A Manual about Kotak Securities Review 2021: What they Offers, how much they Charge and Why You Should Trade with Kotak Securities.
Ranked among the top five full-service brokers and one of the very few stockbrokers who provide a 3-in-1 account facility, Kotak Securities Limited is acclaimed to be unconventional when it comes to delivering unique services to their clients.
As a part of the well known financial service provider The Kotak Mahindra Group, Kotak Securities along with its group offer various multi-asset class investment and trading product and services, distribution services, insurance products, investment banking and a lot more to their wide range of clients spread across India as well as the globe.
The company has been the first broker all over the country to introduce Margin Finance for online trading, IPO and Mutual Fund Investments over the phone, SMS alerts right before the execution of the depository transaction, Autoinvest and Margin against securities using shares in the Kotak Demat account. This is the reason why it is renowned for its innovations and using advanced technologies to make investment and trading experience smoother for their clients.
For any investor especially beginners, it is important to understand and analyze how a particular stockbroker operates. Before selecting their stockbrokers, if they are enabled with the study report that includes the background of the stockbrokers, history of their founders, their brokerage plans, key features, products and services offered and what are the benefits of investing with this broker then their decision will be easy based on their needs and requirements.
This Kotak Securities review article aims to provide all the above information especially to our readers that will serve as their absolute guide.
Quick Note: If you want to open a FREE Demat account with Kotak Securities, here’s the direct link!
History of How Kotak Securities Limited Started
Born in a Gujarati family in Mumbai having their family business in cotton trading, Mr Uday Kotak had a deep interest in Finance and wanted to start his own business in this field.
He studied B.com and M.com from Mumbai and went to IIM to study MBA where he initially thought of joining Hindustan Unilever Limited but happened to start his small financial agency in Navsari Building Premise with seed capital from his father and one best friend Anand Mahindra which later on became the name of the financial company Kotak Mahindra.
Mr Kotak believed that trust is the forearm of any financial company. He added more and more of his insights and efforts into his small company and today it has earned its own brand name which is present worldwide. Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited became the first non-banking financial company to be converted into a Bank.
Kotak Securities Limited was incorporated in 1995 as a broking wing of the Kotak Group. The group is a one-stop solution for many investors and customers for various financial needs such as investment banking, bills discounting, mutual funds, broking services, insurance, wealth management and car loans.
The broking house has its national footprint across 393 cities with more than 1539 branches including franchisees and satellite offices. They are registered with NSE and BSE with their registration as a depository participant with NSDL and CDSL. With more than 1.7 million clients, they have won the Best Broker award by FinanceAsia Country Awards, 2019.
The fifth large full-service broking house offers not only stockbroking services but also Portfolio Management Services, Research and Advisory services, international investment facilities and the latest updates with stock tips. Apart from the Best Broker award in 2019, Kotak Securities has made a remarkable presence in India as well as in the Asia Pacific, European, Middle Eastern and American markets and is the winner of many other awards covering many areas of expertise.
List of Charges: Brokerage and Transaction Charges, Account Opening Charges and Other Related Charges
Kotak Demat Account Charges
| Account Head | Rate | Minimum Payable |
| Dematerialization | ₹50 per request and ₹3 per certificate | – |
| Rematerialization | ₹10 for 100 shares | ₹15 |
| Debit Transactions – On Market and Off Market | 0.04% of the value of securities (Plus NSDL charges as applicable) | ₹27 (Plus NSDL charges as applicable) |
| AMC: Resident Indian NRI | ₹50 per month ₹75 per month | — |
| Pledge Charges | 0.05% of the value of securities | ₹30 |
| Invocation of Pledge | 0.04% of the value of securities | ₹30 |
| Charge for Client Master change intimation | ₹25 |
Account Opening Charges
| Service | Charges |
| Trading Account Opening Charges (One-Time) | Rs.750 |
| Trading Account Maintenance Charges | 0 |
| Demat Account Opening Charges (One-Time) | 0 |
| Demat Account Maintenance Charges | Rs. 600 per annum |
Kotak Mahindra Brokerage Charges
| Trading Segment | Fixed Brokerage Plan | Dynamic Plan | Free Intraday or Unlimited Plan |
| Equity Cash Delivery | 0.49% | 0.59% to 0.30% (For trading amount of ‘< 1 lakh’ to ‘> 50 lakhs’) | 0.49% |
| Equity Cash Intraday | 0.049% | 0.06% to 0.05% both sides (For trading amount of ‘< 25 lakhs’ to ‘> 25 lakhs’) | Rs. 999 per annum |
| Equity Futures Both Side | 0.049% | Intraday: 0.07% to 0.05% both sides (For trading amount of ‘< 2 crores’ to ‘> 2 crores’) Settlement: 0.09% to 0.073% both sides (For trading amount of ‘< 2 crores’ to ‘> 2 crores’) | 0.049% |
| Equity Options Both Side | Rs. 300 per lot | Intraday: 2.5% to 1.8% both sides (For premium of ‘< 4 lakhs’ to ‘> 11 lakhs’) Settlement: 2.5% to 2.3% both sides (For premium of ‘< 4 lakhs’ to ‘> 11 lakhs’) | Rs. 100 per lot |
| Options Minimum (Settlement) | ₹300 to ₹180 both sides (For premium of ‘< 4 lakhs’ to ‘> 11 lakhs’) | ₹300 to ₹180 both sides (For premium of ‘< 4 lakhs’ to ‘> 11 lakhs’) | |
| Currency Futures | 0.04% or ₹20 per lot, whichever is higher to 0.015% or ₹7.5 per lot, whichever is higher (For a monthly volume of ‘< 3 Cr’ to ‘> 30 Cr’) | 0.049% | |
| Currency Options | ₹20 per lot to ₹7.5 per lot (For a monthly volume of ‘< 3 Cr’ to ‘> 30 Cr’) | Rs. 70 per lot | |
| Minimum Brokerage | 4 paise for delivery and 3 paise for Intraday and Futures orders | Rs. 21 per trade |
OPEN A FREE DEMAT ACCOUNT AT KOTAK SECURITIES
Kotak Securities Review: Margin / Exposure
| Segment | Exposure / Margin |
| Equity Delivery | Up to 10x |
| Equity Intraday | Up to 20x |
| Equity Futures | Up to 10x |
| Equity Options | Up to 20x |
| Currency Futures | Up to 10x |
| Currency Options | Up to 15x |
| Commodities | Up to 10x |
ALSO READ
Special Features
- From Trading in stock markets, investing in the IPOs or Mutual Funds or Currency or Derivatives, Kotak Securities Limited has it all to serve as a complete stockbroker for all the investment and financial needs of a customer.
- Its parent company Kotak Group offer financial distribution products as well as insurance and other investment banking services.
- The company also offer portfolio management services with expert advice for those who find it difficult where to trade, how to create a portfolio and how to start.
- The customers get the dual benefit of stockbroker as well as a depository participant and hence investors can execute and settle the trade using these two benefits.
- Their dedicated research division publishes sector-specific research, company-specific research, macroeconomic studies, fundamental and technical analysis for the investors to make effective decisions.
- They are present internationally in many countries and hence can offer investments services from there as well.
- They have their Knowledge Bank under which provide investors with training and education related to the fundamentals of the stock market under Kotak University along with various videos, articles and brokerage calculators.
- Their different brokerage plans offer a variety of options for the investors and traders to select the one that fits their needs and the frequency of trading activity.
Kotak Securities Review: Products & Services
Apart from the normal stockbroking services, Kotak Securities Limited offers a wide range of financial distribution services as well as insurance products.
Products: The mainstays of all the products offered by Kotak Securities Limited are Equity Trading, Derivatives, Forex, Banking, Insurance, Mutual Fund, SIP and Currency which are the basic trading products. The products not only enable customers to trade and invest but also provide news alert and advisory. These products can be customized too based on the requirements of each investor and trader. They do not offer commodity trading.
Services: The services provided by the company include Demat Account, Trading Account, Intraday Trading, Stock recommendations, PMS and IPO services. Their service of providing 3-in-1 account facility makes investors trading experience easy and quick.
Research Center: Their dedicated team of research experts offer a variety of research reports that include sector-wise, company-wise, investors-related reports as well as traders-related reports. They also offer live research reports on fundamentals, technical, derivatives, SIP and for top monthly picks. They also arrange annual research conference and research webinars.
Knowledge Bank: Under this tool, the company offer education and training related to the fundamentals of the stock market. The Kotak University offers module-wise training e.g. Equity, Mutual Fund and Derivatives.
Keat Pro X: It is an online trading software that allows investors to trade in real-time along with the facility to monitor the portfolio anytime anywhere. This platform works best for frequent and active traders. It also offers stock recommendations, live-streaming of stock market data and customizable watchlists.
Kotak Stock Trader – Mobile App: It is a mobile trading app that is available not only to their existing customers but also allows non-customers to sign-in as a guest and use it as a guest user. Equity, Derivative and Currency trading along with portfolio tracking service and live market streaming options are offered through this Kotak stock trader app.
Smallcase: With this tool, investors are allowed to customize diversified low-cost small portfolio based on a predetermined theme.
Fastlane: This is a high-speed trading platform that avoids any hassles due to the internet speed and it allows light and fast Java-based trading experience to its customers. With Fastlane, investors can check their open positions, check the funds available in their trading account and view various company reports and stock recommendations.
Xtralite: For the traders having slow internet connections, Xtralite provides a kind of trading experience that is extra light and super-fast. It offers all other features that a typical trading platform would usually give.
TradeSmart Store: It offers different applications that can be used to monitor the trends for the stocks in an investor’s portfolio, has an insight into the stock and the derivative market.
TradeSmart Derivatives: With this, traders get one-click snapshot of the current market, trading strategies that best suit the investors’ needs and it also spots an unusual trading activity from among the thousands of them.
TradeSmart Insights: To provide valuable information, this tool offers live news streams, recommendations from analysts, ratings and other useful insights for better decision-making.
TradeSmart Trends: Every stock price follows a trend and investors have to put many efforts to understand such trends to truly understand the market. With this application, Kotak Securities makes it easy to understand the overall stock market trend whether it is bullish or bearish as well as the trend for the stocks in the client’s portfolio.
Benefits & Drawbacks of Kotak Securities
Let us have a look at the advantages and disadvantages of trading and investing with Kotak Securities Limited.
Pros:
- Kotak Securities Limited is the fifth-largest full-service broker with a 3-in-1 account facility for easy and quick transfer of money.
- They constantly work on product innovations and which is why they are called the unorthodox broking house and the variety of products and services they offer is not only unique but also quite user-friendly.
- They provide online as well as offline trading facility where they assist over calls and in-person as well.
- Customized brokerage plans are designed for regular and frequent traders.
- They offer various TradeSmart tools that are specifically designed for customers’ smooth and hassle-free trading experience.
- Their Kotak University has asset class-wise trading modules such as equity, derivatives and mutual funds.
- Research tools have everything to offer for any valuable report would have to offer. Customers can also seek research and recommendations over the call.
Cons:
- They do not offer commodity trading.
- They lack in offering Robo-based advisory services despite mastering online trading with various trading platforms.
- Brokerage charges are certainly higher than those discount brokers offering flat rates.
- The gap in the quality of customer service can be filled by resolving more queries that are logged by dedicating more executives or initiating Robo-based chatbot services.
Closing Thoughts
Kotak Securities is one of the best stock brokers in India. In this article, we have covered all the important details of Kotak Securities – review, brokerage charges, Demat account, margin, benefits and more. Open a FREE Demat account with Kotak Securities.
