ICICI direct, a retail trading company, is a subsidiary of ICICI bank and offers investment services from ICICI Securities. Being one of the most advanced brokerage platforms, it provides relevant financial and trading services. Furthermore, this company is well known for offering research and educational resources to its traders and investors.
Our article on ICICI Direct review will help you decide whether this trading platform is suitable for you or not. Along with that, we’d also tell you about the features, products, services, trading platforms, and much more. So without further ado, let’s see what this company is about.
Why choose ICICI Direct?
Here’s a brief on what ICICI Direct comprises.
Pros
- Most visited website in India.
- Offers a 3-in-1 account (ICICI Bank Account, ICICI Demat Account, and ICICI Trading Account)
- In-person customer care support
- Free account opening with no paperwork
- Several trading products and services
- Numerous brokerage plans for traders
- ICICI Direct NEO with a brokerage plan at Rs. 20/order
- No charges for equity futures trading
- Free ICICI Direct Market App and Trade Racer platform
- ICICI Direct Money App specifically for Mutual Funds investment
- Top-notch research and reports
- Manage your Demat account at ICICIdirect.com. Money earned through selling stocks is deposited in the ICICI Securities bank account.
- Companies registered with BSE and NSE can avail of E-trading.
- Low-bandwidth websites are available.
- Buy or sell order limit can be set for 45 days, Via Valid Till Cancelled
There are multiple products that this platform offers, and they are –
- Equity trading
- Commodity trading
- Currency trading
- Options
- Futures
- Mutual Funds
- Forex
- Banking
- SIP
- Insurance
ICICI Direct Brokerage Charges
| Segment | Charges |
| Equity Delivery | 0.55% |
| Equity Intraday | Rs. 20 per order |
| Equity Futures | Free |
| Equity Options | Rs. 20 per order |
| Currency Futures | Rs. 20 per order |
| Currency Options | Rs. 20 per order |
| Commodity | Rs. 20 per order |
| Minimum Brokerage | Rs. 20 per order |
| Demat AMC Charges | Rs.300/year from 2nd year onwards |
| Trading AMC Charges | Free |
| Margin Money | 75% margin |
The information above is in accordance with the ICICI Direct NEO plan, and it’s crucial to maintain a minimum balance of 75% margin money.
ICICI Direct Brokerage Plans
This platform offers six brokerage plans, but don’t get overwhelmed. We’ll simplify everything for you.
ICICI Direct Prime Brokerage Plan
This plan is based on the trading volume, which means that low volume equals high brokerage, and high volume equals low brokerage. So this plan is especially beneficial to high-volume traders.
| Prime Plan | 299 | 999 | 1,999 | 2,999 |
| Total amount with GST (Rs.) | 352.82 | 1,178.82 | 2,358.82 | 3,538.82 |
| Scheme Validity (in days) | 365 | 365 | 365 | 365 |
| Cash % | 0.27 | 0.22 | 0.18 | 0.15 |
| Margin/Futures % | 0.027 | 0.022 | 0.018 | 0.015 |
| Options (Per Lot) (Rs.) | 40 | 35 | 25 | 20 |
| Currency Futures | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order |
| Currency Options | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order |
| Commodity Futures | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order | 20 per order |
| eATM Limit (Rs.) | 2.5 lakhs | 10 lakhs | 25 lakhs | 1 cr. |
| Special MTF Interest rates/LPC (% per Day) | 0.4 | 0.035 | 0.031 | 0.024 |
This plan reduces the brokerage charges through the eATM limit, which ranges from 2.5 lakhs to 1 cr.
ICICI Direct Prepaid Brokerage Plan –
| Prepaid Plan (₹) | 5,000 | 12,500 | 25,000 | 50,000 | 1,00,000 | 1,50,000 |
| Total amt with GST (₹) | 5,900 | 14,750 | 29,500 | 59,000 | 1,18,000 | 1,77,000 |
| Cash % | 0.25 | 0.22 | 0.18 | 0.15 | 0.12 | 0.09 |
| Margin / Futures % | 0.025 | 0.022 | 0.018 | 0.015 | 0.012 | 0.009 |
| Options (per lot) ₹ | 35 | 30 | 25 | 20 | 15 | 10 |
| Currency Futures | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order |
| Currency Options | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order |
| Commodity Futures | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order | Rs.20 per order |
This plan doesn’t offer eATM facility, but it does provide different plans ranging from 5000 to 1,50,000, and the flat brokerage charge is Rs. 20 per order across all six plans.
ICICI Direct I-Secure Plan
This prepaid plan is for high-volume traders who are confident about their trading volumes.
| Delivery Trading | 0.55% |
| Intraday Trading | 0.28% |
| Commodity Futures Trading | Rs.20 per order |
| Futures Trading | 0.05% |
| Equity Options Trading | Rs.95 per contract lot |
| Currency Futures Trading | Rs.20 per order |
| Currency Options Trading | Rs.20 per order |
Regardless of the turnover value, I-Secure Plan offers a flat brokerage charge.
ICICI Direct NRI Prepaid Brokerage Plan
NRIs can get a discount brokerage fee and minimize transaction costs. It has 15 years of lifetime validity.
| Prepaid Plan (Rs.) | 10000 | 50000 | 100000 | 200000 | 300000 |
| GST (Rs.) | 1800 | 9000 | 18000 | 36000 | 54000 |
| Total (Rs.) | 11800 | 59000 | 118000 | 236000 | 354000 |
| Cash Brokerage | 0.75% | 0.50% | 0.35% | 0.30% | 0.20% |
| Eligible Cash Turnover (Rs.) | 1333333 | 10000000 | 28571429 | 66666667 | 1.5E+08 |
ICICI Direct NRI Brokerage
Even with this plan, NRIs can enjoy a flat brokerage rate for different ranges.
| Total Eligible Turnover per month (Volume of Transaction) | Brokerage |
| Trades above Rs. 50,00,000 | 0.50% |
| Rs . 25,00,001 to Rs. 50,00,000 | 0.75% |
| Rs . 10,00,001 to Rs. 25,00,000 | 0.90% |
| Rs . 5,00,001 to Rs. 10,00,000 | 1.00% |
| Up to Rs. 5,00,000 | 1.25% |
ICICI Direct Other Charges
There are a few extra charges levied on your trade; here’s all you need to know about it.
| Segment | Other Charges |
| SEBI Turnover Charges | 0.00005% (Rs. 5/Cr.) |
| STT | Equity Delivery: 0.1% on both Buy and SellEquity Intraday: 0.025% on the Sell Side*Equity Futures: 0.01% on Sell SideEquity Options: 0.05% on Sell Side(on Premium)Commodity Futures: 0.01% on sell side (Non-Agri)Commodity Options: 0.05% on sell sideCurrency F&O: No STTOn Exercise transaction: 0.125%Right to entitlement: 0.05% on sell side |
| Stamp Duty | (On buy side only) Delivery: 0.015%, Intraday: 0.003%, Equity Futures: 0.002%, Equity Options: 0.003%, and Currency F&O: 0.0001%.Commodity Futures: 0.002%, Commodity Options: 0.003% (MCX) |
| GST | 18% on (Brokerage + Transaction Charge + SEBI Fee) |
| Margin Funding Charges | 75% Margin |
| Reactivation Charges | Rs 75 per instruction |
| Account Closure Charges | NIL |
| Dematerialisation Charges | Rs 50 |
| Pledge Creation | If, ICICI Bank is counterparty – 0.02% (Minimum Rs 35 and Maximum Rs 25,000) |
| Pledge Invocation | If, ICICI Bank is not counterparty – 0.04% (Minimum Rs 45 and Maximum Rs 25,000) |
| Margin Pledge/Unpledge/ Pledge closure | Rs. 15.5 per scrip |
| Margin Repledge | Rs. 13.5 + Rs. 13.5 (Rs. 27 per scrip) |
ICICI Direct Depository Service Charges
| Resident Retail for Customers and Corporate | |
| Buy-Market and Off-Market | Nil |
| Dematerialization | Rs 3 for each extra certificate |
| Rs 50 for each request form | |
| Re-materialization | Rs 25 for every hundred securities or partsthereof, subject to max. fee of Rs 300000 orflat fee of Rs 25 / certificate (whichever is higher) |
| Closure of Account | Nil |
| Additional Account Statements | Rs 20 |
These service charges apply to residential clients only.
ICICI Direct Demat Account Opening Charges
| Demat Services | ICICI Direct |
| Trading Charges [One Time] | Rs 0 (Free) |
| Trading AMC [Yearly] | Rs 0 (Free) |
| Demat Charges [One Time] | Rs 0 (Free) |
| Demat AMC [Yearly] | Rs 300 (from 2nd year) |
| Margin Money | 75% Margin |
If you want to open an account with ICICI Direct, it’d cost you nothing. This platform allows traders to invest in various products such as equity, derivatives, and so on. However, you’d have to pay the maintenance charges for your Demat account and maintain a 75% margin in your account.
ICICI Direct Offers
ICICI Direct provides its clients numerous regular and occasional offers that they could benefit from, such as Trading Happy Hours, Free Demat Account, Zero Brokerage for any and every loss-making Trade, Flexible Brokerage Plans, and Referral Offers. However, don’t expect Holiday offers or Discount on Brokerage Charges.
ICICI Direct NEO is the only plan that offers zero brokerage for future trades. It does charge Rs. 20 per trade for equity and options.
You can also choose lifetime plans, such as 3999 or 49999, that would give a 50% discount on brokerage, and if you choose a higher plan, it will offer more trading benefits.
Why Open ICICI Direct Trading Account?
One of the primary requirements to trade in India is to have a Demat or Trading account. But there are more reasons to open a trading account, such as
- 3-in-1 account
- You can manage your Demat and bank accounts in one place, ICICIdirect.com
- Make online investments in Mutual Funds, IPOs, GOI Bonds, and Postal Saving Scheme on a single portal.
- ICICI Lombard offers general insurance
- Both BSE and NSE trading is available.
- Availability of low bandwidth websites.
- There’s a buy or sell limit order in equity scrips via myGTC options.
Services Offered by ICICI Direct
As mentioned earlier, ICICI Direct is a full-service broker that offers numerous services, such as Portfolio Management Services, Initial Public Offerings Services, Demat Services, Trading Services, Intraday Services, 3 in 1 Account Services, Stock Recommendations Robo Advisory, and Trading Institution. Furthermore, these services offer 5x trading exposure as compared to other companies.
ICICI Direct Research and Advisory
When it comes to research, no one can beat ICICI Direct because it provides Research Reports, Fundamental Reports, Annual Reports, Company Reports, Relationship manager, Weekly reports, and much more.
Keep in mind that they don’t offer Free Stock Tips or Top Picks, though.
ICICI Direct Exposure/Leverage
| Segments | Margin |
| Delivery | 1x (margin funding) |
| Intraday | 5x |
| Futures | 1x |
| Options | 1x |
| Currency Futures | 1x |
| Currency Options | 1x |
| Commodities | 1x |
The ICICI Direct Margin Calculator will help you calculate the exact margin you’d earn for trading across all segments.
How to transfer shares in ICICI Direct from other stock brokers?
If you wish to transfer your stocks to ICICI Direct from another stock broker, then here’s how you should proceed.
1. Offline Mode
Get the Debit Instruction Slip (DIS) from Depository Participant (DP), and know the ISIN number of all the shares you wish to transfer. Now submit the ISIN number and the Target Client, which is ICICI Direct in this case in the DIS booklet. Once you submit the form, wait for approval.
2. Online Mode
You can rely on NSDL and CDSL as the Depository Participants for online transfer. When you go to the preferred DP’s website, fill out the form and submit it. If the information you entered in the form is incorrect, the form will get canceled, so be careful while filling out the form.
ICICI Direct Trading Platforms
There are four trading platforms that you can choose from, as ICICI Direct relies majorly on technology to ensure efficiency.
1. ICICI Direct Web Trading Platform
ICICIdirect.com is a browser-based platform that acts as a trading platform as well. This HTML-based development is compatible with Windows, MAC computers, and mobile phones. Its features are as follows:
- It displays real-time data about the market across different indices and exchanges.
- The Cash Trading feature enables the traders to take delivery of shares or money.
- Trend Scanner feature uses the predefined criteria to track the Intraday price movement across several indices and exchanges and identify the trending scrips.
- With the Live Scanner feature, you can track the ups and downs in your stocks through real-time data.
- The Snap View feature lets you get a complete picture of a specific scrip with accurate data on chart, gross delivery data, market depth, and so on.
- Market @ Fingertip is a tool that can locate scrips based on fixed parameters like bargain buys, highest-yielding stocks in Sensex, top profitable companies, etc.
- It offers analytical tools, such as the Advance Decline Ratio and a market breadth indicator that compares the stocks trading positive to the negative ones in accordance with their closing prices the previous day.
- The Heatmap feature allows you to view your stocks in a tabular form according to their price-based movement regarding the previous day’s closing prices.
- A default setting allows you to use the most frequently used widgets from the toolbar section on the top of the screen.
- You can even customize the widgets as per your preference and also hide them.
2. ICICI Direct Trade Racer
This trading terminal is compatible with Windows and MAC computers only, and its features are:
- Live data regarding the market trends across different indices and exchanges.
- With the Cash Trading feature, traders can take delivery of shares or money.
- The Snap View feature lets you get a complete picture of a particular scrip with exact data on the chart, gross delivery data, market depth, etc.
- Analytical tools, such as the Advance Decline Ratio and a market breadth indicator, compare the stocks trading favorable to unfavorable ones in view of their closing prices the previous day.
- Access to Moving Averages that assist in technical analysis.
- A default setting enables you to access the most frequently used widgets from the toolbar section on the top of the screen.
- You can also customize the widgets as per your need or hide them.
3. ICICI Direct Mobile Trading App
This platform is an Android-based app, also known as ICICI Direct Mobile. Here are its features:
- Traders can begin Equity-based and Futures and Options based trading across different exchanges and indices.
- It enables users to track their portfolios based on real-time data.
- You can keep track of the stock market with real-time quotes.
Cons of ICICI Direct
Even though ICICI Direct is one of the leading brokerage companies currently, it still has its share of disadvantages, and it’s essential to know them as well.
- High brokerage and non-negotiable.
- Commodity trading isn’t available, and trading in MCX or NCDEX isn’t an option.
- The Demat and bank account should be with ICICI bank.
- The brokerage charge is Rs. 20 per trade.
- If the client’s paying less than 750/month brokerage, then ICICI Direct charges Rs. 75 per month for using the Trade Racer platform.
- Trading in penny stocks costs Rs. 0.05 per share up to Rs. 10.
- After 20 free monthly calls, it charges Rs. 25 per call and trade.
Conclusion
This was all that you needed to know about ICICI Direct to make an informed decision in your favor. We’d, however, emphasize that this brokerage platform is reliable and committed to its clients’ welfare. Despite a few minus points, it has stayed in business for 25 years and has kept itself up-to-date with the technological changes. Therefore, it’s worth considering joining this brokerage platform and soaking in all its benefits. Our ICICI Direct review comes to an end here.