India's largest discount brokers including Groww, Zerodha, Angel One, Upstox and Dhan are now offering overseas investing through GIFT City, making it easier for Indian investors to buy global stocks such as Apple, Nvidia, Tesla and SpaceX. According to reports from The Times of India, while platforms such as Vested Finance, Borderless and INDmoney already provide this facility, the entry of the country's biggest brokerages is expected to bring overseas investing to a much wider audience. Most of these brokerages are in different stages of launching the service, with some offering it directly while others will do so through a Global Access Provider (GAP), a company registered in GIFT City that provides access to overseas markets. As reported by The Times of India, GIFT City serves as the gateway for Indian investors to access overseas stocks, with leading brokerages establishing operations there to offer international investing to their customers.
All Indian residents can invest if they meet the KYC requirements, with NRIs also eligible to invest through GIFT City. As reported by The Times of India, there is no high minimum investment requirement, and thanks to fractional investing, an investor can start with as little as $1, instead of having to buy a full share, which for many US stocks can run into hundreds of dollars. Investors can open an overseas investment account through their broker's app or website by completing the online KYC process, then transfer money from their Indian bank account under the Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), which allows resident Indians to remit up to $250,000 a financial year for permitted purposes, including overseas investments. The availability of fractional investing may vary across platforms, according to Dhan.
Brokerages or Global Access Providers (GAPs) typically charge brokerage of around 25 basis points, according to Yogesh Darji, Managing Director, HDFC Securities IFSC. Investors also incur foreign exchange conversion charges levied by banks, which are generally in the range of 1-1.5% per transaction. According to The Times of India, these charges include brokerage and forex conversion fees, with banks also levying foreign exchange conversion fees on the funds transferred under the LRS. Once the funds are credited, investors can start buying foreign stocks immediately.
The biggest advantage of investing through the GIFT City route is the regulatory framework, with GIFT City overseeing the companies offering these services and setting the rules they must follow. As reported by The Times of India, the key difference is regulation - companies offering overseas investing through GIFT City are regulated by the GIFT City framework and must comply with its rules, while some existing domestic platforms operate through entities regulated in overseas jurisdictions. Investments made under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme are also subject to Tax Collected at Source (TCS) at 20%. However, trades executed on GIFT City exchanges do not attract Securities Transaction Tax (STT). The tax treatment depends on whether you are a resident Indian or an NRI, according to Nehal Sampat, partner, Price Waterhouse & Co.
Investors are the beneficial owners of the shares, which means they own the investment and are entitled to dividends and other benefits, according to The Times of India. The shares are typically held in custody by the broker or platform on the investor's behalf. This regulatory framework provides a structured approach for Indian investors seeking access to global markets through a regulated channel, with the availability of fractional investing making international stock ownership more accessible to retail investors.
