01 / 05
“Only about two to three percent of India’s population is invested. The two primary reasons are lack of awareness and lack of access.”
Anurag Garg
Episode 1B
Vantage Point
Democratising Wealth Management for 195 Million Households
India does not have a wealth-product problem. It has an access, trust and distribution problem. Anurag Garg explains what is Broken in mass-market investing, what must be Fixed in onboarding and regulation, and what can be Built through local-language advice and distributor-led technology.
With Anurag Garg - CEO, Nivesh
Key Insights
01
Access fails before product choice begins.
Anurag puts India’s invested population at only two to three percent. Awareness, access and a history of trust failures prevent many households from entering a long-term investment journey at all.
02
Local language is financial infrastructure.
Risk, suitability and investment instructions cannot remain English-only if platforms want to serve the mass market. Simplicity and local-language journeys are not cosmetic; they are part of distribution.
03
Distribution can beat direct acquisition.
Nivesh chose a distributor-led B2B2C model instead of competing for the same digitally fluent consumers. Technology equips offline advisers to serve more customers while preserving a trusted human relationship.
04
Banks cannot patch their way into wealthtech.
Short-term product incentives and legacy systems work against patient, independent wealth advice. Anurag argues that banks need ground-up technology—or a genuinely independent structure—to compete.
05
Regulatory friction becomes a tax on scale.
Repeated KYC, adviser certification and one-by-one manufacturer integrations create drop-off and consume operating capacity. Removing those frictions would let fintechs spend more time creating customer value.
The Conversation
The barrier appears before the first investment.
Low penetration is not simply a demand problem. Nivesh’s model treats access, trust, language and suitable advice as one connected design challenge, then uses local distributors as the bridge to customers.
Anurag GargOnly about two to three percent of the Indian population is invested. There are two primary reasons: lack of awareness and lack of access.
Anurag GargWe had to keep things very simple and in local language. English is not really understood, and that is another important reason penetration has been so low.
Anurag GargWe took a distributor-led approach. Partners provide a contemporary technology experience to customers, give them access to the best products and grow their own business in turn.
Banks are optimised for this quarter, not a ten-year journey.
Wealth management often sits behind deposits, lending and higher-yielding products inside a bank. That incentive structure makes patient, lower-margin mutual-fund relationships—and the technology they require—harder to prioritise.
Anurag GargFor banks, wealth management comes number three or four in priority. The incentive system is oriented towards making more money in the short term.
Anurag GargYou need to build technology from the ground up. You really cannot do patchwork to the existing system and hope that it will work.
Anurag GargMost of our customers already had bank accounts, but they never invested with their existing banks. Instead, they chose to come to us.
Every extra form becomes a reason not to begin.
Fintech does not operate outside regulation; it often works inside rules designed for offline distribution. Adviser certification and repeated KYC add friction precisely where first-time investors are most likely to drop out.
Anurag GargThe regulatory framework has not really caught up with what fintechs need. We still operate within a traditional framework suited to the offline way of doing business.
Anurag GargFor a mutual fund, a fresh KYC is required even while the customer already has a bank account and a permanent account number.
Anurag GargThe more friction you create, the more difficult it is for a new customer to come in.
A bank can buy a startup faster than it can become one.
Anurag’s answer is deliberately blunt: a bank cannot recreate the model while retaining the same infrastructure and operating logic. An independent entity or acquisition is more plausible—but India’s market is large enough for several models.
Anurag GargMy one-line answer is that banks will not be able to do it. They have been trying for years.
Anurag GargUnless they create an independent entity and do it differently, the way startups are doing, it is virtually impossible with similar infrastructure and technology.
Anurag GargThe market is very large. Even if there are multiple players and banks start offering these services, there is opportunity for everyone with different models.
Big tech’s reach may create tomorrow’s specialist customer.
The enabling ecosystem may enter wealth management, but Anurag sees expansion rather than extinction. Large platforms can introduce more people to investing; customers who later need specialised advice may move to dedicated wealth platforms.
Anurag GargI see big tech as a positive thing because it will help us expand the market. Because of their reach, they will bring in new customers.
Anurag GargOnce customers start investing and realise specialisation is required, they will probably come to our kind of platform.
Anurag GargWe do not see them as serious competition. They will open the market and benefit specialised players like us.
The next unlock is less glamorous than another app.
The final wishlist is operational: modernise regulation and simplify integrations with product manufacturers. Both would release time and capital for the work that matters—helping customers begin and sustain investment journeys.
Anurag GargThe regulatory framework is a big pain. If all of that could change, it would be a dream come true.
Anurag GargFor various products, we have to integrate with various manufacturers. We bring them onto the platform one by one and spend an inordinate amount of time and energy doing it.
Laksh GangwaniMaking it easier to onboard products from different manufacturers and funds lets fintechs focus on creating value for the customer.
In The Room
Host
Laksh Gangwani
Founder, Digijanus
Laksh Gangwani is Founder of Digijanus and a C-level executive at a global financial institution. He has built and scaled capital markets and wealthtech businesses from scratch across the Asia-Pacific region, helping institutions connect to global markets faster. Recognised as WealthBriefing Asia’s Leading Individual in 2021. Digijanus reaches over 80,000 followers and growing.
Guest
Anurag Garg
CEO, Nivesh
Anurag Garg is CEO of Nivesh, a digital wealth platform focused on widening access to investment products in India. He leads a distributor-enabled model that equips individual financial advisers with technology, curated products and local-language journeys for customers beyond the country’s traditionally served investor base. His work focuses on independent product selection, simplified risk communication and reducing friction across KYC, adviser certification and product integration. At Nivesh, Garg is building a B2B2C approach designed to help advisers grow while bringing more households into long-term investing.
Questions answered in this episode
What is digital wealth management, and how can it widen access?
Digital wealth management combines technology, curated investment products and advice. Nivesh uses distributors and local-language journeys to reach customers who have not invested through banks or direct platforms.
How can fintech platforms improve financial inclusion?
They can simplify risk communication, support local languages, equip trusted advisers with technology and reduce friction across KYC and product onboarding.
Why do customers choose specialised wealth platforms over banks?
Customers may value independent advice, multiple products, clearer suitability and technology designed specifically for long-term investing.
What is a B2B2C wealth-management platform?
It is a model in which a technology platform enables distributors or advisers who then serve end customers.
How can fintech CEOs scale wealth products through distributor-led models?
They can partner with existing advisers, digitise their workflows and give them curated products and contemporary customer experiences.
Why do bank wealth platforms struggle to serve mass-market investors?
Wealth may rank behind deposits, lending and higher-yielding products, while legacy technology and short-term incentives make ground-up transformation difficult.
What should banking heads of digital consider when building wealth technology?
They should consider purpose-built systems, independent product advice, local-language access, risk suitability and an operating model that rewards long-term relationships.
How can banks reduce KYC and investment-onboarding friction?
They can simplify repeated checks, reuse verified customer information where regulation permits and reduce the number of forms and handoffs for first-time investors.
Why is wealth-management penetration low in India?
The episode identifies low awareness, limited access, trust concerns, English-only journeys and regulatory friction as major barriers.
How can wealth management reach 195 million Indian households?
A distributor-led model can combine trusted local relationships with technology, curated products and local-language journeys.
How can local-language investing expand financial inclusion in India?
It makes instructions, risk concepts and investment choices easier to understand for customers not well served by English-only platforms.
What role can mutual-fund distributors play in India’s digital wealth market?
They can become technology-enabled partners who bring suitable products and digital experiences to customers while growing their advisory businesses.