On a recent evening, Nikhil Dawe, a 35-year-old product manager based in Bengaluru, logged into his investment app, not to buy trending stocks, but to contemplate a critical question for his future: Can I retire by 50?
This shift in focus reflects a growing trend among Indian retail investors, according to wealth-tech startups. The boom in retail investing—driven by easy access, low-cost brokerage services, and increased interest in systematic investment plans (SIPs)—is now evolving as users seek long-term wealth creation guidance.
“Rather than asking ‘what should I buy this week,’ many are focusing on ‘how should I allocate for the next five years,’” said Aditya Shankar, co-founder of Centricity WealthTech. “People are beginning to understand that wealth creation is not a one-off decision; it requires consistency, allocation, discipline, and endurance through market cycles.”
This evolution is reshaping the product strategies and revenue models of wealth-tech startups. Funding trends indicate this shift. After a modest $21.7 million was raised across 35 rounds in 2020, investment in India’s wealth-tech sector surged to $139 million in 2021, before temporarily moderating due to tight capital conditions. Funding then rebounded, reaching $142 million in 2024 and continuing into 2025 with $135.9 million across 36 rounds.
“Deal volumes have remained steady, but capital flows highlight periodic investor re-evaluation of the space, with funding reflecting stronger market confidence rather than year-on-year growth,” explained Neha Singh, co-founder of Tracxn.
Moreover, the flow of funds is increasingly directed towards financial planning and advisory platforms, which have attracted $175 million since 2020, indicating a broader trend toward holistic financial management, followed by savings and expense management platforms.
“The industry has matured,” Shankar noted. “Previous revenue models were closely linked to transactional activity and brokerage fees, which are more effective in bullish markets. Now, the focus is shifting toward building enduring relationships.”
At wealth management firm Dezerv, the change is particularly noteworthy. “Approximately 95 percent of our revenue comes from fees for portfolio management services (PMS) and alternative investment funds (AIF),” said co-founder Sandeep Jethwani. This reflects a broader willingness among affluent investors to pay for favorable outcomes, not merely access.
This trend underscores a significant limitation experienced in the initial wave of wealth-tech services: a lack of improved investment outcomes. “Around six in ten portfolios reviewed are underperforming compared to their benchmark indices,” Jethwani remarked, highlighting issues like fragmented portfolios, inadequate asset allocation, and behavioral biases. Consequently, there is a marked shift toward guided investing, which includes portfolio construction and management.
Shobhit Mathur, co-founder of Ionic Wealth, indicated a transition to annuity revenue models, with a notable 25-75 percentage split between transaction-led and asset management-based earnings. He observed that average assets under management (AUM) differ significantly across market segments.
“For emerging high-net-worth individual clients, average AUM is around ₹50 lakh, focusing on mutual funds and publicly traded stocks. In contrast, high-net-worth individuals (HNI) maintain an AUM between ₹1 crore and ₹25 crore, averaging about ₹3 crore over the past year and a half,” he noted.
Geographical dynamics are also shifting. “We’re witnessing substantial participation from tier-2 and tier-3 cities,” Shankar stated. “Wealth creation is now less concentrated in metropolitan areas, indicating that the next phase of wealth generation in India will be more geographically distributed.”
Data from Dezerv reveals that 24 percent of its users are from tier-1 cities, 10 percent hail from tier-2 and tier-3 cities, while the remaining users are from other areas. Notably, investors in smaller cities tend to favor mid-cap, small-cap, and thematic funds, suggesting a higher risk appetite and growing confidence.
Additionally, cost awareness and the adoption of direct mutual fund plans show similar patterns across different regions, challenging the presumption that investors in smaller cities are less sophisticated. “The average number of funds held is comparable across all tiers,” Jethwani pointed out, emphasizing that consistent experiences lead to converging behaviors.
Despite the opportunity for scaling nationally, wealth-tech companies face hurdles, particularly in customer acquisition, which has become more challenging and costly in a crowded digital marketplace. “In the past, the focus was on growth metrics. Today, retention, revenue quality, user engagement, and trust have gained paramount importance,” Shankar explained.
Market volatility also impacts investor behavior. As retail participation surges during market rallies, it declines in periods of volatility, especially among users who perceive platforms merely as execution tools rather than as long-term partners.
This distinction is critical: “Guided customers tend to remain engaged, while purely transactional ones often disengage,” Shankar added. Dezerv, which targets higher-value clients, reports almost 100 percent retention, highlighting the stickiness of advisory-led relationships.
The trajectory for the next phase of wealth-tech growth will be determined by not only onboarding new users but also cultivating deeper engagement and enduring relationships.
India’s wealth-tech sector stands at a pivotal moment. The first decade focused on accessibility, affordability, and digitization. Now, the goal shifts toward delivering tangible outcomes—assisting investors in navigating complexities, circumventing behavioral pitfalls, and fostering sustainable wealth.
As Singh articulates, the sector’s growth hinges on meeting the demand for accessible, low-cost wealth management and advisory solutions. Ultimately, the significant opportunity for wealth-tech startups lies in not only onboarding more investors but also ensuring their ongoing engagement and success within the market.
