Minor Demat Account: Can a Minor Buy Stocks?

A minor can have a demat account through a parent or legal guardian, subject to the broker's current rules.

However, a minor demat account should not be confused with an adult trading account. Transaction and trading permissions are restricted.

For example, current broker-specific rules can permit certain securities to be held or sold while restricting fresh purchases or speculative products. Groww's current minor-demat documentation, for example, states that its minor account is available for children below 16 and places restrictions on secondary-market stock purchases, intraday, F&O and margin-related products.

This illustrates why parents should verify the current broker-specific rules before opening an account.

What can a minor demat account potentially be used for?

Depending on the broker and applicable regulations, a minor demat structure may allow ownership of securities such as:

• Equity Shares

• ETFs

• IPO Allocations

• Certain other permitted securities

However, a minor cannot simply begin independent stock trading at 15, 16 or 17.

Minor Demat Account vs Adult Trading Account

Platform rules can change, so this table should always be checked against the broker's current documentation.