India’s leading brokerage houses capped FY26 with a strong March quarter performance, riding a rebound in retail trading activity, improved market volatility and operating leverage from digital-heavy models, even as the full-year picture remained uneven.
Among the key players, Groww, Angel One, HDFC Securities and Kotak Securities reported healthy year-on-year growth in the March quarter, a strong recovery from a relatively softer first half.
Bagging the bucks
Groww topped the chart, reporting a sharp jump in both revenue and profit for Q4, aided by strong client additions and improving operating leverage. The company said, “Operating leverage played out across all the cost buckets… margins will keep expanding as revenue increases faster than costs.” Its user base crossed 2.1 crore, with client assets rising 35 per cent on-year, underlining continued retail participation despite intermittent market volatility.
Angel One also posted strong earnings growth, with net profit at ₹320.2 crore and revenue at ₹1,467.2 crore for the quarter, driven by higher trading volumes, retail activity, improved realisations and digital-led operating leverage.
Zerodha, which is a key unlisted player in the discount broking space, had said last year that they expect around 40 per cent impact on FY26 revenue due to tightening of the futures and options segment.
HDFC Securities reported net profit of ₹268 crore and revenue of ₹850 crore in Q4, while its full-year profit declined to ₹930 crore, due to a subdued first half and higher employee costs. The brokerage continued to pivot towards a lean, digital-first model and grew its customer base by 2 lakh to 78 lakh in the previous quarter.
Kotak Securities, meanwhile, posted net profit of ₹400 crore for the quarter with stable full-year earnings, indicating resilience but limited growth amid competitive pressures and moderating trading intensity.
Mixed trend
Smaller and mid-tier brokers showed a mixed trend. 5paisa Capital reported quarterly revenue of ₹85.5 crore and profit of ₹10.8 crore, though full-year profit declined sharply, due to pressure on margins and lower activity earlier in the year. In contrast, Anand Rathi Share and Stock Brokers delivered strong growth, aided by a surge in margin trading funding, while SMC Global Securities reported a sharp jump in profits on a low base.
Industry-wide FY26 trends were shaped by fluctuations in retail participation, regulatory changes and a high base from previous years. Analysts said the March quarter recovery was largely driven by higher market volatility, which typically boosts trading volumes, alongside improving client engagement. However, the sustainability will depend on consistent inflows, product diversification and the ability to monetise a large but price-sensitive retail base.