Margin is nothing more than the broker providing you more purchasing power than you have in your account. Many times, the terms "margin" and "exposure" are used interchangeably. If a broker is providing "2x exposure", that is the same as saying that the broker is providing "50% margin".

For example, assume that you have ₹10,000 in your trading account, and your broker is providing you 50% margin (2x exposure) on Futures. That means that if you wanted to place a trade worth ₹10,000, and the Exchange requires the full ₹10,000 from the broker, only 50% of the trade value (i.e.₹ 5,000) would be debited on the transaction. By the end of the trading day, however, you must exit your position.

Many brokers require a "minimum" or "initial" margin; this is nothing more than the minimum amount you must maintain in the trading account at all times. For example, a broker might require ₹10,000 in the initial margin; this means that you must have at least ₹ 10,000 in your trading account at all times.

Different levels of exposure can be provided by a broker to different segments of products. For example, a broker can provide 5x exposure on Equities, 2x exposure on Futures, and no exposure on Options.