Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath said India must tackle wealth inequality, that its stocks are cheap and that startups should raise money now because AI funding is set to tighten. He also argued against co-location for high-frequency traders.
He was speaking at the NDTV World Summit, which ranged from markets and AI to China, jobs and his own advice for the young.
Fix Inequality
Kamath said wealth gaps will not narrow unless wages keep pace with asset prices. "As long as wage growth in society is not going to keep up with asset price inflation, logically it's impossible for wealth inequality to come down.So government has to probably be interventionist in some way," he said.
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He opposed taxing what people earn in their lifetime, but backed a tax on wealth passed between generations, provided it does not force founders to sell equity to pay tax on unrealised gains. "It's probably not the worst idea in the world," he said.
Cheap Stocks
Kamath said he is 90% allocated to equities. "Valuations are great today in many, many sectors," he said, adding that he can buy quality banks, IT services and pharma companies at 11-13 times earnings. "I can't remember another time where I've had opportunities like that."
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AI Funding Crunch
He warned that raising money will get harder in 2027. About $1 trillion a year is going into AI, he said, while enterprise revenue coming out is perhaps $100-200 billion. "That gap of 700, 800 billion a year has to be bridged from somewhere," he said, citing rising US Treasury rates. "If somebody is able to raise a lot of capital today and keep it, probably not a bad idea."
No Colocation
On market structure, Kamath said retail traders need a level playing field. "Should co-location exist where certain people are allowed to execute faster than the retail client? In my view, probably not," he said. He also backed interspersing algorithmic orders with retail orders so that algos get no edge, and said taxes should apply to income, not the cost of transacting.
More Speculators, More Brokers
Kamath defended speculators, saying removing them would damage price discovery and "put us back 10 years". He argued most retail losses come from transaction taxes, charges and impact costs. With under 5% of Indians investing in equities, he said India needs "hundreds of Grows and hundreds of Zerodhas".
Where India Can Win In AI
Kamath doubted India can compete in frontier models, given China and the US have far more risk capital. He sees an opening in inference, running open-source models for companies that want to keep their data private. Power and data-centre costs in India are 30-40% lower than in the West, he said.
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Lessons From China
He said states could compete like companies, with chief ministers acting as CEOs if the upside stays with the state. He also praised China's amnesty for failed entrepreneurs in the 1990s and said Indian society looks down on failure. He expects a more fragmented world, with India possibly building its own social media.
Brands For The World
Kamath said his Foundry programme backs consumer brands aimed at the US market. He recalled Satya Nadella telling him he touches no Indian product in a day. He called quick commerce a "labour arbitrage" business and suggested pairing $500-1,000-a-month engineers with technology to serve overseas customers.
Advice To The Young
Asked about dropping out of school, Kamath said it worked for him because he was lucky and the timing was right. "Would I recommend it for everyone? Probably not."
For a 17-year-old, he suggested building on the application layer. With Rs 10 lakh and no Zerodha, he said he would make content, since "taste and nuance and having distribution" will matter more as manufacturing is automated. He urged ideas like giving every child equity in an index fund to help young Indians.
Change Your Mind Fast
Kamath said there are no superhumans. The trait that sets successful people apart, he said, is "the ability to change your mind and change your mind fast". "The people I find appealing are people who are not certain," he said.
He has "delayed gratification" tattooed on his hand as a reminder. "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you" is also tattooed on his hand.
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