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Basic Services Demat Account (BSDA) is a demat account category initiated by SEBI and implemented through CDSL to support small and retail investors in reducing their demat maintenance costs.
Under BSDA, the individual investors get the same benefits as a normal demat account, ensuring full access to all essential demat features, but with lower maintenance and dematerialisation costs, which are usually ideal for investors with relatively smaller portfolios or newcomers to the market.
Eligibility Criteria (as per SEBI & CDSL)
A demat account is categorised as BSDA if:
- An individual resident opens it
- The individual has only one demat account across all depositories under their name as a sole or first holder.
- The total value of holdings is under ₹10 lakhs
- If the holdings value is over ₹10 lakhs, then the account will be automatically converted into a regular demat account.
Benefits of BSDA
- Full access to all demat services, including shares, ETFs, bonds, and mutual funds
- Timely and periodic e-statements as mandated by SEBI/CDSL
- Automatic reclassification of accounts according to the eligibility criteria
- Better affordability and easier trading for first-timers and small retail investors
- Zero AMC for all clients at Flatttrade
Flattrade’s 0 AMC Advantage
Although SEBI/CDSL has allowed AMC slabs for BSDA based on holding value, Flattrade offers 0 AMC for both BSDA and regular customers.
Value of Holdings | Classification | AMC in Flattrade |
Below ₹10 lakhs | BSDA | ₹0 |
Above ₹10 lakhs | Regular Demat a/c | ₹0 |
Why BSDA Matters for investors
Along with Flattrade’s 0 AMC Demat Account, there are other meaningful uses which include,
- Support to retail and first-time investors with simplified compliance
- Promotes wider market participation as per the financial inclusion objective of SEBI
- Offers necessary alerts, statements, and tracking to help investors monitor their portfolio easily.
- In certain situations, investors are unaware that they fall under BSDA and pay unnecessary AMC.
How Flattrade monitors BSDA classification?
At Flattrade, our focus is to keep investing simply and economically.
The accounts are automatically classified based on CDSL data. No additional forms or changes need to be done, it will be automatically available. If the holding value exceeds ₹10 lakhs, then the account will be reclassified, without affecting AMC, which is ₹0 for all clients at Flattrade. Holdings are monitored automatically and regularly in accordance with SEBI, which ensures transparency, compliance, and a seamless experience for all investors.