ICICI Director is a unit of ICICI Group and the largest retail broker in India. This stock broker provides online investing and trading services to its retail users. The company has over 50 lacks active client base and they allow their customers to trade in BSE, NSE, and MCX. It offers equity, commodity, currency, mutual fund, FD, IPOs, bonds, and many other options to invest money.
ICICI Direct provides a 3-in-1 account service that contains an ICICI bank account, ICICI trading, and a demat account to give users a very efficient and seamless trading experience. It has many brokerage charges plans for its customers, including I-Secure Plan, ICICI Direct Premium Plan, and Neo Plan.
If you opt for Neo Plan, you will be required to pay Rs 20 per intraday and options trade and 0.55% on equity delivery. However, it does not charge any brokerage on equity future trading. Choosing this plan, you can access its resource section to get some tips and research material, and margin funding at low interest.
Types of Accounts Available in ICICI Direct
ICICI Direct offers two types of account opening facilities, as mentioned below.
2-in-1
If you already have a bank account and do not want to open a dedicated bank account with ICICI while opening your trading and Demat account, it’s better to take a 2-in-1 account service from ICICI Direct. With this account facility, you get a Demat and trading account from ICICI Direct and the option to link your non-ICICI bank account.
3-in-1
This account facility provides an ICICI bank account, trading, and a Demat account to give you a seamless trading facility. It’s the best plan you can take to enjoy a hassle-free trading experience.
ICICI Direct Brokerage Charges
This full-service broker in India offers many brokerage plans for its customers. However, below we have mentioned the summarized details of brokerage charges you will require to pay in its packages.
- This full-service broker does not charge any fee on trading and Demat account opening.
- It also does not charge any trading account maintenance charges.
- However, it charges Rs 300 annually for Demat account maintenance.
- It levies a 0.55% brokerage charge on equity delivery.
- There is Rs 20 per trade brokerage on equity intraday, equity options, and commodities.
- It charges no brokerage fee on equity futures.
- The brokerage charges on currency futures and options are Rs 20 per trade.
- The First 20 calls and trades are free but after that, it charges Rs 25 per trade.
- It allows the first 20 auto squares off for free, but after that, it charges Rs 25 per square off.
ICICI Direct Trading Platforms
ICICI Direct provides many trading platforms for its traders to help them make efficient trades to maximize their profitability. Below there is a brief detail about its various trading platforms.
ICICI Direct Website
Most customers prefer using its ICICI Direct website to access its trading services. Its website provides its users with online trading and Demat account opening facilities, insurance, mutual fund, trading, investing, and so many other financial services. Its official website can be useful if you prefer a web-based trading platform.
ICICI Direct Mobile App
ICICI Direct’s mobile app is easily available on App Store and Play Store to install and access its stock trading and investing services. It provides real-time price alerts, research insights, filtered notifications, and other information required for traders. The registered users can easily execute a trade in the stock market using this mobile application, which ensures secured transactions.
Trade Race (Trading Terminal)
It’s an online trading terminal and can be used from Windows or Mac-based computer systems. Trade Racer can easily get installed to get real-time trade updates. It is designed considering the frequent traders who keep looking for quick market updates to make prompt trading decisions. This trading terminal has many tools to facilitate high-volume trading activities with high accuracy. Moreover, it’s available for all the registered traders and investors of ICICI Direct without extra cost.
How to Open a Demat Account with ICICI Direct?
Interested investors and traders can open their Demat account with ICICI Direct in as fast as 10 minutes. Whereas the maximum time this stock broker takes for account activation can be 24 working hours. Below are the steps to open your Demat account with ICICI Direct.
- Visit ICICI Direct official website and click on the “Open an account” button.
- Add mobile number and verify with OTP send on given number.
- Provide PAN, DOB, and Email details to proceed with the next step.
- Choose a bank account number, it can be an ICICI or Non-ICICI account number.
- Complete accounts linking with ICICI trading account.
- Once KYC is completed, its tools will automatically fill in the relevant details.
- Verify your entered details and upload the necessary documents.
- Enter other details like gender, profession, and marital status.
- It will ask you to do in-person video verification.
- Lastly, you will be required to e-sign through Aadhaar OTP.
Advantages of ICICI Direct Trading Platform
Let’s discuss the benefits of the ICICI Direct trading platform for investors and traders.
- It offers a 3-in-1 account facility to ensure an efficient trading experience.
- It allows trade in NSE, BSE, MCX, and other products.
- It offers an ideal brokerage plan for NRI traders.
- ICICI Direct has provided its users with mobile to web-based trading platforms.
- Investment in mutual funds through its mobile app is free.
- Provide its user’s facility to contact experts to get tips and recommendations.
- Offer sell instantly and get quick cash facility through its e-ATM service.
- There are many advanced order options to do trading effectively.
- The platform has a range of learning resources such as blogs and videos.
- The customer support is very prompt and supportive.
Disadvantages of ICICI Direct Trading Platform
Here are some cons or disadvantages of using the ICICI Direct trading platform.
- The brokerage charges of this full-service broker are very high compared to others.
- It does not provide any support for commodity trading, and the mobile app is also not user-friendly.
- There is not any brokerage charge calculator for the users.
- The call and trade brokerage charges are high once the first 20 free calls in a month complete.
- Mutual fund investment with ICICI Direct is not free for investors.
Conclusion
ICICI Direct is one of the best full-service brokers in India and is suitable for high-frequency traders. It has advanced tools and platforms that help traders to perform high-volume trades effortlessly. However, the brokerage charges may seem a little costly compared to its competitors like Zerodha and Upstox.
Therefore, if you are a beginner stock trader or investor, it’s good to prefer discount brokers in India, having the lowest brokerage charges, best-in-class customer support, and reliable trading platforms for a convenient trading experience.