GenNext's D-Street trades book big profits for brokers

Mumbai: India's stockbroking firms, which added a huge number of clients through the pandemic months, continued their solid operational and financial performance in the December quarter as well.

Revenues of India's top broking firms have risen between 25% and 95%, while profits jumped between 25% and 125%. Acquiring many young clients across the country helped most brokerages report solid gains, they said.

ICICI Securities has reported a 52% year-on-year jump in revenues at ₹942 crore in the December 2021 quarter, while its net profits surged 42% to ₹380 crore. Equities and allied business of ICICI Securities rose 36% year-on-year to ₹596 crore in the December 2021 quarter. The firm has added nearly 680,000 new clients, the highest ever addition in a quarter.

Vijay Chandok, CEO, ICICI Securities said about 68% of customers acquired during the quarter are under 30 years of age, and 87% are from tier-II and below towns.

Angel One has reported 95% growth in revenues to ₹597 crore and a 126% jump in net profits at ₹165 crore for the December quarter. The company witnessed gross addition in client base by 1.34 million in the quarter.

Axis Securities' broking revenues for the December quarter grew 58% year-on-year to ₹175 crore, and net profit was up 29% to ₹57 crore.

Strong retail participation through direct equity investment has led to solid growth in the broking business, said market participants.

"The number of demat accounts opened in the last few months is a clear reflection of the growth in the Indian stock market," said B Gopkumar, CEO, Axis Securities. "Rising retail participation in equity trading and growth across the segments like broking, distribution, wealth management, and fundraising contributed the most for topline as well as bottom-line growth in the broking industry."

The sudden surge in retail investor participation in Indian equities started in late March 2020, when the central government first shut down the country to battle Covid-19. Battling income and job losses, many individuals began trading in stocks with a buoyant equity market helping their cause.