Latest update:04 Nov 2025 at 2:11 PM IST

Nithin Kamath quickly responded to Dr. Malpani’s post and clarified that his payment requests had been processed.

He claimed that the platform prevented him from withdrawing more than Rs 5 crore in a single day. (Image source: X)

A Mumbai-based investor has accused popular online brokerage Zerodha of running a “scam” after he allegedly was unable to withdraw more than Rs 5 crore from his standing account. According to this post, Dr Anirudh Malpani had Rs 18 crore in his withdrawable balance.

Dr Malpani, an IVF specialist and angel investor, shared screenshots of his Zerodha account on X (formerly Twitter). The images showed a total account value of Rs 42.9 crore, a user margin of around Rs 24.46 crore locked in trades and a withdrawable balance of Rs 18.46 crore. He claimed that the platform prevented him from withdrawing more than Rs 5 crore in a single day.

Investor calls it a ‘Zerodha scam’

In his post, Dr. Malpani wrote: “Zerodha scam! They are not letting me withdraw my own money from their account, saying the daily withdrawal limit is Rs 5 crore. They are using my money for free!” He also tagged Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath, demanding an explanation.

A screenshot of the Zerodha app shared by Dr Malpani said, “A maximum of Rs 5 crore can be withdrawn per day. For instant withdrawals, the request should be between Rs 100 and Rs 200,000 per day. The withdrawal limit is subject to availability of withdrawable balance in the trading account.”

Zerodha co-founder responded

Nithin Kamath quickly responded to Dr. Malpani’s post and clarified that his payment requests had been processed.

“Hi Doctor, Your payment requests were processed yesterday. We need to ensure, for the integrity of our systems (like all other financial services companies), that we have some checks when customers withdraw money. As you can imagine, many potential issues can arise during the withdrawal process, and once the money is paid, there is no way for us to recover it. Rs 5 crore is the minimum at which we ask customers to create tickets for withdrawal,” Kamath explained.

Internet reacts to ‘Zerodha Scam’ claim.

Soon after, the post became the focus of online discussion. Some users questioned the huge amount appearing in his account, while others warned him against publicly revealing such sensitive financial details.

A user commented, “Why are you keeping Rs 18 crore in Zerodha? I mean it is after all a discount broker. You have enough guts to trust a discount broker with all this money. I understand this is mainly for FnO. Wouldn’t it be much better if it is done through a full service brokerage where the bank account and the broker are the same. I hope you will consider keeping these financial details private for your own safety.”

Dr Malpani replied: “No – I don’t do any F&O – I don’t understand it. I sold shares, and I want to withdraw my money so I can use it to fund more social impact initiatives.”

“I hope you will consider keeping these financial details private for your personal safety,” another person wrote, while another person added: “For your own good, please do not disclose these amounts publicly. You will have a field day with all sorts of mischief out there.”

Even as the discussion continued, many users also used a humorous tone. “My first thought would be itne paise hote hi nhi hai,” one person said, while another joked: “These are the kind of problems I need in life.”

Industry expert weighs in

Meanwhile, Ajay Ruti, Founder and CEO, Tax Compass, also shared his view. He disagreed with the “fraud” claim and defended Zerodha’s withdrawal policy, saying such controls are intended to protect users from potential fraud.

He wrote: “It’s not a scam. I’d rather deal with a broker that has controls like this and prevents actual scams of someone cleaning out my account in a day!! There’s a way to increase that limit. But, no… everything should be called a ‘scam’!!!”

Rutte also explained that banks and online payment systems have similar daily limits for security reasons. “There is a reason why banks also set daily transfer limits to beneficiaries… a UPI limit per day. All to ensure that there is no illicit withdrawal in a single transaction. People need to be aware of these limits and plan their transactions if they want to do it online,” he said. He also pointed out that customers have the option to lift these limits instead of calling the whole thing an online scam.

Who is Dr. Anirudh Malpani?

Dr. Anirudh Malpani, a Mumbai-based IVF specialist, entrepreneur and angel investor, has built a career that expands into both the healthcare and startup ecosystem. His journey began in 1991 when he established Malpani Infertility Clinic.

According to market intelligence platform Tracxn, Dr. Malpani has a diversified portfolio having invested in over 30 companies across sectors such as enterprise technology, healthcare and several startups. His most recent investment was in Nexxio during its seed round in January this year. Apart from his investments, Dr. Malpani continues to serve as a Board Member of Malpani Infertility Clinic.

Staff

The team of writers at News18.com bring you stories about what’s buzzing on the internet while exploring science, cricket, technology, sex, Bollywood and culture.

The team of writers at News18.com bring you stories about what’s buzzing on the internet while exploring science, cricket, technology, sex, Bollywood and culture.

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