Indian Stock Market Sees Active Client Additions Despite Volatility
Despite continued volatility and geopolitical tensions in Indian markets, discount brokerages saw an increase in active clients for the second straight month on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
The total number of active investors on the NSE rose by 3.56 lakh in February, compared with an increase of 3 lakh in January. Investors who have traded at least once in the past 12 months are considered active, according to the NSE.
Groww Leads Active Client Additions
Groww, the country’s largest broker by active investors, accounted for the bulk of the increase. The brokerage added about 2.66 lakh active clients in February, representing roughly 75 percent of the total additions among discount brokerages. In January as well, Groww had added about 3.5 lakh active investors, even as total additions across discount brokerages stood at around 3 lakh accounts during the month.
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Zerodha and Angel One See Modest Growth
Other brokerages saw more modest increases in active clients. Zerodha, the country’s largest broker by revenue, and Mumbai-based Angel One saw their active investor bases increase by about 10,000 each during the month.
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Decline in Active Investor Counts
However, over a longer period, some brokerages have seen declines in active investor counts. Bengaluru-based Zerodha has seen its active investor base decline by about 11 lakh over the past year, while Angel One saw its active investor base fall by around 10 lakh in 2025.
Among full-service brokers, ICICI Securities added about 29,830 investors in February, taking its total active investor base to 20.75 lakh.
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Stricter Regulatory Measures
The top broking firms collectively added nearly one crore new active investors in 2024, and the decline seen in 2025 represents a relatively small percentage of their overall user base.
Market participants attribute the slowdown in active client growth to stricter regulatory measures. These include tighter margin requirements, reduced weekly expiries, higher capital thresholds and increased taxation, which have made derivatives trading less attractive for retail investors.
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Impact on Brokerages
Mumbai-based discount broker Upstox saw its active client base decline by about 27,535, while HDFC Securities reported a decline of around 14,276 clients.
Brokerages including Motilal Oswal, IIFL Capital, 5Paisa Capital, Mirae Asset Capital, Choice Equity and PhonePe Wealth Broking also saw declines in active clients.
In contrast, Kotak Securities, SBI Securities, Raise Securities (formerly Moneylicious Securities), Paytm Money, Indstocks and Axis Securities reported an increase in active client additions during the month.
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