Synopsis

NSE has partnered with Augmont Enterprises to expand the Electronic Gold Receipts (EGR) ecosystem, aiming to unlock India's vast household gold holdings. The initiative seeks to improve liquidity, enable exchange-traded ownership of physical gold, reduce import dependence and create a transparent, SEBI-regulated marketplace for the precious metal.

Listen to this article in summarized format

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has entered into a strategic partnership with integrated gold platform Augmont Enterprises to drive the adoption of Electronic Gold Receipts (EGRs)—a SEBI-regulated instrument that converts physical gold into dematerialised securities.

The collaboration seeks to unlock the economic value of India's estimated 30,000-35,000 tonnes of household gold by enabling it to be traded, pledged, redeemed and lent through an exchange-regulated platform. Industry executives believe the initiative could create a formal marketplace for physical gold while improving liquidity and reducing the country's reliance on imports.

India imported a record $71.98 billion worth of gold in FY26, accounting for 9.2% of the country's total merchandise imports. Market participants say wider adoption of EGRs could help channel domestically held gold to jewellery manufacturers through the Securities Lending and Borrowing (SLB) mechanism, easing pressure on the import bill and current account deficit.

As part of the tie-up, Augmont will deploy its ecosystem spanning 4.2 crore registered users, nearly 5,000 jewellers on its SPOT platform, over 4,600 retail touchpoints and 80-plus Gold For All stores to support EGR creation, redemption, delivery, liquidity and price discovery.

The company is also an India Good Delivery-accredited refiner and an authorised participant for gold ETFs, positioning it to bridge the ETF and EGR ecosystems.

"The NSE EGR framework has been created to establish a transparent, efficient and exchange-regulated marketplace for physical gold in India. As more participants join the ecosystem, the market will benefit from improved liquidity, greater standardisation and wider investor participation," said Sriram Krishnan, Chief Business Development Officer, NSE.

Electronic Gold Receipts represent ownership of physical gold stored in exchange-approved vaults and held in investors' demat accounts. Unlike traditional forms of gold ownership, EGR holders can trade the receipts on the exchange, redeem them for physical gold, pledge them as collateral or lend them to jewellery manufacturers while retaining exposure to gold prices.

"EGRs will change the way Indians deal with physical gold. Combining the best of ETFs and digital gold, they bring together the commodity, currency and financial asset dimensions of gold in a single instrument," said Ketan Kothari, Whole-time Director, Augmont Enterprises.

Industry bodies see EGRs as a structural shift for the bullion ecosystem. "EGRs offer something no blockchain-based gold product can—exchange-traded price discovery, guaranteed settlement, standardised quality and a lending mechanism that channels idle gold directly to manufacturers," said Surendra Mehta, National Secretary, India Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA). He said the framework has the potential to establish India as a global benchmark for organised gold trading.

The launch comes at a time when policymakers and the bullion industry are exploring ways to monetise India's vast household gold holdings and curb imports without imposing additional fiscal costs. If adopted at scale, EGRs could provide a market-driven alternative to previous gold monetisation initiatives by allowing households to earn returns on idle gold while retaining ownership and benefiting from price appreciation.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

...moreless

...moreless