True Beacon
True Beacon is a portfolio management service (PMS) operated by True Beacon Wealth Private Limited, a company affiliated with the Zerodha group of financial services companies. Based in Bengaluru, it is registered with SEBI as a portfolio manager and targets high-net-worth individuals, ultra-HNIs, and family offices with a minimum investment threshold of fifty lakh rupees, the regulatory floor for PMS products in India. Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, serves as the primary fund manager.
True Beacon is distinct from Zerodha Broking Limited and Zerodha AMC in that it offers discretionary portfolio management rather than standardised mutual fund schemes. Each client’s portfolio is managed individually under a client agreement, with the portfolio manager exercising discretion over security selection and timing within agreed investment mandates.
Regulatory framework
Portfolio management services in India are governed by the SEBI (Portfolio Managers) Regulations, 2020 (which replaced the 1993 regulations). To operate as a portfolio manager, a company must:
- Obtain SEBI registration as a portfolio manager.
- Employ at least one principal officer who satisfies SEBI-prescribed qualification and experience norms.
- Maintain a minimum net worth of five crore rupees.
- Enter into a separate client agreement with each investor setting out the investment mandate, fees, and risk disclosures.
- Publish a disclosure document reviewed and approved by the board, updated annually.
The minimum investment for a PMS client is fifty lakh rupees. Unlike mutual funds, PMS accounts are individually managed: the securities are held in the client’s own demat account, not in a pooled structure. The portfolio manager may operate both discretionary (where the manager decides on investments) and non-discretionary (where the client approves each trade) mandates.
Products and investment approach
True Beacon’s flagship offering is a long-only equity portfolio targeting Indian listed equities. The investment philosophy, as disclosed in its regulatory filings, emphasises growth-oriented companies with strong operating cash flows, managed position sizing, and active risk management. Nikhil Kamath has publicly described an approach that blends fundamental analysis with technical and macro considerations.
In addition to its India-focused equities product, True Beacon has explored international fund structures. Nikhil Kamath and the True Beacon team have been associated with a Cayman Islands-registered fund structure targeting global family office capital, though the regulatory treatment of cross-border PMS activity is subject to SEBI and RBI norms on overseas investments.
True Beacon’s stated fee structure has included a performance-linked fee model, in which the portfolio manager’s compensation is partially or wholly tied to returns above a benchmark or hurdle rate, rather than a fixed annual management fee. Performance fee structures in PMS must comply with SEBI’s regulations, which permit performance-based fees for PMS clients but prohibit them for retail mutual fund schemes.
Relationship with Zerodha
True Beacon Wealth Private Limited is an affiliated entity within the broader Zerodha ecosystem rather than a directly owned subsidiary of Zerodha Broking Limited. Nikhil Kamath is the controlling shareholder of True Beacon and its primary public face.
Trading for True Beacon clients is routed through Zerodha Broking Limited, making True Beacon an institutional client of the broker rather than an independent market participant. This arrangement is a common structure for affiliated PMS operations. Zerodha Broking earns brokerage on True Beacon’s client transactions, and True Beacon earns management and performance fees from its PMS clients.
Rainmatter Capital has no formal investment stake in True Beacon; the entity is held separately by Nikhil Kamath.
Profile of Nikhil Kamath
Nikhil Kamath, born in 1987 in Bengaluru, is a self-taught equities and derivatives trader. He began trading actively as a teenager and has described starting with proprietary capital before co-founding Zerodha with his brother Nithin Kamath. At Zerodha, Nikhil’s primary role has been in proprietary trading and strategy.
In 2019, Nikhil Kamath launched True Beacon to formalise the management of external capital for HNI investors. He has since expanded his public profile through a podcast focused on entrepreneurship and business commentary, and through philanthropic activity, having publicly pledged a portion of his net worth to charitable causes through a Giving Pledge-style commitment in 2021 (one of the youngest individuals globally to do so at the time).
Nikhil Kamath also co-founded Rainmatter Capital alongside Nithin Kamath and is involved in its investment activities, though the day-to-day management of Rainmatter’s fintech portfolio is handled separately.
Disclosure document and performance reporting
True Beacon, as a SEBI-registered portfolio manager, must publish an annual disclosure document containing information on its investment approach, fee structure, risk factors, and audited performance data. Performance data must be disclosed for standardised time periods and benchmarked against an appropriate index.
SEBI requires portfolio managers to report client-level performance to SEBI on a periodic basis and to display standardised performance data in their disclosure documents. This transparency requirement allows prospective HNI clients to compare PMS providers on a consistent basis.
See also
References
- Securities and Exchange Board of India. “SEBI (Portfolio Managers) Regulations, 2020.” SEBI Gazette notification.
- Securities and Exchange Board of India. “PMS Disclosure Document, True Beacon Wealth.” SEBI portfolio manager filings.
- Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Company master data, True Beacon Wealth Private Limited. MCA21 portal.
- Zerodha. “True Beacon, Zerodha group entities.” Zerodha website disclosures.
- Securities and Exchange Board of India. “List of registered portfolio managers.” SEBI website. Accessed May 2026.
- Forbes India. “Nikhil Kamath profile.” Forbes India, 2021.