India, Feb. 20 -- What do Groww, Zerodha and Dhan (part of Raise Financial Services) have in common? Well, almost anyone can answer that. All of them are leading discount broking startups which have taken stock trading to the masses and never failed to intrigue the new generation of retail investors, redefining a traditionally conservative Indian wealthtech market. But there is another link.

Around 80-85% of their revenues come from futures and options (F&O) traders, a highly speculative and leveraged stock market segment. Even an industry-leading full-service brokerage like AngelOne reportedly gains around 84% of its earnings from the F&O segment.

The flip side of this narrative is far from lucrative. Globally, India is the largest der...