S
ome people walk into a room and need to make an effort to grab attention. Others don’t need to because their words are enough. When they speak, it makes you realize they’ve been five steps ahead all along.
Nikhil Kamath is one of those people. Always calm, always measured—never the loudest voice, but often the sharpest mind. Beneath that tranquillity of Nikhil Kamath is someone who’s constantly questioning, learning, and reshaping the game.
And that’s exactly what he did back in 2010. Without raising a single rupee from investors, without any flashy marketing or PR stunts, he, alongside his brother built something that rewrote the rules of the trading industry. A platform that turned a complex, expensive system into something simple, accessible, and cost-effective.
This is the story of Zerodha– an effort of the two Kamath Brothers that changed the way India trades.
The Kickstart
Born in the small town of Udupi in Shimoga, Karnataka, Nikhil Kamath’s journey from a school dropout to a billionaire is worth noting. At just 14, he left school without a concrete plan for what came next. Soon after, he moved out of his home—not out of rebellion, but for practical reasons. Cutting down on travel costs to his job at a call center in Bangalore made more sense. Plus, he wanted the freedom to carve his own path.
In an unconventional move, he even faked his birth certificate to land that job at 17. Selling insurance at the call center earned him ₹8,500 a month. But instead of spending it all, he put some aside to experiment with trading in the stock market. What started as a side hustle quickly became an obsession. By 18, trading wasn’t just a personal endeavor—he was managing the money of his father, friends, colleagues, and even his supervisors.
Soon, he left his job to pursue trading full-time. Teaming up with his elder brother, Nithin Kamath—who had a similar story of starting young, working in a call center, and learning the hard way through losses and wins—they launched Kamath Associates in 2006, an advisory firm.
That venture eventually evolved into what we today know as India’s top brokerage firm—Zerodha.
The Birth of Zerodha
Founded in 2010, Zerodha set out to disrupt the traditional brokerage model that had long excluded retail investors. Instead of high fees and complex processes, the Kamath brothers built a platform that was transparent, affordable, and accessible to all.
The name says it all—‘Zerodha’ comes from ‘Zero’ and ‘Rodha’ (a Sanskrit word for barriers), meaning ‘no barriers.’
The brothers understood that in the finance industry, trust is everything.
As Nikhil Kamath puts it:
So, they didn’t just create a brokerage. They built trust by focusing on financial inclusivity, lower costs, and transparency. While Nithin focused on acquiring clientele and scaling the firm, Nikhil handled trading, asset management, and risk management.
Their model? Simple but revolutionary. Instead of charging hefty commissions, Zerodha adopted a discount brokerage approach—charging a flat ₹20 fee per trade, irrespective of its size, with zero brokerage fees for equity delivery and a minimal annual maintenance fee.
They bootstrapped the business, running it with extreme cost efficiency and relying on word-of-mouth rather than big marketing spends. In their first year, 3,000 Zerodha Demat accounts were opened. People were skeptical—when something is cheap, quality often comes into question. But over time, they proved their model worked.
Scaling Up: The Growth Story
Unlike traditional full-service brokers, Zerodha didn’t offer buy or sell recommendations. To fill this gap, they launched Varsity, an educational initiative packed with stock market lessons and terminology.
They also leveraged technology to simplify investing and created a superior trading platform to retain users. As a result, by 2015, they had 17,500 active traders. But their big breakthrough came when they made equity delivery completely free. From charging ₹20 per order, they slashed it to zero.
This decision sparked a wave of growth. From 30,000 accounts in 2015, Zerodha grew to 14 lakh accounts by 2020.
Then came 2020—when everything changed.
First, the COVID-19 lockdown fueled a surge in stock market participation as more Indians started trading and investing. Zerodha’s user base skyrocketed, surpassing one crore customers with over 62 lakh active traders placing millions of orders every day.
Second, after a decade of bootstrapped operations, Zerodha became a profitable unicorn. One of the rare few to achieve unicorn status without burning cash.
Product Expansion
Zerodha isn’t just about stock trading. Over the years, it has expanded its offerings to cater to different types of investors. Some key products include:
Kite: A powerful, user-friendly trading platform used by millions.
Coin: A commission-free mutual fund investment platform.
Console: An integrated reporting dashboard providing insights into trading and investment performance.
The Numbers Speak
Zerodha’s growth has been nothing short of phenomenal. In FY24, the company recorded:
From an entirely bootstrapped startup to becoming India’s top brokerage unicorn, Zerodha’s journey is a perfect example depicting resilience, vision, and execution.
And this spectacular growth is also reflected in Zerodha’s revenue and profits.
Key Takeaways
The story of the Kamath brothers is a masterclass in how curiosity, passion, and execution can shape a game-changing business.
It all starts with an innate curiosity—the drive to learn, explore, and evolve within an industry. Nikhil Kamath didn’t just trade; he immersed himself in the markets, understanding every nuance. For founders, this level of deep involvement is what sets the extraordinary apart from the ordinary.
But curiosity alone isn’t enough. Passion is what keeps you going, especially when the odds are stacked against you. Zerodha wasn’t built overnight—it took years of resilience and an unwavering commitment to their vision.
Then comes strategy and execution, because a great idea without the right plan is just wishful thinking. The Kamath brothers focused on cost efficiency, trust, and technology, scaling their business without burning cash—an approach few startups dare to take.
Speaking of scaling, the right partnerships can make all the difference. Nithin and Nikhil complemented each other perfectly—one driving growth, the other managing risk.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway? You don’t need deep pockets to build something massive. Zerodha grew into a unicorn without a single rupee of VC funding, proving that sustainable, profitable models can outperform high-burn strategies.
If you’re looking to build something extraordinary, take a page from their book—stay curious, stay passionate, and execute relentlessly.
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