The Hindu Business Line : The Kolkata investor comes of age

Scenario One: The investor populace in Kolkata is growing at a scorching pace, with the city contributing more and more to the national tally, especially on the equities front.

Scenario Two: All categories of intermediaries - including stock brokers and distributors of financial products - are recording a relentless increase in business volumes. Some have seen record turnover getting generated from neighbourhoods that were till recently considered non-traditional or even offbeat.

If you thought the two scenarios were too utopian, it's time to do a re-think. The Kolkata investor, splurging as he is on consumer goods, entertainment and leisure, has really upped his allocation to stocks, well in line with his counterpart in such other affluent markets as Delhi and Mumbai.

Mr Ajit Khandelwal of broking firm BNK Securities has a simple explanation for all this: The Kolkata investor, he notes, has come of age. Many young people, including those from families that have hitherto invested in a traditional manner, are these days turning towards stocks. And equities have started contributing to a very sizeable portion of their portfolios.

The trend has resulted in a moveable feast for broking companies, many of which have been energetically reaching out to newer clients through franchisees. While there are quite a few large, national players in the fray, local brokerages too are living up to the idea, it is pointed out.

Mr Vijay Kothari of Angel Broking, which has a countrywide expansion plan in place, feels that the going has been good so far. The city's new-found love for equities has found reflection in the kind of business broking houses are notching up these days.

While it is difficult to map the latest trends in terms of raw statistics, local investment circles suggest that Kolkata investors - or, at least an influential section of them - were always savvy when it came to the stock market. Lyons Range regulars, who point out that Kolkata once had a marked liking for badla, recall that the city was not too long ago known for its close associations with a number of heavy-weight nationally-known names.

Mr Atul Gupta, who is associated with a city-based distribution outfit, is of the view that the new-generation Kolkata investor has learnt to take risk in a more receptive manner. Equity, therefore, is a preferred option for many. However, it is not that the average investor is careless, recklessly taking risk with little interest in fixed-income. Instead, he is open to the idea of diversification. Real estate and commodities have lately come up in a big way and the true-blue investor has not stayed away from these emerging asset classes.

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