Questions? We've got simple answers.

A demat account holds your shares, ETFs, bonds and other securities in electronic form. It works together with a trading account, which you use to buy and sell on the stock exchange. With Bells Buddy, both are opened with Kotak Securities.

• PAN card
• Aadhaar card linked to your mobile number (for e-KYC and e-sign)
• Bank proof – a cancelled cheque or recent bank statement
• Income proof (only for activating F&O, commodities or MTF)
• Signature on white paper and a photograph

The online application usually takes 10–15 minutes. Once Kotak Securities completes verification, your account is activated and you receive your login details by SMS.

Account opening is free. Brokerage, annual maintenance and other charges depend on the plan you choose with Kotak Securities – we'll share the full rate card before you sign up.

It links a Kotak Mahindra Bank savings account with a Kotak Securities (Kotak Neo) demat and trading account. Funds move automatically between your savings and trading account when you trade, and you can apply for IPOs through ASBA while your money keeps earning interest until allotment.

Yes. Besides individual accounts, we can help with joint, minor (operated by a guardian), HUF and NRI (NRE / NRO) accounts. Some of these need additional documents – we'll share the exact checklist.

Yes. You can move holdings from your existing demat account to your new Kotak Securities demat account through a share transfer request. We'll help you fill it in correctly.

We strongly recommend it. A nominee makes it simple for your family to receive your holdings if something happens to you. You can add nominees and their share while opening the account, or later.

An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is when a company offers its shares to the public for the first time before listing on the stock exchange. Investors can apply during the issue period, usually three working days.

Open the IPO section in the Kotak Securities app, choose the issue, enter the number of lots and your bid price, add your UPI ID and submit. Then approve the mandate request in your UPI app before the cut-off time.

The minimum is one lot, which is fixed by the company for each IPO. As a retail individual investor, you can apply for up to ₹2 lakh in an issue.

No. Through UPI / ASBA the amount is only blocked in your bank account. It is debited only if shares are allotted; otherwise the block is released.

You can check it on the registrar's website, the exchange websites or inside the app once allotment is finalised. Allotted shares are credited to your demat account before listing day.

Yes, subject to the minimum application size for SME issues. Public issues of NCDs and bonds can also be applied for through the same account.

MTF lets you buy approved stocks for delivery by paying only a part of the purchase value. The broker funds the balance, and you pay interest on the funded amount for as long as you hold the position.

Only stocks on the broker's approved MTF list can be bought under MTF. The list and the margin required for each stock can change from time to time.

Yes. Shares bought under MTF are pledged as security for the funded amount. You'll receive a request from the depository to approve the pledge with an OTP – please complete it on time.

You pay interest only on the amount funded by the broker, for the number of days you hold the position, plus normal brokerage and pledge charges. Ask us for the current interest rate before you start.

If the value of your MTF stocks falls and your margin drops below the required level, you'll be asked to add funds or shares. If you don't, the broker may sell some or all of the shares. Because MTF uses borrowed money, it can increase both gains and losses.

Once your trading account is active, you can activate MTF from the app by accepting the MTF terms. We'll guide you through it and explain how margins and interest work.

In delivery, you buy shares and hold them in your demat account for as long as you like. In intraday, you buy and sell on the same day, and open positions are squared off before the market closes.

Indian stock markets follow T+1 settlement, so shares bought for delivery are usually credited to your demat account on the next working day.

Futures and options are contracts based on the price of a stock, index or currency. They are used for hedging and trading, and involve leverage, so they carry higher risk.

Submit income proof (such as a recent ITR, salary slip or bank statement) and complete the risk disclosure in the app. Once verified, the segment is activated.

You can trade commodities such as gold, silver, crude oil, natural gas and base metals on MCX once the commodity segment is activated.

Exchange Traded Funds hold a basket of assets, such as an index or gold, and trade on the stock exchange just like shares. They are a simple, low-cost way to diversify.

Yes. Listed bonds, NCDs and government securities can be bought through your account, subject to availability.