Bonds

Corporate bonds (listed)

Exchange-listed company debt — credit spread over G-secs.

What it is

Listed debentures of companies, bought through a broker into demat and tradeable on the exchanges. Coupon and principal depend on the issuer paying.

Min ticket: Rs.10,000 face for most new NCDs (older issues vary) · Held in demat

How to buy it

Buy in primary NCD issues or in the secondary market via your broker.
Check rating, interest cover, and whether the paper is secured.
Held over 12 months, listed-bond gains are LTCG at 12.5% without indexation.

Costs

Brokerage + exchange charges on secondary trades
Bid-ask spreads widen fast below AA

Liquidity

Listed but uneven: quotes and spreads depend on the issue, rating and market depth.

Regulation

SEBI NCS rules; NSE Clearing and exchanges for listed secondary settlement.

Risks that bite

Default risk — coupons and principal are promises
Downgrade + liquidity risk

Estimate the tax first →

Compare listed vs unlisted corporate-bond tax →

Tax FAQ

How is Corporate bonds (listed) taxed?

Interest is taxed at your slab. Transfer or redemption gains follow the post-23-Jul-2024 rules: listed paper held over 12 months is LTCG at 12.5% without indexation, short-term gains join income at slab, and unlisted bonds are always deemed short-term under section 50AA.

Educational, not advisory — and never a quote. LetsInvest is a research publication, not a SEBI-registered investment adviser, and we run no bond-price or yield feed. YTM, ladder and tax outputs are illustrations of numbers you enter. Confirm anything that matters on RBI Retail Direct or the issuer's offer document before you act.

Sources

Reviewed 24 Sept 2026. Yields move — the RBI portal, CCIL and the tax department are the authority, and this hub links straight to them.

SEBI - Issue and Listing of Non-Convertible Securities Regulations, 2021 (last amended 21 Jan 2026)SEBI framework for the issue and listing of non-convertible securities, including NCDs.
NSE Clearing - Corporate bond settlementExchange-reported corporate-bond trades settle in demat through NSE Clearing's CBRICS, RFQ or CCIL routes.
CBDT - FAQs on the new capital-gains regime (PIB, 24 Jul 2024, PRID 2036604)Two holding periods since 23 Jul 2024 (12 months listed, 24 months other); other-LTCG at 12.5% without indexation.
Income Tax Department - Tax on sale of debentures (as amended by Finance Act, 2026)Post-23-Jul-2024 holding table (listed debentures/G-secs: 12 months; unlisted: deemed STCG).
Income Tax Department - Section 50AA (special provision for specified securities)Unlisted bonds/debentures transferred, redeemed or matured on/after 23 Jul 2024 are deemed short-term.