National Stock Exchange (NSE) has entered into a strategic partnership with Augmont Enterprises to drive the adoption of Electronic Gold Receipts (EGRs)—a SEBI-regulated instrument that converts physical gold into dematerialised securities. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, 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. As part of the tie-up, Augmont will deploy its 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. Ketan Kothari, Whole-time Director at Augmont Enterprises, said the company has already developed the required IT infrastructure and expects to list its EGRs in next three months, provided the GST issue is settled.
The partnership faces a critical regulatory hurdle as the industry has suggested the Government to refund the three per cent GST on gold deposited for EGR conversion and collect the same when the EGRs are converted back to physical gold again by investors. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, both Augmont and NSE have made representation with SEBI, RBI and the Government to defer GST collection on Gold marked for conversion into EGRs. Ketan Kothari indicated that the Government is expected to take a decision in two-three months as there will be no revenue loss for the Government. Surendra Mehta, National Secretary at India Bullion and Jewellers Association, noted that EGRs can be 100 times of what the tokenised gold market is today, offering 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.
The Electronic Gold Receipts instrument allows physical gold to be converted into exchange-traded securities held in investors' demat accounts, as reported by The Hindu BusinessLine. EGRs can be traded on the exchange, redeemed for physical gold and used for gold lending through the exchange framework. 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. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, Sriram Krishnan, Chief Business Development Officer at NSE, emphasised that the NSE EGR framework has been created to establish a transparent, efficient and exchange-regulated marketplace for physical gold in India, with improved liquidity, greater standardisation and wider investor participation as more participants join the ecosystem. Ketan Kothari said EGRs will change the way Indians deal with physical gold, combining the best of ETFs and digital gold in a single instrument.
India imported a record $71.98 billion worth of gold in FY26, accounting for 9.2% of the country's total merchandise imports, as reported by The Economic Times. Market participants believe 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. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, Gold depositors under EGR will retain full price exposure and can earn a return by lending their gold to jewellery manufacturers through NSE's Securities Lending and Borrowing platform. 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.
India is setting up the India International Bullion Exchange (IIBX) for the offshore market, while SEBI has already notified the framework for Electronic Gold Receipts (EGRs) for the domestic market, as reported by The Economic Times. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, India Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA) National Secretary Surendra Mehta noted that 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. Sriram Krishnan, Chief Business Development Officer at NSE, emphasised that the empanelment of refiners and participation of liquidity providers are key building blocks in developing a trusted and robust bullion market infrastructure. Ketan Kothari said EGRs have the potential to become India's UPI moment for gold, just as UPI transformed payments by bringing millions into a trusted digital ecosystem, EGRs can formalise India's vast household gold holdings by enabling them to be held, traded, lent and redeemed through a regulated exchange framework.
