Kotak Securities — now rebranded as Kotak Neo — is India’s third-largest full-service broker by active client base and one of the oldest, established in 1994 as the securities arm of Kotak Mahindra Bank. In 2023, Kotak Securities rebranded its digital trading platform as Kotak Neo, repositioning it as a technology-forward, flat-fee platform to compete directly with Zerodha and Groww while retaining the research, advisory, and banking credibility of the Kotak Mahindra Group. Today, Kotak Neo at neo.kotaksecurities.com / kotakneo.com serves as the unified investment gateway for equity, derivatives, mutual funds, ETFs, IPOs, commodities, currencies, and US stocks under a single demat and trading account.
Account Structure and Types
Kotak Neo operates as a 2-in-1 or 3-in-1 account structure. The 3-in-1 integration connects a Kotak Mahindra Bank savings account with the Kotak Neo trading and demat accounts — enabling automatic, instant fund transfers without manual NEFT steps.
Trade Free Plan: The flagship plan — zero brokerage on equity delivery, zero brokerage on equity intraday, zero brokerage on currency, and ₹20 flat per order on equity F&O and commodity. AMC: ₹600/year.
Trade Free Youth Plan (Under 30): For investors below 30 years of age — zero account opening charge, zero brokerage on delivery, zero on intraday, ₹20 on F&O. A genuinely competitive entry into the markets for young investors.
Trade Free Max Plan: Annual subscription of ₹2,499 — same brokerage as Trade Free Plan but includes Margin Trading Facility at a lower interest rate of 10.25% per annum (vs standard 0.028% per day / 10.22% per annum at Trade Free).
Key Features
Kotak Neo’s platform includes: live TradingView charts; an Options Chain for F&O traders; a StockCase feature for expert-built and custom basket investing; equity SIP; automatic entry/exit strategies; price alerts; and a research platform covering 300+ stocks. Kotak Neo provides tools including StockCase for basket investing, real-time Options Chain, expert-built screeners, price alerts, and payoff evaluation tools — a feature set comparable to Zerodha Kite and HDFC Sky. The Margin Trading Facility interest rate is 9.69% per annum under standard plan. NEST desktop terminal access is available for advanced desktop traders.
Overview Table: Kotak Neo Demat Account at a Glance
| Parameter | Details |
| Brand Name | Kotak Neo (formerly Kotak Securities) |
| Parent | Kotak Mahindra Bank |
| Established | 1994 |
| Platform | kotakneo.com; Kotak Neo App; NEST terminal |
| Account Opening | ₹0 (Trade Free Youth); ₹99 (standard) |
| Demat AMC | ₹600/year |
| Trade Free Plan | ₹0 delivery; ₹0 intraday; ₹20 F&O; ₹0 currency |
| Trade Free Max | ₹2,499/year subscription; same brokerage + lower MTF |
| DP Charge (Sell) | 0.04% + NSDL charges (min ₹20) per ISIN |
| 3-in-1 Banking | Yes (Kotak Mahindra Bank) |
| MTF Interest | 9.69% p.a. |
| US Stocks | Available |
| Research | 300+ stocks coverage; expert calls |
| Customer Care | 1800 209 9191; WhatsApp 77389 88888 |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. What is the brokerage structure at Kotak Neo?
A: Trade Free Plan: zero on delivery, zero on intraday, ₹20 on F&O and commodity. Youth Plan (under 30): same, with free account opening.
Q2. What is the AMC for Kotak Neo demat account?
A: ₹600/year under the standard plan. Zero for BSDA holders with holdings below ₹50,000.
Q3. Is intraday trading completely free at Kotak Neo?
A: Yes — equity intraday and currency trading are free of brokerage under the Trade Free Plan.
Q4. What is the Trade Free Max plan?
A: An annual subscription at ₹2,499 offering the same brokerage as the standard plan but with MTF at a lower interest rate of 10.25% per annum.
Q5. Does Kotak Neo support US stock investing?
A: Yes — US stocks and ETFs are accessible from the same Kotak Neo account.
