The historic crash in the prices of gold and silver caused a flurry in the commodity markets and brought the focus on the margin calculation. The CME Group has revised its margin requirements, while MCX has increased the upper cap limit per member.
Here are all the details you should know.
MCX margin revisions for gold and silver
On the domestic front, the MCX Group, in a circular dated January 31, 2026, informed the exchanges that the revised structure for gold bullion, with a 20% margin, now has an upper cap of Rs 400 crores per member.
On January 16, 2026, the upper cap for gold bullion stood at Rs 200 crore.
For silver, the margin is at 25%, with the upper cap of Rs 400 crore. On January 16, the upper cap stood at Rs 200 crore.
However, the margins and upper cap for non-bullion aluminium, copper, lead, and zinc remain the same.
The revisions will come into effect from today, February 1, 2026.
Also, in a separate circular, MCX said, “Additional margin of 1% levied in Gold Near Month Futures contract (all variants) and 4.50% levied in Silver Near Month Futures contract (all variants) shall be withdrawn from the trade date February 1, 2026.”
CME Group hikes margins for precious metals
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME Group) increased the margin requirements for the futures contracts of gold and silver. These hikes will come into effect from Monday, February 2, 2026.
For non-heightened risk profiles, gold futures margins have been increased to 8% from the present 6%. For heightened risk profiles, the margins have been raised to 8.8% from the present 6.6%.
Silver futures margin requirements for non-heightened risk profiles have been increased to 15% from the current initial margin of 11%. For heightened risk profiles, the new initial margin for silver stands at 16.5%, up from the current 12.1%.
The margin requirements for futures contracts of platinum and palladium have also been increased. For non-heightened risk profiles, platinum futures margins will increase to 15% from the current 12%, while for heightened risk profiles, the initial margin has been raised to 16.5% from the current 13.2%.
As for palladium, for heightened risk profiles, the new margin requirements are at 17.6% from 15.4%, while for non-heightened risk profiles, the new initial margin is at 16% from the current 14%.