What is the Minimum Sum Required to Buy Shares in India?

The amazing beauty of investing in shares is that you can start with ridiculously small amount that is not possible with other classes of assets like real estate and gold. Let us list the benefits:

1. The unit price or cost or sum required is tiny.
2. There is no minimum quantity to be purchased (MOQ) stipulation (fractions are not allowed, of course).  One unit or any multiple can be bought.
3. The transaction costs like taxes, brokerage, and annual maintenance charges are reasonable affordable.
4. Investments are highly liquid. In case of an emergency one may sell instantly and realize the money within a week.

In India shares of a good number of respectable companies are available for less than Rs.35 ($0.50) apiece.  There are two candidates in our own educational ‘Portfolio 2K15’ itself that meet this criterion:

Less than Rs.50 ($.0.50) Stocks

If we were to think about mutual funds or SIPs one can invest as low as Rs.50. Please also read 'What is the Minimum SIP Subscription Amount and Best SIP?'.

All in all in my opinion one should be able to complete all the necessary things required like opening a trading account, opening a demat) account (account for holding stocks in a dematerialized form) and linking an already existing account with the trading/ demat account for receiving dividends, within Rs.500 to 1000. If you do not have a bank account, you may require another Rs.1000 to 5000 as a minimum deposit or balance as per bank’s norms.

However, for the investments to be meaningful and be able to give you ‘Financial Freedom’ you must consider investing larger amounts, every month, for about forty years. Following picture depicts the net wealth you may expect to accumulate after 40 years when you invest various amounts:

Comparative Investment Results for Various Monthly Investment Sums

In conclusion one can invest in shares for a sum as low as Rs.28 and in SIP Rs.50 and slowly and gradually build a formidable wealth from such humble beginnings.