MUMBAI: Retail investors in the Indian stock markets are surging, a recent report by National Stock Exchange (NSE), highlighted that around 37 lakh new retail investors joined NSE in September taking the total investor base to 10.37 crore.
This increase comes as the Nifty index also rose by nearly 3 per cent during the same period, highlighting a continued interest and confidence among investors in the stock markets.
August marked a landmark achievement with registered investors crossing 10 crore. Over the past few years, investor registrations at the NSE have been on a rapid growth trajectory, with more individuals exploring opportunities in the stock market.
According to the NSE report, “After crossing the 10 crore (100 million) mark in August, the investor base rose further to end the month of September at 10.37crore. Investor registrations at NSE have seen an accelerating trend over the last few years”
The report also highlighted that regionally, North India leads the way with a significant investor base of 3.7 crore, followed by West India at 3.2 crore. South India recorded 2.1 crore investors, and East India had a base of 1.2 crore investors by September.
Interestingly, North and East India reported the highest growth rates over the past year, with 34.9 per cent and 33 per cent increases, respectively, from September 2023 to September 2024. West and South India also saw solid growth, with annual increases of 24.3 per cent and 23.7 per cent.
As per the report among individual states, Maharashtra remains the frontrunner, with 1.7 crore investors, accounting for 16.7 per cent of NSE’s total investor base. Uttar Pradesh holds the second spot, having surpassed the 1 crore milestone in April.
By September, the state had around 1.2 crore investors, which represents 11.2 per cent of NSE’s total registered investors. Gujarat follows closely with 91.6 lakh investors, while West Bengal has 60.2 lakh, and Rajasthan has 59.4 lakh. Together, these five states contribute nearly half (48.2 per cent) of the total investor base as of September 2024.
Notably, states beyond the top 10 are also seeing increased participation in the stock market, now making up 27 per cent of the investor base compared to 23 per cent in FY2020.
This growth over the last four years can be partly attributed to rising contributions from states like Bihar and Assam, which reflect the expanding reach of stock market participation across the country. It said “This increase over the last four years is in part due to higher contributions from Bihar and Assam”. (ANI)