nikhil kamath is worth roughly $3.1 billion. that figure comes from forbes. he sits among india’s youngest billionaires. in january forbes ranked him 20th on its 40 under 40 list. the number then was $3.3 billion.
people hear a story like this and assume he grew up with money. not the case. in the early 2000s he worked nights at a bengaluru call centre. it was called 24/7. his pay was about $1,000 a year. that works out to roughly ₹88,000. for the whole year.
the early years: call centre to co-founder
five years later he started zerodha with his brother nithin. today zerodha is india’s largest brokerage. the brothers own the whole thing. no outside investors. forbes thinks the company is worth close to $8 billion. nikhil is the chief financial officer. his salary is reported at ₹72 crore a year.
beyond zerodha: true beacon, gruhas
but zerodha is not his only thing. he started true beacon in 2019. it manages money for ultra rich people. the main strategy has done 16.6% cagr since it began. the nifty did 14% in the same time. he handed daily running of it to a professional team.
in 2021 he started gruhas with abhijeet pai. it is a venture fund. they back proptech, cleantech, and consumer companies. lately the focus moved to energy transition.
he also has a podcast called wtf. it started in 2023. it has become his main thing now. he has talked to tanmay bhatt, ritesh agarwal, and many others. he has 676,000 followers on instagram.
he has put money into startups like licious, third wave coffee, and pee safe. he wants to give grants to young founders. not loans. not equity. grants. for people under 25.
investment philosophy: cautious when others are greedy
his own investing style is careful. he turned cautious on stocks in late 2020 and never changed. about 40% of his money is in equity. that means he lags the nifty when markets run. one year he made 25% while the nifty did better. that happened because he holds a lot of debt and gold.
he does not use mutual funds much. he buys stocks directly. except a small bit in zerodha mutual fund. he likes private markets more. venture capital and private equity. he thinks the risk reward is better there.
what investors can learn
start somewhere. a call centre job is still a start.
build without raising money if you can. own your company fully.
do not rely on one business. he has four or five.
be careful when everyone else is excited. he was cautious in 2020 while others were greedy.
stick to what you understand. he buys stocks he has researched. not tips.
frequently asked questions
1. how did he start his career?
he worked night shifts at a bengaluru call centre in the early 2000s. he earned about ₹88,000 a year.
2. what is zerodha worth?
forbes estimates nearly $8 billion. the kamath brothers own 100% of it.
3. what other businesses does he run?
true beacon for investment management. gruhas for venture capital. the wtf podcast.
4. how much does he earn as salary?
₹72 crore per year.
