'₹6 lakh crore runs on...': Nithin Kamath’s secret sauce is brewing in Bengaluru's JP Nagar

Zerodha co-founder Nithin Kamath recently reminded followers that India’s most trusted retail broking firm — with nearly ₹6 lakh crore in assets and 15% of daily retail trading volumes — is built entirely on Free and Open-Source Software (FOSS). 

And not just built on it — Zerodha is one of the biggest supporters of open-source ecosystems globally, both in terms of code and capital.

In a post on X, Kamath revealed that Zerodha’s entire tech stack runs on open-source infrastructure. The company hasn’t just passively used FOSS—it has actively contributed to it over the years. This includes contributions of money, time, and code to global projects, along with a recently launched $1 million annual fund to support critical FOSS work worldwide.

But the commitment doesn’t end there. Zerodha has also open-sourced several of its in-house technologies—tools that are now used by universities, enterprises, and even governments around the world.

All this activity traces back to one address: 4th Cross, JP Nagar, Bengaluru. This is where Zerodha’s HQ is located, and according to Kamath, it’s not just the nerve centre of India’s largest brokerage—it’s also a “hotbed of FOSS activity.”

Led by Kailash Nadh, Zerodha’s CTO and a well-known FOSS advocate, the company has proven that open-source software can power enterprise-grade innovation at scale.

The company also supports India’s broader open-source ecosystem through FOSS United Foundation, while its Rainmatter initiative incubates startups that often build on open technologies. This dual impact—on finance and FOSS—is what makes this address truly unique.