The firm said in a client communication that the higher charge will apply to traders who do not meet the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s rule of maintaining at least 50% of collateral in cash or its equivalents on an intraday basis. Currently, Zerodha bridges this gap using its own funds without charging clients.
From April 1, intra-day futures and options trades funded by the broker will attract double the usual brokerage of ₹20 per order. The higher fees will not apply to intraday trades in stock trading.
Zerodha did not respond to requests for comment.
Sebi rules require at least 50% of margin collateral, whether for intraday or overnight positions, to be held in cash or cash equivalents, with the remainder allowed in non-cash assets. Cash equivalents include cash, bank guarantees, fixed deposit receipts and approved securities, among others, as per NSE Clearing.
The pricing increase by Zerodha, which popularised the zero-brokerage model in India, comes as derivative volumes are under pressure from the proposed Securities Transaction Tax (STT) hike from April 1. In the 2026 Union Budget, the government proposed raising STT on futures to 0.05% from 0.02%, and on options premiums to 0.15% from 0.10%. This move could pave the way for other firms to raise brokerage fees. “One of the industry’s largest brokerage platforms has initiated this move, which could bring more discipline to pricing and may create a ripple effect across the wider industry,” said Pranay Aggarwal, director and chief executive of Stoxkart.
While many brokers do not charge for intraday shortfalls in cash collateral, interest of 9% to 18% per annum is typically levied on overnight or carry-forward positions. With revenues getting squeezed, brokerages are looking to soften the blow through other avenues.
“The amount of collateral that people have kept with us, on which they take margin to trade, has gone up like bonkers,” Zerodha’s chief executive officer Nithin Kamath, wrote on the firm’s website. “We are at a point where we might have to borrow funds in the near future to provide collateral for you all. Borrowed funds come at a cost.”
Kamath said the firm could have charged a percentage fee for accounts going into debit, as some brokers do.
“But we realised the impact due to that would be a lot more than charging a higher brokerage for trades executed only when your account is in debit, or when you don’t have at least 50% in cash while trading on collateral,” he said.
