India Markets: Retail Investors Rush to Buy U.S. Tech Stocks

Indian retail investors are moving their money to American markets.

Leading domestic brokerage platforms have opened trading channels for U.S. stocks. This shift removes barriers that previously limited global investment to wealthy clients using international banks.

Groww, which serves more than 29% of the country's 46 million active brokerage investors, launched its U.S. equity feature in early October. Harsh Jain, the company's chief operating officer and co-founder, stated that the platform now offers access to over 10,000 U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds. Fractional share ownership is included in the service. Jain identified Nvidia, SpaceX, Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Micron, and Meta as the most popular choices among early users.

Zerodha, the second-largest platform with a 15% client share, is currently beta testing U.S. stock access. The company expects a full launch within a few weeks. Angel One, which has 6.7 million active retail clients, is also preparing to offer similar trading services.

Market performance drives the shift. The Nifty 50 index has dropped nearly 13% since the start of the year. In contrast, the S&P 500 has gained more than 12%. Nitin Jain, chief executive of Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Singapore, described the current enthusiasm as similar to the recent surge in crypto investments. He noted that retail investors tend to follow assets that show strong upward trends.

Somnath Mukherjee, vice president of corporate development at Zerodha, cited the lack of major domestic artificial intelligence companies and high local valuations as key factors. He also pointed to the weakening rupee as a reason for investors to hold assets in another currency. Foreign investors have withdrawn a record $32.5 billion from direct Indian equities since January, according to NSDL data.

Outward investment flows are rising sharply. In August, Indian residents sent more than $321 million abroad for equity and debt investments. This figure represents an 111% increase from the same period last year. For the financial year ending in March 2026, total outward remittances for such investments reached $2.6 billion. Tanvi Kanchan of Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers noted that investment now accounts for 11.7% of total outward remittances, up from 5.8% a year ago. She warned that rising outflows could amplify currency pressure while the rupee remains weak. Nitin Jain of Kotak also suggested that regulators may reconsider their stance on retail access to U.S. markets as participation grows.