Mumbai: The number of stock brokers operating in the cash segment almost halved to 3,195 in April this year, while a dip was seen in the numbers of sub-brokers and that of brokers in equity and currency derivatives markets as well.
According to the latest Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) data, the total number of registered brokers in the cash segment stood at the end of 3,195 at the end of April -- down from 6,147 a month ago.
Besides, the number of sub-brokers in the cash segment also declined to 41,625 as on April 30, 2015 -- from 42,351 a month ago.
Some market experts said that some brokers have been forced to shut shops, while their numbers have also declined in the recent years because of the emergence of the concept of the 'Authorised Person' (APs).
This concept facilitates the registered stock brokers of stock exchanges to provide access to clients through these Authorised Persons.
AP's role is akin to that of a sub-broker, like assisting investors in buying, selling or dealing in securities through stock-brokers. The AP is required to be approved only by stock exchange and does not need any registration with Sebi.
"Lot of intermediaries had to shut shop due to lack of retail participation. However, as the capital markets will improve the number of investors will go up and so the number of such brokers should also go up," Motilal Oswal Securities' Ravi Shenoy told PTI.
"Another factor for the decline in the number of brokers is digitisation. A lot of investors are trading through the Internet and mobile apps and don't approach local brokers now," Shenoy added.
The SEBI data also showed that the number of brokers in the equity derivative segment fell to 2,810 in April, from 2,990 at the end of March.
In the currency derivative segment, brokers' count declined from 2,406 to 1,985 in the same period.
