HDFC SKY App Review: 3 Important Aspects Explained

If you are reading this HDFC SKY App Review, you are looking for clarity on HDFC SKY. HDFC Securities Limited, a subsidiary of HDFC Bank, has recently launched its discount broking investment and trading app called HDFC SKY. In this post, I will walk you through all the essential aspects of HDFC SKY.

What is HDFC SKY?

HDFC SKY is a trading and investment app based on the discount broking model launched by HDFC Securities. HDFC SKY allows you to trade and invest in a wide range of financial products, including Equity, Mutual Funds, ETF, US Stocks, Futures and Options, Currency, and Commodity.

I see it as more of an initiative by HDFC Securities to fit in the discount broking environment. HDFC Securities has always been known as one of the most expensive online brokers, with high account opening charges, high AMC, and high brokerage charges.

I had my first demat account opened with HDFC Securities. However, I had to switch to Zerodha at one point since HDFC Securities had high charges while charges were much lower in Zerodha. Unlike HDFC Securities, HDFC SKY has good documentation, offering excellent clarity on charges and features.

HDFC SKY App Review: Charges

As HDFC SKY is based on a discount broking model, the charges differ a lot from HDFC Securities. While HDFC Securities charges ₹999 for account opening, HDFC SKY allows customers to open an account for free. Besides, customers don't have to pay any AMC for the first year. The platform will charge an AMC of ₹240 from the next year. The AMC is pretty much like any other discount broker.

It's time to look at the brokerage charges. And HDFC SKY's brokerage charges are:

• Equity Delivery & Intraday: ₹20 or 0.1% (Whichever is Lower).
• US Stocks: 5 cents per Share.
• All Segment Futures Intraday and Carry Forward: ₹20 or 0.1% (Whichever is Lower).
• All Segment Options Intraday and Carry Forward: ₹20 per order.
• Currency Futures Intraday and Carry Forward: ₹20 or 0.1% (whichever is lower).
• Commodity Futures Intraday and Carry Forward: ₹20 or 0.1% (whichever is lower).
• ETF Intraday and Delivery: ₹20 or 0.1% (whichever is lower).

It's essential to bear in mind that HDFC SKY charges brokerage on Equity Delivery and ETFs, while most discount brokers don't charge any brokerage fee on Equity Delivery and ETFs. Besides, the charges on Equity Intraday and Futures are comparatively higher than leading discount brokers like Zerodha. While Zerodha charges ₹ 20 or 0.03% (whichever is lower) per executed on Equity Intraday and Futures, HDFC SKY charges ₹20 or 0.1% (Whichever is Lower).

HDFC SKY App Review: Features

• HDFC SKY offers excellent Market Overview & Market Depth Data
• The platform has excellent applications across web and mobile platforms
• The discount broker comes with Tradingview and ChartIQ charting tools
• The applications have a fast interface for quick trades
• HDFC SKY offers a wide range of financial products for trading and investing
• Besides, the platform allows users to invest in US Stocks
• The platform has good Documentation and FAQs for quick reference

HDFC SKY App Review: Pros & Cons

Pros

• ₹0 charges for account opening
• No AMC for the first year
• Wide range of financial products
• Allows investment in US Stocks
• Clean and fast interface
• Excellent Market Overview
• Excellent Market Depth Data
• Reliable applications across web and mobile platforms

Cons

• Equity Delivery and ETFs are not brokerage-free
• Brokerage charges slightly higher than leading discount brokers like Zerodha
• No phone or live chat support

You may also like to read: Best trading app in India.

Conclusion

In this HDFC SKY App review, I have explained every important thing that you need to know about HDFC SKY. Even though launching HDFC SKY seems to be a nice initiative by HDFC Securities to acclimatize to the discount broking environment, it still may not be attractive to traders and investors who are already using some of the leading online discount brokers since it's new and the charges are comparatively higher.

I strongly feel the platform needs to be more generous about its pricing to fit in the discount broking environment. Considering how HDFC SKY appears currently, there is nothing so unique about the platform. I don't see any reason for people to choose HDFC SKY over other leading discount brokers like Zerodha or Upstox. Besides, the broker needs to work on its customer support since it's only limited to tickets at the moment.