What’s new at Zerodha: 2024

Happy New Year!!

As we begin 2025, we wanted to take a moment to look back at what we have been up to in 2024. At Zerodha, our goal has always been to make trading and investing simpler and more accessible for everyone, and last year was no exception.

Free account opening

In 2024, we made account opening free for all resident individuals. When we started Zerodha, we consciously decided to charge an account opening fee as there was no Aadhaar or eSign until 2016–17. Account opening was completely offline, which meant there was a cost involved. So we had to charge an account opening fee to cover the cost.

However, things have changed over the years with fully digital onboarding, etc., so we decided to make account opening free.

Online minor account opening

Helping parents save and invest in a simple and easy way for their kids’ future has long been on our to-do list. In 2024, we made it possible to open an account for your kid entirely online and invest in stocks, mutual funds, and bonds together with them.

Alert Triggers Order (ATO)

The Alert Triggers Order (ATO) feature on Kite allows you to easily link orders to an alert, which are automatically placed on the exchange once the alert is triggered. This saves you time and ensures you don’t miss out on trading opportunities. Read more.

Margin Trading Facility (MTF)

MTF was the most frequent feature request we’ve received over the years. MTF allows you to trade using leverage. With it, you can buy stocks for delivery even without requiring full funds. Depending on the stock, you can borrow up to 80% of the trade value at an interest rate of 0.04% per day. Read more.

Simplified order window

We’ve introduced a new simplified order window on Kite with which you can buy and sell anything in just 2 clicks. All you need to enter is the amount you want to invest or the number of shares you want to buy.

For example, if you want to buy ₹10,000 worth of RELIANCE quickly, you can just type ₹10,000 instead of calculating the quantity. In the F&O segment, you can toggle between quantity and lots, eliminating the need to calculate anything manually when trading large quantities.

Notes on Kite marketwatch

If you are tracking multiple stocks and F&O contracts on your marketwatch, it can be hard to remember all the reasons why. We introduced a Notes feature to help you add a quick note right in your marketwatch.

Single ledger facility

With the single ledger facility, you can now trade in both equity and commodity (MCX and NSE Commodity) segments with the same funds, without having to transfer funds separately. Learn more.

New Fundamentals widget on Kite

The fundamentals widget on Kite got a whole lot better. The new widget, powered by Tijori, gives you a quick fundamental snapshot of stocks, ETFs, and indices across metrics such as valuations, revenue breakdowns, financials, shareholding patterns, and more. Check out more here.

Privacy mode

Privacy mode on Kite hides sensitive financial information on the Dashboard, Holdings, Positions, and Funds page. This feature ensures that financial details remain confidential while using Kite in public or during a screen-sharing session.

Instant withdrawals

With instant withdrawals, you can instantly withdraw up to ₹100,000 from your Zerodha account, even on the weekends 😀

Portfolio and scripwise XIRR on Console

When measuring your investment returns, simple returns do not provide an accurate measure for investments held over longer periods involving multiple transactions.

In such cases, XIRR (Extended Internal Rate of Return), acts as a much better measure of performance as it accounts for cash flows at irregular intervals; making it easier to compare returns across different investment options.

On Console, we have made XIRR available for individual investments (stocks, ETFs, mutual funds) as well as the entire portfolio as a whole.

In-app UPI experience on the Coin app

In the Coin app, we introduced a new payment flow for UPI transactions, which makes payments much easier. The in-app UPI feature in the Coin app enables investors to make payments for mutual fund investments without switching to external apps.

UPI autopay for SIP

We have made it easier to automate Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs) using UPI autopay on Coin.

Systematic Transfer Plan (STP)

STP allows you to set up automatic transfers from one mutual fund to another, making it easier to manage your investments.

Typically, STP allows transfers only within funds managed by the same Asset Management Company or AMC. However, on Coin, we have made it possible to set up STP across funds from different AMCs, giving you more flexibility. Learn more.

National Pension Scheme (NPS)

NPS is a brilliant option for saving for your retirement as it forces you to invest in a diversified portfolio of equities and debt by default. It’s also one of the cheapest investment options out there and tax-efficient. Since NPS is a product aimed at helping people prepare for retirement, it comes with a lock-in, so it forces you to be disciplined. Read more.

Mutual fund investments for minor and NRE accounts

If you have a minor account in your child’s name, you can directly invest in mutual funds from their account. Read more.

We have also made it possible for Non-Resident External (NRE) account holders to invest in mutual funds on Coin.

Updates on educational initiatives

Varsity Live

While we’ve solved the problem of providing high-quality and free content for everyone, the one problem that remained was an interactive learning experience. Maybe this is partly why people pay for scammy seminars. So, we figured we might as well do something about it.

Varsity Live makes your learning experience about financial markets interactive. Instead of just listening to experts, you can learn by doing with them. For instance, you can apply indicators while learning about technical analysis, or analyze a balance sheet while learning about fundamental analysis. Check out Varsity Live.

Personal finance in Indian Sign Language

We’ve launched a personal finance playlist on YouTube in Indian Sign Language to promote financial literacy within the deaf and mute community. Watch on YouTube.

Varsity personal finance course on the Karmayogi platform

Varsity’s personal finance video module is now available on the Karmayogi platform. It is a government-backed platform that provides continuous learning and development resources to civil service officials to help them enhance their skills.

Varsity community meet-up

For the first time last year, we hosted Varsity community meet-ups in Visakhapatnam and Bengaluru. We will be doing more such in-person events savings, investments, markets, and more going forward.

Varsity Finance Quiz

To spark curiosity and foster an interest in finance among college students, we introduced the Varsity Finance Quiz in collaboration with Qshala. We’ve started with colleges in Bangalore and plan to bring it to Mumbai in January 2025.

Side Notes

A new podcast series where we provide byte-sized lessons on investment strategy, financial metrics, business decisions, and market phenomena. You can listen to it on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

National Pension Scheme module

The 17th module on Zerodha Varsity covers all the nuances of investing in the National Pension Scheme, a voluntary retirement scheme for all Indians. Read it here.

Closing the year on a high note, Zerodha Varsity won the IFTA 2024 Award for the Best Initiative for Financial Literacy. The award ceremony was hosted by the India FinTech Forum to honor various businesses and initiatives in the fields of finance and fintech.

Markets by Zerodha

Last year, we launched Markets by Zerodha with the aim of simplifying the latest developments in markets and the economy. Our first show, The Daily Brief, has quickly become one of India’s most popular daily podcasts and newsletters. And is now also available in Hindi and Kannada.

Along with a daily podcast, we’ve also launched several other initiatives.

The Big Perspective

An interview series where we talk to some of the smartest people in the markets about the big trends shaping the markets and the economy.

The World, Simplified

Where we discuss some of the biggest developments in finance and economics that are shaping our world.

Who said what

Exploring deeper meanings behind statements from industry leaders and policymakers.

Beyond The Charts

Where we dive into fascinating charts from the world of finance and the economy, breaking down what’s happening.

It’s the economy, stupid!

Break down complex economic trends into simple, understandable insights.

Aftermarket report

A newsletter where we do a quick daily wrap-up of what happened in the markets—both in India and globally.

Instant market alerts on X (Twitter)

Numerous companies make business-related announcements every day. However, not all of them are significant. To help you stay informed, we’ve launched a new X (Twitter) account:
@marketalertsz. Get instant summaries of key exchange filings as soon as they happen. These alerts are delivered in real-time by Tijori.

Zero1

On Zero1, we continue to publish a lot of insightful videos for young Indians on investing, personal finance, careers, and more. We’re also expanding Zero1 by building new channels for different niches and audiences.

Zero1 Women

A women-centric channel, where we explore careers, money psychology, and more. Starting with Girl Boss, featuring Sahiba Bali, showcasing successful women—comedians, actors, directors, and business leaders—sharing their unique money stories.

Zero1 Network

Where we support creators who are trying to create high-quality, in-depth content in finance, business, climate, career, and health. We bear their creation and logistical costs so they can focus on what they do best. Create high-quality, valuable content. Check it out.

U25 Summit at Campus

We launched The Summit at Campus in partnership with Under 25, with a mission to empower students across India to take control of their personal and professional growth.

Updates on Rainmatter

Through Rainmatter Investments, we continue supporting and partnering with driven founders and builders in wealth/investing, health, sustainability, and storytelling. Check out all of our recent investments here.

Updates on Zerodha fund house

After launching the Zerodha Nifty LargeMidcap 250 Index and ELSS funds in 2023. We launched a liquid ETF, gold ETF, and ETFs focusing on Nifty 100 and Nifty Midcap 150 indices.

Liquid ETF (LIQUIDCASE)

This is India’s first liquid ETF with a growth NAV. All the existing liquid ETFs have a constant NAV, and the returns are in the form of dividends. The problem is that these dividends are in the form of fractional units and are hard to sell, which also makes calculating your investment returns difficult. Also, the existing liquid ETFs are relatively tax-inefficient compared to the Zerodha Liquid ETF.

Gold ETF (GOLDCASE)

This ETF is a low-cost option for exposure to gold.

Nifty 100 (TOP100CASE) and Nifty Midcap150 (MID150CASE) ETFs

These ETFs give you low-cost exposure to the top 100 large-cap companies and the top 150 mid-cap companies. You can now build a diversified portfolio with just Zerodha ETFs.

Loan against Securities (Zerodha Capital)

Our loan book has been scaling up steadily since we started full-fledged operations last year, and it sits at around Rs. 375 crores. We’ve also added more mutual funds to the approved list of securities to avail of a loan. You will be able to select securities across ~1200 scrips.

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Happy trading and investing.