Zerodha Capital’s Lending Business Is Quietly Booming — Income Up 44% in FY26

While everyone watches Zerodha’s broking empire, its lending arm has been growing fast and clean — with zero bad loans to show for it.

Zerodha is best known as India’s largest stockbroker, but its lesser-known lending arm is putting up numbers that deserve attention. Zerodha Capital Private Limited (ZCPL), the lending arm of Zerodha Group, reported a 44.2% increase in total income to Rs 53.5 crore for FY26, driven largely by healthy growth in its loan book, according to a note by ICRA on the rating for the company.

Zerodha Capital FY26: The Numbers at a Glance

What’s Driving the Growth?

The engine behind this jump is Zerodha’s loan-against-securities (LAS) business — essentially, loans extended against an investor’s stock or mutual fund holdings. ZCPL recorded strong growth in its LAS portfolio, with the book expanding to Rs 580 crore as of March 31, 2026, driven by the extensive reach and customer franchise of Zerodha’s broking business.

This is the classic Zerodha playbook in action — leverage the massive user base from its core broking platform to cross-sell adjacent financial products. For more on how India’s fintech players are diversifying beyond their core offerings, see our coverage of India’s broking and fintech sector trends.

Why ICRA Stayed Confident

ICRA reaffirmed its ratings on ZCPL, citing the company’s strong linkages with the Zerodha Group, healthy growth in its loan book, comfortable capitalisation, and improving profitability, while maintaining a stable outlook.

According to ICRA, ZCPL continues to benefit from the strength of the Zerodha brand and its close association with the Group’s flagship broking arm, Zerodha Broking Limited — with shared brand identity, common promoters, and strategic importance reinforcing expectations of timely support from the promoter group whenever required.

The Risk Factors Worth Knowing

It’s not all upside, and ICRA flagged this clearly. While leverage is expected to increase as the company scales operations, ICRA expects gearing to remain below four times — and the LAS business remains exposed to credit, market, and technology risks, particularly during periods of capital market volatility that could affect the value of pledged securities.

That said, the track record so far has been clean. ICRA drew comfort from Zerodha Group’s long-standing presence in securities broking, robust risk-management practices, and a track record of nil non-performing assets and negligible credit costs in recent years.

The Bottom Line

Zerodha Capital isn’t grabbing headlines the way Zerodha’s broking arm does, but the fundamentals here are solid — strong revenue growth, rising profits, zero bad loans, and a rating agency that’s comfortable with the trajectory. As India’s largest discount broker keeps building out adjacent financial products, ZCPL’s quiet 44% growth is a reminder that the real story at Zerodha might be happening just outside the trading app.

Source: YourStory