India’s active demat accounts see modest decline in October

The total number of active demat accounts across India’s top brokers fell slightly in October 2025, reflecting a continued phase of consolidation following rapid growth during the post-pandemic retail boom.

NSE data shows the top 25 brokers collectively lost around 57,000 accounts last month, with total active accounts declining from 4.53 crore in September to 4.52 crore in October.

Digital-first platforms continued to dominate the retail broking space. Groww recorded the largest increase, adding 1.38 lakh active accounts, taking its total to 1.20 crore. In contrast, discount brokers Zerodha and Angel One saw declines of 62,000 and 34,000 accounts respectively, while Upstox lost nearly 59,000 accounts.

Traditional brokers reported mixed performance. SBI Caps and ICICI Securities gained 25,000 and 13,000 accounts respectively, while HDFC Securities, Kotak Securities, Motilal Oswal, and Sharekhan posted declines ranging between 10,000 and 25,000 accounts. Other notable gainers included Paytm (+29,935) and Sahi (+10,634).

Combined, Groww, Zerodha, and Angel One hold over 57% of active NSE demat accounts, with Groww alone accounting for roughly 26.6%. Analysts say the slowing decline in overall accounts from July through October indicates a stabilizing market after the rapid expansion seen during the pandemic years.