Indian Retail Investors Rush to US Stocks as Local Markets Underperform
Millions of Indian retail investors are gaining direct access to major U.S. companies like Nvidia, SpaceX, and Apple as domestic brokerages roll out new international trading features, CNBC reported. While local platforms race to capture surging retail demand, the outward capital shift arrives amid a sharp 13% drop in India’s benchmark Nifty 50 index and a record $32.5 billion in foreign equity outflows since January.
Groww and Zerodha Open U.S. Equity Trading
Major online investment platforms are rushing to bridge a gap that previously limited U.S. market access exclusively to wealthy clients via global banks. Groww, which accounts for over 29% of India’s 46 million active retail investors, launched its U.S. equity trading feature earlier this month, according to Harsh Jain, chief operating officer and co-founder of the company, speaking to CNBC. The platform currently provides access to more than 10,000 U.S. stocks, exchange-traded funds, and fractional share ownership. Nvidia, SpaceX, Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Micron, and Meta rank as the most popular choices among early users.
Zerodha, the second-largest trading platform with a 15% share of active clients according to National Stock Exchange data, has begun beta testing U.S. stock access and plans a full launch in the coming weeks, the company told CNBC. Another major brokerage, Angel One, with 6.7 million active retail clients, is also preparing to introduce U.S. stock trading.
Diverging Market Performance Drives Outflows
The retail push toward American equities coincides with severe underperformance in domestic markets. India’s benchmark Nifty 50 index has fallen nearly 13% since the start of the year, while the S&P 500 has climbed over 12%. Somnath Mukherjee, vice president of corporate development at Zerodha, noted that latent demand for global companies persists due to the lack of domestic artificial intelligence champions and expensive valuations at home, factors that have also driven institutional investors toward South Korea and Taiwan.
Depreciation of the Indian rupee against the dollar further incentivizes investors to diversify currency exposure. Data from the Indian central bank shows resident Indians sent over $321 million overseas for equity and debt investments in August, marking a 111% increase from a year earlier. Outward remittances for investments reached $2.6 billion in the financial year ended March 2026.
Retail Outflows Increase Pressure on the Rupee
Investment now accounts for roughly 11.7% of total outward remittances, up from 5.8% a year prior. Tanvi Kanchan, associate director, head of international business and strategy at Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers, told CNBC that retail outflows amplify pressure on the currency at the worst possible moment by coinciding with a weak rupee and strong U.S. markets. Rising energy bills stemming from the Iran war have already strained the rupee, prompting central bank intervention. Nitin Jain, chief executive and director at Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Singapore, cautioned CNBC that expanding retail participation could prompt Indian regulators to reconsider allowing direct access to U.S. markets.