Execution-Only Platform on WebNotes

Direct plan adoption in India

Sat, 16 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The direct plan adoption trajectory in India describes the multi-phase structural shift in Indian mutual fund distribution since the SEBI January 2013 mandate requiring every open-ended scheme to offer a separate direct plan alongside the conventional regular plan. Direct plans, available exclusively to investors who transact without a distributor or broker intermediary, carry a lower Total Expense Ratio (TER) than the corresponding regular plan because no distribution commission is embedded. The structural growth of direct plans, from approximately 21 per cent of industry AUM in March 2016 to over 50 per cent by late 2025 and approximately 57 per cent by April 2026, is among the most consequential changes in the Indian mutual fund distribution landscape in the post-liberalisation era. The adoption has reshaped distribution economics, enabled a viable market for fee-based registered investment advisers (RIAs), and catalysed the rise of zero-commission digital platforms that have collectively acquired tens of millions of retail investors.

Groww

Sat, 16 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Groww is an Indian retail financial-services platform that operates as both the country’s largest direct-plan mutual fund distributor by registered user base and the largest discount broker by National Stock Exchange (NSE) active client count. Incorporated as Groww Securities Private Limited for the stockbroking business and Groww Invest Tech Private Limited for the mutual fund distribution business, the company is headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Billionbrains Garage Ventures Private Limited. Groww was founded in April 2016 by Lalit Keshre, Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh, and Ishan Bansal, four former Flipkart employees, and initially operated exclusively as a direct-plan mutual fund distribution platform before obtaining a Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI ) stockbroking licence in 2020.

SEBI Execution-Only Platform framework of 2023

Sat, 16 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The SEBI Execution-Only Platform (EOP) framework of 2023 is the regulatory framework introduced by SEBI Circular SEBI/HO/IMD/IMD-POD-1/P/CIR/2023/74 dated 12 July 2023 that formalises the regulatory status of online platforms providing execution-only access to direct-plan mutual fund transactions, without providing investment advice. The framework was a response to the structural ambiguity that had existed since the SEBI January 2013 direct plan mandate , under which a generation of commercial digital platforms (Groww , Kuvera , ET Money , INDmoney , Zerodha Coin , Paytm Money) had collectively acquired tens of millions of retail users for direct-plan investing without a clear regulatory category. The 2023 framework defines two EOP categories with distinct registration routes and produces a clear regulatory safe harbour for the direct-plan execution-only model.

EOP regulations 2023 (Execution-Only Platform framework)

Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The EOP (Execution-Only Platform) framework is a regulatory architecture established by SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) through circular SEBI/HO/IMD/IMD-POD-1/P/CIR/2023/74, issued on 19 May 2023. The circular formally defines and regulates platforms that facilitate execution of mutual fund transactions in direct plans without providing investment advice, creating a distinct regulatory category for what had previously been a grey area in Indian mutual fund distribution regulation.

Prior to the EOP circular, direct-plan aggregator platforms such as Kuvera , ET Money , MFU , and BSE StAR MF operated either under AMFI ARN holder registrations (as mutual fund distributors without the commission basis) or as SEBI-registered investment advisers (RIAs). The absence of a specific platform category meant that transaction-only platforms faced regulatory uncertainty about their obligations and permissible activities.