SAMCO Proprietary Trading

Jimeet Modi founded SAMCO in 1987 as a proprietary trading firm. The firm operated its own capital in Indian listed equities and derivatives for more than two decades before expanding into retail brokerage services. This trading heritage shapes its product suite, which emphasizes risk-management tools built originally for internal use.

SAMCO operates both a discount brokerage, SAMCO Securities Limited, and a mutual fund business, SAMCO Asset Management. The brokerage arm targets active retail traders with flat-fee pricing and algorithmic trading APIs. The asset management arm, which received SEBI approval in 2022, runs active-passive hybrid funds and reached Rs 1,000 crore in AUM within its first operational year (per the firm, 2023).

SAMCO Securities provides access to equities, equity futures and options, commodity futures, currency derivatives, and mutual funds on BSE and NSE. Its 'Trade API' product also supports programmatic order placement from third-party trading algorithms. The brokerage operates under a flat-fee pricing model with no percentage-based brokerage on delivery trades.

SAMCO Asset Management was an early mover in India's active-passive hybrid fund category, introducing products that combine passive index replication with active derivatives overlays such as covered calls. In early 2025, it extended this line with the SAMCO Active Momentum Fund, an equity scheme that follows momentum-factor strategies. The structure is regulated by SEBI as a full-service mutual fund house.

SAMCO's regulated entities are registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. SAMCO Securities Limited holds SEBI registration as a stockbroker and depository participant. SAMCO Asset Management holds SEBI approval as a mutual fund sponsor and investment manager. The firm also maintains a presence in Singapore and Dubai, though public detail on the scope of those operations is limited.

SAMCO's public-facing businesses today are the retail brokerage and the mutual fund arm. The original proprietary trading heritage is primarily reflected in its technology stack — specifically the 'Optimus' risk engine — rather than in a disclosed separate proprietary book. There is no public evidence of a standalone institutional proprietary trading unit operating alongside the regulated brokerage and asset management entities.

The parent group separates its brokerage, asset management, and technology functions into distinct legal entities. SAMCO Securities Limited runs the brokerage, SAMCO Asset Management runs the mutual fund business, and a technology unit develops the trading platforms and the Optimus risk engine. The structure limits inter-subsidiary funding but allows each entity to meet its own regulatory capital requirements independently under SEBI oversight.