Central Depository Services (India) Limited (CDSL) has recommended a final dividend of ₹12.75 per equity share for the financial year ended March 2026, as approved by its Board of Directors at a meeting held on May 2, 2026. The announcement was followed by a separate board meeting on June 25, 2026, which addressed the appointment of a Non-Independent Director and fixed the date for the company's 28th Annual General Meeting.

Dividend Details

The declared dividend of ₹12.75 per share represents a 2% increase over the ₹12.5 per share paid in FY25. With CDSL's face value standing at ₹10 per share, this translates to a dividend payout of 127.5% on face value. Since market price data was not available in the exchange disclosure, investors should calculate the current dividend yield by dividing ₹12.75 by the prevailing market price at the time of the record date. Based on publicly available price references near the announcement period, the stock has traded across a wide 52-week range, making yield calculations sensitive to the entry price of individual investors.

Historical Dividend Trend

CDSL has demonstrated a consistent and largely upward dividend trajectory over the past decade. The per-share payouts across years are as follows:

Excluding the one-time special dividend in FY24, the regular final dividend in that year was ₹19.00, which remains the highest in CDSL's disclosed history. The FY26 payout of ₹12.75 is notably lower than both the FY24 and FY23 payouts, suggesting a moderation in the payout quantum after the peak years of FY23 and FY24. However, it still marks the second consecutive year of sequential growth from the FY25 base of ₹12.50.

Company Background

CDSL is one of India's two SEBI-registered central securities depositories, holding a market infrastructure institution status. It facilitates the holding and transfer of securities in dematerialised form across millions of beneficial owner accounts. The company is listed on NSE under the symbol CDSL with ISIN INE736A01011. As a quasi-monopoly infrastructure player in the capital markets ecosystem, CDSL's revenues are closely tied to investor participation levels, account openings, and transaction volumes across exchanges.

What This Means for Investors

The steady dividend growth from ₹3.50 in FY18 to ₹12.75 in FY26 reflects a compounded annual growth rate of approximately 17.5% over eight years in per-share payouts, underscoring management's commitment to returning capital to shareholders. The moderation from the FY24 peak levels aligns with broader normalization in demat account opening activity after the post-pandemic surge. Investors holding CDSL for income should note that the FY26 dividend, while incrementally higher than FY25, remains well below the FY24 combined payout of ₹22.00. The June 25 board meeting also flagged the 28th AGM, at which shareholders are expected to formally ratify the dividend recommendation.