Share market catches the fancy of state youths

Navneet Rathore

Shimla, July 6

The share market has caught the fancy of people of Himachal Pradesh as 3.1 lakh of them have got registered with the National Stock Exchange (NSE) between January 2022 and May 2024. The number includes mostly youths.

According to the NSE, there are around 5.7 lakh total registered retail investors from Himachal Pradesh. Data till May 31 reveals that out of the total investors, 42 per cent are below the age of 30, while 33 per cent are in the 30-39 year age bracket. Similarly, 15 per cent of the total retail investors fall in the 40-49 age category. There are only 6 per cent retail investors between 50 and 59 years of age. The lowest number of retail investors — 4 per cent — fall in the 60 year and above age group.

Over the past few years, the number of retail investors in the country as well as the state has surged mainly due to the rise in the number of trading apps and also due impact of social media. The investors, especially youths, are attracted to the market as they see an opportunity to escape the 9-to-5 job routine and a possibility of gaining financial independence.

While most retail investors interested in long-term investments like SIP and Mutual Funds, the youth are keen to invest in Future and Options due to the possibility of getting huge returns in a short span of time. Apart from shares, people of the state also trade in cryptocurrencies.

The rise in the interest in investing and trading has also given an opportunity to scammers to dupe innocent investors by promising them huge returns on investments. The number of online trading frauds are on the rise in the country and state as well.

‘Beware of scammers’

In June, Himachal Pradesh police had revealed that people of the state had lost more than Rs 4 crore in the past one month to cybercriminals by way of online trading and investing money in IPOs and blockchain

To prevent cybercrimes, the police had also issued guidelines for the people advising them to refrain from sharing personal information or downloading suspicious apps or accessing such websites. The police also advised the people to be cautious while using online trading apps and conduct a thorough verification with NSE, BSE and SEBI to ensure the authenticity and credibility of the trading apps.

Recently, the NSE had opened its Investor Service Centre in Shimla. It has also plans to conduct workshops and seminars for the investors of the state in the near future.