Build story · India · 2010–2023
Zerodha: ₹20 trades and no outside investors
Nithin and Nikhil Kamath launched a flat-fee discount broker, made long-term equity investing free of brokerage, built its own trading platform, and became India's largest broker without venture capital.
By Shivam Bhandari · Reviewed 31 October 2026 · How we write
by the numbers
- Founded
- 2010
- Fee per intraday or F&O trade
- flat ₹20
- Equity delivery brokerage
- zero (from 2015)
- Net profit (FY2023)
- about ₹2,900 crore
What happened
In 2010 most Indian brokers charged a percentage of each trade and pushed customers to trade often. Nithin Kamath, a trader, and his brother Nikhil launched Zerodha with a flat ₹20 fee per trade, and from 2015 zero brokerage on equity delivery (long-term investing).
Zerodha built its own trading platform, Kite, and invested in free education through Zerodha Varsity, attracting young first-time investors. It spent little on advertising, relying on word of mouth, and grew without outside funding.
Zerodha became India's largest broker by active clients around 2019 and remained highly profitable, reporting net profit of about ₹2,900 crore in FY2023. Later, rivals adopted similar pricing.
Timeline
- 2010
Zerodha launches.
- 2015
Zero brokerage on delivery; Kite platform.
- 2019
Becomes India's largest broker by active clients.
what made it work
- Radically simple, transparent pricing.
- Own technology kept costs low.
- Education built trust and loyalty.
- Profitable from early on, so no investors needed.
the lesson
Transparent, low pricing combined with your own technology and free education can disrupt an established industry profitably.
Apply it to your business
- 1Simplify pricing your customers find confusing.
- 2Invest in content that educates customers.
- 3Grow profitably to keep control.
Laws at work in this story
Figures are rounded and drawn from public reports, company filings and widely cited coverage at the time. Check the company's latest filings before relying on any number.