An Important Note for the Customers about Groww NRI
We thank you for placing your trust with Groww’s NRI services and being one of our early users.
Our mission has been to make the process of investing in India seamless and 100% digital for NRIs.
However, due to recent changes in KYC compliance, NRIs would now require Aadhaar validation for their KYC. This has led to many unpredictable order rejections and poor experience. A lot of NRIs don’t have Aadhaar and access to e-Aadhaar is not enabled in many countries abroad.
Because of these challenges, we've decided to pause our Groww NRI services. Going forward, we will not be opening new accounts or processing new investments on the platform.
While our platform will be paused, our NRI team will be working with regulators to represent the NRI community's challenges in the right forums. We hope to resume Groww NRI services when we have conviction that we can offer a seamless world-class investing experience without any issues.
Reasons Behind Pausing Groww NRI
For Account opening, users are required to validate their documents to ensure seamless investing. For NRIs, as the source of documents submitted digitally, i.e., scanned copies of documents, cannot be verified digitally, physical document submission is required through courier. Also, it took a lot of work for customers to submit documents like notarised overseas address proof and Aadhaar card.
Further, recent changes in KYC compliance to invest in mutual funds requires validating the user's identity via e-Aadhar.
Challenges in opening new MF investment account:
Physical KYC - Validation and Notarisation:
As mentioned earlier, the physical submission of KYC documents is a crucial step for NRIs. These documents, which require physical verification in India, need to be couriered to our Indian office.
However, the availability of international courier services for doorstep pickup is limited, and the services are primarily concentrated in popular cities, not to mention the associated costs.
Another essential document is 'overseas address proof.' Users must submit a notarized copy of this document, such as the latest utility bills, tenancy certificates, or any other locally issued document with their name and present overseas address.
The fees for notarization alone can range from ₹4000 - ₹5000 per document (converted as per local currencies). The costs can escalate further if the notarized documents require translation, especially for documents generated in non-English languages.
Many private notaries charge hefty prices to notarize a resident's address proof. Public notary centers and Embassies demand your physical presence and are often time-consuming.
New KYC compliance requires KYC Validation via Aadhar:
The Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) directed the KYC Registration Agency (KRAs) to streamline the validation of users' KYC using standardized documents like Aadhar starting April 1, 2024 (Circular). With SEBI's new norms coming into play, you re-submit your investment KYC with your Aadhar information (including a valid e-Aadhaar with scannable QR) to avoid redoing your KYC each time you invest in a new fund house.
For NRIs, obtaining and maintaining Aadhar is a hassle due to multiple reasons like -
- Aadhar is only issued in person at the Indian Aadhar Seva Kendra, and the original Indian passport must be presented for it.
- Only Indian mobile numbers can be registered in Aadhar details, meaning NRIs should have an active Indian mobile number to submit or extract Aadhar details online.
- The Aadhar ecosystem is blocked in many overseas countries due to cyber security threats, making online extraction of e-Aadhar, Digi locker documents, or Aadhar with scannable QR difficult outside of India.
Suppose your KYC status is on hold, and you do not have an Aadhaar card. In that case, you must submit an acceptable OVD (Officially Valid Document) and register the KYC with the respective fund house directly to invest.
How to Continue your NRI Investment Journey?
If you have made investments on Groww NRI, do not worry your investments are secure. You can manage, transact and modify details in your investments as well. Details of your investments are securely held by respective Asset Management Companies (AMCs) where you have invested and Registrar and Transfer Agencies (RTAs). For transacting in your folios, you can use platforms like CAMS, MF Central, AMC Websites or MFU Online.
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A short guide to use platforms like CAMS, MF Central, AMC Websites or MFU Online fro NRIs :
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Data Privacy:
Your data is safe with us as our ecosystem is equipped with the best security measures and safeguards to protect users' privacy and personal information from loss, unauthorized access, misuse, destruction, disclosure, and any alteration of the information in compliance with applicable laws. You can read more about it here.
We also take a proactive approach to conducting security audits and vulnerability assessments. Rest assured, protecting users' data is our top priority, and we will ensure that the utmost care is taken to protect your data privacy.
Moreover, any information regarding your investments shared on the Groww NRI platform is managed through RTA (Registrar and Transfer Agents) since AMCs (Asset Management Company) work is to manage the funds.
RTA is a record keeper for your transactions, including any change in your personal information, buying or redeeming, or downloading monthly statements such as CAS (Consolidated Account Statements). The AMCs choose the RTA.
There are two leading RTAs in India:
- CAMS (Computer Age Management Services) and
- Karvy (K-fintech)
The user's information is secure with the RTAs (Registrar and Transfer Agent) since AMCs (Asset Management Company) works to manage the funds.
Conclusion:
Given the intricacies of new regulatory norms involving changes in KYC compliance and hurdles during user onboarding, Groww NRI has decided to pause its operations to avoid poor user experience.
Existing users can keep track of their funds or continue investing by opening an account with MF Central or MFU Online.
While our platform will be paused, our NRI team will work with regulators to represent the NRI community's challenges in the right forums. We hope to resume Groww NRI services when we are confident that we can offer a seamless, world-class investing experience without any issues.
Existing users can keep track of their funds or continue investing by opening an account with MF Central or MFU Online. Users needing clarification regarding the closure can find the FAQs mentioned below helpful.
FAQs:
Why is Groww NRI pausing?
When we launched Groww NRI, we focused on making investing in the Indian market frictionless for NRIs/PIOs/OCI cardholders. We aimed to develop digital solutions to improve the account opening and KYC process and offer direct mutual funds.
However, certain complications have risen in the ecosystem with the changes in KYC compliance, such as geo-location regulation for online KYC, only aadhaar-based KYC can be used interoperably, etc. As a result, many of our users are facing order rejections.
These factors are unfortunately beyond our control to solve for and hinder the customer experience that Groww as an organization stands for. That's why, with a heavy heart, we have decided to discontinue our Groww NRI services.
What will happen to my mutual fund investments?
Your mutual fund investments are registered and maintained at the respective Fund House or Asset Management Companies (AMCs). At the same time, Groww NRI was only a platform that enables you to purchase, view, and redeem your investment. As a result, your mutual fund investments will continue to be managed by the respective AMCs.
You can access your investments, track and redeem them from the following options:
- Official website of the respective AMCs
- MFCentral website
- MFU Online
How can I update the KYC?
As per the recent circular of the SEBI, effective from the 1st of April 2024, your KYC records must be "Validated" to ensure the interoperability of your KYC. It would allow you to invest at multiple fund houses and intermediaries providing investment services without undergoing the KYC process again.
You can add your Aadhaar to your KYC and update your KYC status to "Validated."
What if I have all my documents and have no problem sending them for NRI KYC?
- We genuinely appreciate your intent.
- However, we have been dealing with the challenges and complications of solving digital KYC for NRIs. It might negatively impact Groww's vision of giving you a seamless, intuitive, and excellent user experience at every step. Considering this, we have decided to discontinue our Groww NRI offering.
Can I make new investments in mutual funds through Groww NRI?
Since we are pausing all our NRI services, you will not be able to make new investments in mutual funds through the Groww NRI platform. However, you can make new investments through the following platforms:
- Official website of the respective AMCs
- MFU Online
Can I use Groww NRI to Track or Redeem my mutual fund investments?
Since we are pausing all our NRI services, you will not be able to track your investments on the Groww NRI platform. However, all your investments through Groww NRI are safe with respective Fund Houses or Asset Management Companies (AMCs).
You can access, manage, track, and redeem your investments on the following platforms:
- Official website of the respective AMCs
- MFCentral website
- MFU Online
Should I uninstall the Groww NRI app?
For now, we are pausing all our Groww NRI services. The app will not be functional after some time, but you can uninstall it if needed.
When will you restart services?
We are working towards finding a solution around the KYC complications. We will update you once we have regulatory clarity on KYC for NRIs. As of now, we don't have a resume date.
What will happen to our data earlier shared with the Groww NRI platform?
Your data is safe with us as our ecosystem is equipped with the best security measures and safeguards to protect users' privacy and personal information from loss, unauthorized access, misuse, destruction, disclosure, and any alteration of the information in compliance with applicable laws. You can read more about it here.
We also take a proactive approach to conducting security audits and vulnerability assessments. Rest assured, protecting users' data is our top priority, and we will ensure that the utmost care is taken to protect your data privacy.
Moreover, any information regarding your investments shared on the Groww NRI platform is managed through RTA (Registrar and Transfer Agents) since AMCs (Asset Management Company) work is to manage the funds.
RTA is a record keeper for your transactions, including any change in your personal information, buying or redeeming, or downloading monthly statements such as CAS (Consolidated Account Statements). The AMCs choose the RTA.
There are two leading RTAs in India:
- CAMS (Computer Age Management Services) and
- Karvy (K-fintech)
The user's information is secure with the RTAs (Registrar and Transfer Agent) since AMCs (Asset Management Company) works to manage the funds.