Nithin Kamath, the founder of Zerodha, a discount broking platform in India, disclosed that the company's decision to maintain zero brokerage on equity delivery trades has cost it around ₹25,620 crore (approximately $3.1 billion USD) over the last nine years. In a recent post on X, Kamath explained that while charging even a small fee of 0.3% per trade could have generated substantial revenue, Zerodha's core philosophy prioritizes customer trust and ethical practices. Unlike most full-service brokers who charge 0.3-0.5%, Zerodha has refrained from imposing any brokerage fees, which has fostered a strong referral-based customer acquisition strategy, with 25-30% of new accounts coming from existing customers. Kamath attributed the company's ability to maintain this model to its bootstrapped nature, stating that the lack of investor pressure allows Zerodha to adhere to its founding principles without compromising on customer interests. He emphasized that this freedom is a significant advantage that the company values highly.