Priyanka Tiwari
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Equity market uncertainty in February 2025 triggered a sharp decline in new investor registrations on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). The number of new accounts dropped by 31.2% compared to January, driven by concerns over tariffs, corporate earnings slowdown, and high valuations.
All regions recorded a dip, with West India seeing the steepest decline of over 41%. Despite the overall fall, Northern India remained the leader, contributing 40.5% of all new investor registrations for the month.
Uttar Pradesh Tops in New Investor Additions
Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of new registrations at 1.6 lakh, though this reflected a 27% drop from January. Maharashtra followed with 1.3 lakh new investors.
Other major contributors in February included:
West Bengal: 79,300
Tamil Nadu: 78,300
Bihar: 67,200
Gujarat: 65,100
Karnataka: 63,400
Rajasthan: 57,400
Madhya Pradesh: 53,300
Andhra Pradesh: 49,100
Telangana: 40,900
Delhi: 40,000
Uttar Pradesh accounted for 14.5% of all new registrations across India.
Maharashtra Holds Largest Overall Investor Base
Maharashtra retained its dominance in the total investor base with a 16.3% share, followed by:
Uttar Pradesh: 11.3%
Gujarat: 8.8%
West Bengal: 5.8%
Rajasthan: 5.7%
Karnataka: 5.5%
Regionally, the breakdown of total registered investors is:
North India: 4.1 crore
West India: 3.4 crore
South India: 2.3 crore
East India: 1.3 crore
Younger Demographics Fuel Market Participation
Investors under 30 years old made up 39.6% of the NSE investor base in February 2025, up from 22.6% in March 2019. The average age dropped from 41.3 years to 35.8, and the median age declined from 38 to 32 in the same period.
Women's Participation in Investing Continues to Rise
Women comprised 24.3% of all individual investor registrations in February. Some states exceeded this national average:
Maharashtra: 28.2%
Gujarat: 27.8%
Tamil Nadu: 27.8%
Karnataka: 27.3%
States with lower female investor representation included:
Rajasthan: 20.2%
Madhya Pradesh: 21.7%
Uttar Pradesh: 18.5%
Goa led with the highest female participation at 32.4%, while Lakshadweep had the lowest at 15.2%.
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