+1 in Jan 2023)
Clearing corporation acts as Central Counterparty (CCP) guarantees settlement via novation
SPAN Margin: Standard Portfolio Analysis of Risk covers probable losses
VaR (Value at Risk): Statistical measure of maximum potential loss at a given confidence level
Risk management: Pre-trade risk checks, real-time position monitoring, margin adequacy
Circuit breakers: Market-wide circuit breakers at 10%, 15%, 20% movement in Nifty/Sensex
Investor Protection Fund (IPF): Protects investors against defaulting trading members
A clear way to study this module.
Use the database strategy as the practical order of attack: official workbook first, high-weightage chapters next, then mocks and exam-day control.
Study strategy
Risk Management and Margining (Ch 5, 18%) highest weightage chapter
Trading Operations (Ch 3, 15%) + Clearing and Settlement (Ch 4, 15%) = 30% combined
Know the settlement cycle (T+1), margin types, and circuit breaker mechanisms
Regulatory Framework (Ch 6, 15%) SEBI's risk management framework for brokers
This exam shares content with Series VIII leverage any prior preparation
Exam-day tips
Standard format 100 MCQs, 120 minutes
Margin calculation and risk management questions are frequent
0.25 negative marking applies be cautious
Passing score is only 50% here pressure is lower than other exams
Scoring warning
The pass mark is simple. The paper is not.
Because this paper has negative marking, precision matters more than speed. Attempt the sure questions first, then return to calculations and close-call options.
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