Mirae Asset aims to be among top 5 brokers in 5 years, with Sharekhan acquisition

"While mStock is a digital platform, Sharekhan's strength lies in its physical presence," Yoo Jisang, CEO, Mirae Asset Capital Markets India said, adding that they will go aggressive in increasing their customer base with marketing activities

Mirae Asset Securities currently stands at the sixteenth spot when it comes to NSE active clients, and with its recent Sharekhan acquisition, it aims to break into the top five within five years. "We don't want to be satisfied with where we are, we want to be in top five," said Yoo Jisang, CEO, Mirae Asset Capital Markets India.

On December 12, Mirae Asset acquired retail broking firm Sharekhan from BNP Paribas for Rs 3,000 crore, marking a shakeup in the industry. As of November end, Mirae Asset had 2.42 lakh NSE active clients while Sharekhan had 6.24 lakh active clients and was in the 11th spot.

Also Read: BNP Paribas exits Sharekhan with 8.5% return; sits on 6.3% return on Geojit, stake sale eyed

"We have no plans to merge Sharekhan and mStock apps yet. It is too early to say that. Currently, we are focusing on leveraging Sharekhan's 4,000 business partners and 130-plus branches to acquire more customers. Given its (Sharekhan) wide presence, we feel like we have purchased the Indian market and not just one company," said Jisang.

Mirae Asset's discount broking app mStock was launched in 2022. In 21 months, m.Stock has acquired close to six lakh customers riding on its unique proposition of ‘zero brokerage for life'.

"While mStock is a digital platform, Sharekhan's strength lies in its physical presence," Jisang said, adding that they will go aggressive in increasing their customer base with marketing activities. However, he did not share any details on how much the group intends to spend in marketing.

Also Read: Making sense of Mirae Asset's acquisition of Sharekhan

Betting big on India

South Korea-based Mirae Asset has been taking big strides in India. In June, the Korean fund house infused fresh capital of Rs 1,240 crore in Mirae Asset Capital Markets India. The company's long-term commitment is to become a full-fledged financial service provider in India.

"South Korea has a population of 5 crore people but there are 7 crore active demat accounts. Meanwhile, India has a population of 150 crore but the number of active demat accounts are only 3.5-4 crore. The runway for growth is huge," Jisang said.

"India's growing middle-class population, large young demographic, boom in infrastructure activities and stable geopolitical relations are big boosters for economic growth. So, that's why foreign investors are feeling more comfortable entering India. In the next decade, investors will find it difficult to look for an alternative for Indian markets," he added.

Also Read: Brokers breathe a sigh of relief as SEBI relaxes client fund rules

Mirae Asset is also growing its broking business at a time when the Indian market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India has been coming down hard on the malpractices of the industry. Transferring client funds to clearing corporations every day, cracking down on finfluencers illegally partnering with brokers, investigating the rise in prop trades as well as more data reporting were some of the steps introduced by SEBI this year.

"From a business point of view, it might be getting operationally difficult to be in the broking industry. But, we are always trying to meet the regulator's requirement and we understand it is for investor protection, so no complaints there," said Jisang.