'By April or May': Zerodha's Somnath Mukherjee on offering US stocks via Gift IFSC

Somnath Mukherjee, Vice President at Zerodha, on Friday said his brokerage may offer its customers the option to invest in US stocks via GIFT IFSC, likely by April or May. Speaking at GSMC 2.0, Mukherjee said his brokerage had been tracking the space for a long time, but a few issues were pain points. He noted that in 2025, IFSCA introduced licences that allowed brokerages like his to partner with global brokers. He added that many banks now offer Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) remittances online.

A broker dealer, who wants to undertake activities as a global access provider (GPA) in Gift ISFC, needs to obtain authorisation from the IFSCA. Mukherjee noted that his brokerage does not have licence so far. "Its up to us now, people with distribution on how we go about it. Wealthier people always had access through wealth arms but it was retail who did not have access to this till now," Mukherjee said.

Mukherjee said it has become more important for retail investors not to keep all eggs in one basket. He said his brokerage would not just offer support at around the product but also compliance support. Its about the last-mile delivery that players like Zerodha can solve, he said.

He highlighted need for creating content, communicate investors why diversification is necessary, given the way the world is moving. 

A broker dealer who does not have any direct relationship with a foreign broker is considered as an ‘introducing broker' and a broker dealer which has a direct relationship with a foreign broker for providing access to global markets is considered as a ‘global access provider’. A global access provider or an introducing broker may onboard clients directly or through a referral arrangement with an entity based in India, IFSC or a foreign jurisdiction.