Big broker may log out of wealth management

Stock brokers have had a run of good luck on the bourses over the past four years, largely due to India���s galloping equities market. Many have grown from a simple one-room gala on Dalal Street to brokerages with more than 100 branches spread across the country. Not satisfied with this, the more ambitious among them started creating ���verticals��� to their core business, appointing scores of youngsters to man them.

Today, the scenario is different. With the markets having entered a prolonged bearish phase, brokers have begun folding up their rather ambitious growth plans. As per market talk, a prominent broker, who claims to give ���solid advice��� on the basis of ���solid research���, is planning to sell his wealth management business, citing non-profitability as the reason.

The brokerage is also understood to have terminated the services of several employees, in line with its cost-cutting strategies. A spokesperson of the brokerage denied any such move and said the wealth management business was started only a year ago and there was no reason to shut down the business. On the issue of sacking employees, the spokeperson maintained they were terminating employees not performing to their expectations.

Contributed by Santosh Nair & Shailesh Menon