Government channel

RBI Retail Direct

RBI Retail Direct is the no fee route to government securities: no account charge, no bidding fee, and holdings sit in a gilt account with RBI rather than a broker's demat. The trade-offs are no corporate bonds, a secondary market limited to NDS-OM's odd lot and RFQ segments, and payment gateway charges you bear yourself.

Verified 17th Oct 2026

RBI Retail Direct official site We earn nothing from this link.

Key facts

Run by: Reserve Bank of India; grievances go to RBI's Public Debt Office, Mumbai source
Launched: Announced 12th Jul 2021 (Press Release 2021-2022/518); mobile app from May 2024 source
What you can buy: Primary: T-bills, dated G-secs, SDLs and SGBs, non-competitive, one bid per security. Secondary: NDS-OM odd lot and RFQ segments. No corporate bonds source
Fees: No fee to open or maintain the account and no fee on primary bids; payment gateway charges are borne by the investor source
Minimum: ₹10,000 and multiples; a ₹25,000 minimum was separately reported for the T-bill auto-bid feature (unverified against RBI) reported source
Maximum: ₹2 crore; secondary sources differ on whether that is per bid or per security reported source
Bid windows: Not verified: RBI Retail Direct's FAQ is rendered by JavaScript and could not be read source
Auto-bidding: T-bill auto-bidding for investment and reinvestment since 6th Aug 2025, set by tenor, amount and frequency; needs a NACH mandate source
Where your securities sit: Retail Direct Gilt (RDG) account with RBI, single or joint; nomination up to two, pledge or lien, and gifting to other Retail Direct investors source
Selling before maturity: On NDS-OM odd lot and RFQ segments; proceeds go to the linked bank account. Trading hours and liquidity data not verified source
Tax: Interest at slab rate; T-bill gains treated as short-term capital gains at slab. TDS on G-sec interest not confirmed from a primary source reported source
NRI access: Non-residents eligible under FEMA 1999 can participate source
What you need: Rupee savings account in India, PAN, a KYC document, email and mobile number source
Support: Toll free 1800-267-7955, 10 am to 7 pm reported source
Accounts opened: Not found for 2026 source

Sells: G-secsT-billsSDLsSGBs

Suits

T-bill and G-sec buyers who want to pay no fee
Holding government securities directly with RBI rather than in a demat
Automating T-bill rollovers
Eligible NRIs who want government securities

Watch out for

No corporate bonds
Selling depends on NDS-OM odd lot liquidity
Payment gateway charges are yours to bear
Securities cannot be moved from RDG to a demat, per a 2023 forum answer

What can you buy on RBI Retail Direct?

T-bills, dated G-secs, SDLs and SGBs. RBI Retail Direct takes non-competitive bids in primary auctions, one bid per security, paid by net banking or UPI, and lets you buy and sell on NDS-OM's odd lot and request for quote segments (RBI press release). It does not offer corporate bonds; for those see how to buy bonds in India.

SGBs are a primary product on paper only. No new tranche has been issued since Series IV of 2023-24 in Feb 2024, and in Feb 2025 the Finance Minister signalled the scheme was being discontinued because of its borrowing cost (Outlook Money). Whether RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds can be bought on Retail Direct was not verified; see RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds.

Does RBI Retail Direct charge any fee?

No. RBI charges nothing to open or keep the account and no aggregator fee on primary bids; the only cost is any payment gateway charge on your payment (RBI press release). Broker routes for the same bid split between free and 0.06% plus GST:

Route	Fee on a primary G-sec, T-bill or SDL bid
RBI Retail Direct	₹0 (payment gateway charges extra)
Zerodha	₹0 since 1st Mar 2024
Fyers	₹0
Upstox	0.06% of allotment plus 18% GST
HDFC Sky	0.06% (6 paise per ₹100) plus GST

On a ₹1 lakh T-bill allotment the 0.06% route costs ₹70.80 with GST. Sources: Zerodha staff on TradingQnA; Fyers; Upstox; HDFC Securities. More in where to buy G-secs and T-bills without a fee.

How do you buy T-bills on RBI Retail Direct, and what yield do you get?

You place a non-competitive bid before the auction and are allotted at the weighted average price that the competitive bidders set, so you get the auction's average yield, not a yield you choose (NSE). The minimum is reported as ₹10,000 and multiples (Outlook Money).

Since 6th Aug 2025 you can also set T-bill auto-bids for fresh investment and reinvestment, with rules for tenor, amount and frequency (Business Standard). Auto-bidding needs a valid NACH mandate on your bank account (Angel One explainer). Outlook Money reported a ₹25,000 minimum for this feature, which we have not been able to confirm with RBI (Outlook Money).

The full walk-through is in how do I buy T-bills and what yield will I get.

Can you sell G-secs bought on RBI Retail Direct before maturity?

Yes, on NDS-OM's odd lot and RFQ segments, with proceeds paid to your linked bank account (RBI press release). RBI does not publish odd lot liquidity data for retail sellers, and we could not verify the segment's trading hours.

Moving them to a broker to sell there may not be an option. In a 2023 TradingQnA AMA, the answer was that transfers from a demat into a Retail Direct Gilt account are allowed but transfers out of RDG into a demat are not; that rule was not re-verified for 2026 (TradingQnA). One Retail Direct T-bill investor summed up the experience on Reddit in Nov 2024: "Overall, it's been underwhelming." (Reddit).

If selling before maturity matters to you, read can I sell a bond before maturity.

How is RBI Retail Direct different from buying through a broker?

The difference is where the securities sit and how you sell. Retail Direct holds them in a gilt account with RBI and sells on NDS-OM; a broker holds them in your demat next to your shares and sells on the exchange, where G-secs trade at the dirty price including accrued interest (NSE circulars).

	RBI Retail Direct	Broker (e.g. Zerodha)
Bid fee	₹0	₹0 to 0.06% plus GST, by broker
Where held	RDG account with RBI	Your demat
Corporate bonds	No	Exchange order book, and RFQ at enabled OBPPs
Selling	NDS-OM odd lot or RFQ	Exchange order book
Pledge	Pledge or lien supported	Depends on the broker's pledge list

The side by side is in RBI Retail Direct vs Zerodha and RBI Retail Direct or my broker.

Can NRIs open an RBI Retail Direct account?

Yes, if they are eligible to invest in government securities under FEMA 1999 (RBI press release). Every account needs a rupee savings account in India, PAN, a KYC document, an email address and a mobile number. For other routes open to non-residents, see can NRIs buy bonds in India and bond platforms for NRI investors.

Questions people ask

Is RBI Retail Direct free?

Yes. There is no fee to open or maintain the account and no fee on primary bids. You bear any payment gateway charges.

Can I buy corporate bonds on RBI Retail Direct?

No. It covers T-bills, dated G-secs, SDLs and SGBs only.

What is the minimum investment on RBI Retail Direct?

₹10,000 and multiples, as reported by Outlook Money. A ₹25,000 minimum was separately reported for T-bill auto-bidding; we could not confirm it with RBI.

Can I move G-secs from RBI Retail Direct to my demat?

Per a 2023 TradingQnA answer, no: transfers into a Retail Direct Gilt account from a demat are allowed, but not out of it. The rule was not re-verified for 2026.

Does RBI Retail Direct have an app?

Yes. RBI launched a mobile app in May 2024, and T-bill auto-bidding was added on 6th Aug 2025.