NSE loses record 35 lakh active investors in FY26; Zerodha, Angel One, Upstox lead decline
The National Stock Exchange of India saw a record decline in active investors in FY26, with nearly 35 lakh accounts lost during the year, marking the first annual contraction in three years and the steepest fall on record. The decline was largely driven by a sharp drop in clients at leading discount brokers such as Zerodha, Angel One and Upstox.
NSE’s active investor base fell 7 percent from the previous year, dropping to 4.58 crore accounts in FY26 from 4.92 crore in FY25. Of the total decline, more than 70 percent, or around 26 lakh accounts, came from Zerodha, Angel One and Upstox alone.
Zerodha led the decline, losing 9.95 lakh active investors, which accounted for 29 percent of the overall fall. Angel One lost 8.15 lakh accounts, contributing 23 percent, while Upstox saw a drop of 7.6 lakh accounts, or 22 percent of the total decline.
Other brokerages also reported a fall in active investors. Mirae Asset Capital Markets lost nearly 2.72 lakh accounts, while HDFC Securities and Sharekhan each lost around 1.3 lakh accounts. Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Kotak Securities and 5paisa Capital also reported losses of 1.13 lakh, 1.1 lakh and more than 90,000 investors, respectively.
The decline reflected prolonged volatility in Indian markets through FY26. Concerns over expensive valuations, subdued corporate earnings and sustained foreign institutional investor selling weighed on sentiment. Geopolitical tensions, including the trade war and the recent US-Iran-Israel conflict, further dented investor confidence.
The weak market environment also hurt the primary market, with several IPO listings delivering muted gains, reducing retail participation. Rising crude oil prices above $100 per barrel have added to concerns over inflation, fiscal pressures and macroeconomic stability. Analysts also said India’s lack of large-scale artificial intelligence-related investment themes has limited foreign investor interest.
Global brokerages such as Nomura, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have downgraded Indian equities to neutral or underweight in early 2026, citing rising oil prices, expensive valuations and AI-related disadvantages. Nomura has also lowered its Nifty 50 target to 24,500–24,900.
Despite the broader weakness, a few mid-sized brokerages continued to attract investors. Paytm Money emerged as the biggest gainer, adding 2.12 lakh active investors during FY26. SBICAP Securities and ICICI Securities followed, adding 1.82 lakh and 1.41 lakh investors, respectively.
Other brokerages that saw modest gains included Moneywise Financial Services, Univest Stock Broking and Groww, which added 48,667, 24,646 and 17,917 accounts, respectively. YES Securities, Choice Equity Broking, Jainam Broking, Marketwolf Securities, Bajaj Financial Securities and Axis Securities also added nearly 10,000 accounts each during the year.