For any fintech startup aiming to build stock market software or launch innovative stock trading platforms in India, one of the biggest technical challenges is obtaining legal access to exchange data. This guide explains data types, sources, compliance, costs and a practical licensing roadmap.
Contents
- Introduction
- Why Exchange-Data Licensing Matters in India
- Types of Stock Market Data You May Need
- Sources of Legal Exchange Data in India
- Licensing Costs: What Fintech Startups Should Expect
- Compliance Requirements for Fintech Startups
- How Fintech Startups Should Begin the Licensing Journey
- Start Building Your Share Market Software
- Conclusion
- FAQs
Introduction
Building any stock market software in India requires strict compliance with exchange-data licensing laws. NSE, BSE and MCX hold rights to price, quote and depth data. Using or displaying this data without permission can expose startups to legal risk. This article explains why licensing matters, the types of stock market data available, legal sources of data and a step-by-step path for startups.
Why Exchange-Data Licensing Matters in India
When you develop equities trading software or stock market programs, access to accurate and legal market data is mandatory. This includes real-time prices, bid/ask quotes, market depth, historical OHLC datasets, volume and index values. Since exchanges own this data, they enforce rules on access, display and redistribution. Displaying live NSE/BSE data without a license in your stock market software is illegal and may result in penalties, suspension or loss of trust.
- Risks of non-compliance: legal notices, monetary penalties, platform suspension, integration problems with brokers, and reputational damage.
Types of Stock Market Data You May Need
Understanding data categories helps startups choose the right license and avoid paying for unnecessary data.
Real-Time Data for stock market software
Updated every second — required for trading dashboards, live charts and high-frequency systems. Real-time feeds are typically the most expensive licenses due to low latency and commercial value.
Delayed Data for stock market software
Delayed data (commonly 15 minutes) is widely used for educational platforms, research tools and low-cost analytics. Many startups start with delayed data to reduce cost while validating product-market fit.
EOD Data for stock market software
End-Of-Day (EOD) data delivers daily OHLC values after market close. EOD datasets are used for technical analysis, pattern research and budget-friendly share market software.
Historical Data for stock market software
Historical price and volume datasets power backtesting, AI/ML trading strategies and research-driven equities platforms. Historical data often carries separate pricing or one-time purchase fees.
Sources of Legal Exchange Data in India
Fintech startups can obtain exchange-approved data through two main channels: direct exchange licensing or authorized data vendors.
Direct Exchange Licensing for stock market software
Apply directly to NSE, BSE or MCX for feed access. Direct exchange licensing is recommended if your platform needs ultra-low latency, full market depth and order-level information. It is costly and approval may take several weeks.
Authorized Data Vendors for stock market software
Licensed third-party vendors aggregate exchange feeds and provide developer-friendly APIs for real-time quotes, EOD datasets, option chains, market depth and historical archives. Vendors are ideal for MVPs and startups that need speed-to-market combined with compliance.
Licensing Costs: What Fintech Startups Should Expect
Exchange fees typically fall into predictable categories you must budget for.
- Data feed subscription charges
- Display fees per user or per view
- Non-display usage fees (analytics / ML processing)
- Redistribution or resale fees
- Historical data one-time purchase costs
Tip: Early budgeting for these line items prevents unpleasant surprises during product development.
Compliance Requirements for Fintech Startups
Exchanges often require operational, security and reporting controls as part of any license.
- User KYC verification and audit trails
- Usage reporting and data-access logs
- Security audits and penetration testing
- Restrictions on storing raw feed data
- Dedicated non-display usage logs for ML/analytics
Non-compliance can lead to revocation of data rights, penalties or forced shutdown of the affected features in your stock trading platform.
How Fintech Startups Should Begin the Licensing Journey
A pragmatic, staged approach reduces cost and time-to-market for early-stage startups.
Step 1: Identify the Right Data
Decide whether your product needs real-time quotes, delayed feeds or only EOD/historical data. This defines licensing category and cost.
Step 2: Start with Delayed or EOD Data
Use delayed/EOD data to build an MVP quickly and validate product-market fit before investing in real-time feeds.
Step 3: Choose a Licensed API Vendor
Select an authorized vendor to get compliant APIs, faster integration and lower initial costs compared with direct exchange feeds.
Step 4: Upgrade to Direct Licensing
Move to direct exchange feeds when your user base and product requirements demand ultra-low latency or full market depth access.
Step 5: Consult a Compliance Expert
For redistribution, resale or complex use-cases (analytics/ML), engage a legal/compliance specialist early to avoid license breaches.
Start Building Your Share Market Software
Design architecture that separates display, non-display and analytics pipelines to simplify licensing and security. If you need help with architecture, vendor selection or a licensing checklist, engage an expert early to shorten time-to-market.
Conclusion
Understanding exchange-data licensing is essential for launching compliant fintech products in India. Whether you’re building share market software, analytics dashboards or complex stock market programs, the right licensing approach reduces legal risk and enables sustainable growth.
Thank you for reading.
FAQs
Q1) Can I use publicly available websites to extract stock price data?
Ans: No. Scraping financial websites typically violates exchange licensing rules and can result in legal action, takedown notices or penalties. Always source data from an exchange or an authorized vendor.
Q2) Do I need a license for delayed stock data?
Ans: Yes. Even delayed data (for example, a 15-minute delay) requires an official license or access through an authorized vendor.
Q3) Can I build a trading platform without real-time data?
Ans: Yes. You can build demo or testing environments with delayed or static data. However, real end users and traders usually expect real-time pricing for active trading platforms.
Partha Ghosh is the Digital Marketing Strategist and Team Lead at PiTangent Analytics and Technology Solutions. He partners with product and sales to grow organic demand and brand trust. A 3X Salesforce certified Marketing Cloud Administrator and Pardot Specialist, Partha is an automation expert who turns strategy into simple repeatable programs. His focus areas include thought leadership, team management, branding, project management, and data-driven marketing. For strategic discussions on go-to-market, automation at scale, and organic growth, connect with Partha on LinkedIn.
