For many Indians, investing in US stocks still remains a dream, mostly because of the lack of convenient and accessible options to invest in US equities from India.

The launch of the INDmoney app a few years back gave some relief to these investors, as the app allowed users to directly buy the stocks of US-based companies. However, even this option was far from perfect. For one, the app charges a high platform fee and withdrawal fee, which can greatly limit profitability for users. Also, there is a lack of transparency. It doesn’t exactly give direct access to US stocks but works as a mediator, charging fees.

If you are looking for the best INDmoney alternatives or the best way to invest in US stocks from India, here you go:

Why invest in US stocks
Some of the world’s biggest and fastest-growing companies are based in the US. Purchasing their stocks will give your portfolio a much bigger exposure than having just Indian equities and can significantly boost your returns.

Here are some of the top ways to invest in the US stock market from India:

1. Stock tokens
Stock tokens are probably the easiest way to invest in US equities for people outside the US. Not many people have heard about them though.

Stock tokens refer to tokenized stocks, i.e. stocks that have been tokenized on a blockchain. The benefits include easy & global access to top stocks in the world, low fees, liquidity, buy stocks from anywhere, buy fractional shares, buy stocks without a bank account (increased privacy), and 24-hour trading, among others. Here’s how stock tokens work.

You can buy tokenized stocks from a stock token platform like Reflection. When you purchase stock tokens of a listed US company like Apple or Amazon from Reflection.trading, the platform will, in turn, buy actual shares of the company from the US stock market for a value equal to your investment. These shares are stored in a brokerage amount, and you get stock tokens in your account.

The value of a stock token reflects the live market price of the underlying stock at any time. You can seamlessly buy and trade stock tokens on the Reflection platform using stablecoins like BUSD. Enjoy the profits of US stocks without all the hassle and from anywhere in the world.

Features & Benefits of Stock Token Trading on Reflection:

60+ tokens of top companies like Apple, Google, Amazon, Netflix Microsoft, Tesla, and many more.
Highly secure — protected by Fireblocks
Access to global equity markets
24-hour trading — buy and sell stocks even when the markets are closed
Buy fractional shares of top US companies
Increased privacy — buy without a bank account
Transfer stock tokens to others, as payment, gift, or loan collateral

Join the Reflection Stock Token Platform today and unlock a world of possibilities! Sign up now to access exclusive offers and seamlessly trade stock tokens of top global companies.
Don’t miss out, Join us now!

2. International trading accounts
One way to buy and trade in US stocks directly from India is to open an international trading account with a global brokerage firm like Interactive Brokers or TD Ameritrade. This account gives you access to the US markets with the ability to buy and sell stocks of listed US companies on top US exchanges, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or NASDAQ.

Different global brokerage firms have different pros and cons and one must compare them based on platform fees, security, range of options, customer support, etc. to find the one that suits their needs.

3. Vested Finance
Top features & benefits include:

Invest along with other people
Transfer money to other users
One-day fast withdrawal to Indian bank accounts
SIPC and FDIC insurance for account protection
Automatic recurring investments (SIP)
One-time platform fee and low transaction charges
256-bit encryption and SSL security
Advanced research & investment tools
Founded in 2018, Vested is an SEC-approved Investment platform that enables people to invest in the US equity market, stocks and ETFs from anywhere in the world.

The company was founded by India-based Viram Shah with the aim of empowering clients by streamlining the process of investing in US stocks. It gives direct access to the US markets with the ability to buy stocks of a number of US-based listed companies. The platform allows you to make market trades and also provides many tools to ensure a convenient and profitable investing experience.

4. Depositary Receipts
Depositary Receipts or DRs are a popular investing option for Indians looking to invest in US securities. Depositary Receipts represent shares in one or more foreign companies listed on their respective exchanges. Anyone can invest in DRs through an authorised broker.

American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) and Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) are some options through which you can invest in US-based stocks. Research Indian or international brokers that allow investing in DRs of US stocks and compare them in terms of fees and more.

5. Kuvera
Features & benefits include:

Investments up to $500,000 per user fully insured
Invest as little as $10
1000+ stocks and ETFs
Easy and fast withdrawals
Tax report at year-end
High security and privacy

Kuvera is a Bangalore, India-based stock trading brokerage platform that allows you to invest in US stocks directly and through US ETFs (exchange traded funds). It provides access to many listed US stocks, such as NVIDIA, General Electric, Meta, Dell, Adobe, Apple, Tesla, and many more, as well as ETFs like the S&P 500, enabling Indians to diversify their portfolios with US equities. The fee charged by the platform for investment in US stocks is 0.2% commission per trade (up to $20)

6. US-focused international mutual funds
International mutual funds are funds by Indian mutual fund houses that provide exposure to international stocks or listed companies US-focused international mutual funds provide maximum exposure to US stocks and may also include stocks from some other countries or international exchanges.

This is one of the easiest and most popular methods for Indians to invest in US stocks. However, by investing in US-focused mutual funds, you’d be indirectly investing in US stocks and not buying stocks of US companies directly, so you do not get any rights to voting and/or dividends of the underlying companies. Compare different US-focused mutual funds based on expense ratio, tracking error, and the fund manager’s expertise to find your best fit.

7. Stockal
Features & benefits include:


No minimum investment limit
Dollar-based investing — can buy fractional shares
Fully compliant and legalized
5,500+ stocks and ETFs of global companies
High security and privacy
Dedicated international bank account for every user

Stockal is a popular stock trading platform that provides access to US stocks and investing options for investors in India and the Middle East. The platform allows users to invest in the stocks and ETFs of more than 5,500 global companies. Besides international stocks and ETFs, they have Stacks, which are curated portfolios of carefully selected international stocks ready for investment. People in India can invest in a large number of US companies and stocks through the platform directly or indirectly (ETFs).

8. US-focused ETFs
ETFs or exchange-traded funds are like mutual funds that trade on stock exchanges. You can invest in ETFs through a Demat account with any Indian stockbroker.

There are some ETFs that provide exposure to US stocks and securities. Just like US-focused mutual funds, you can invest in US-focused ETFs to buy and trade US stocks indirectly on exchanges. An ETF is a collection of multiple stocks, usually in a certain category. NASDAQ100 ETF for example, provides access to the top 100 US stocks.

Conclusion
Hope this article helps you find the best way to invest in U.S. stocks from India. Investing in stock markets is subject to risk. Always do your research and invest through only a reliable and authentic platform that is legally registered or allowed to provide services in India. Invest in stocks carefully after analyzing your risk tolerance and based on the returns you want. Consult with a licensed broker or financial advisor before investing in market-linked securities if you are new to this space.

Crypto tokens are nothing but digital assets maintained in the blockchain network. The concept of crypto tokens has provided the flexibility for companies & individuals to seamlessly digitize their assets with truly limitless obligations.

The facility of tokenization isn’t just limited to currencies and other financial securities, but practically any assets, including real estate, commodities, art, and even traditional stocks can be tokenized on the blockchain.

Stock tokens are one such popular type of crypto tokens that are created by tokenizing securities or stocks of a company. In this article, we will talk, in detail, about security tokens, what they are, their advantages, and the best platforms to create and trade stock tokens.

What Are Stock Tokens?
Stock tokens, commonly called tokenized stocks, are the stocks of a listed company that have been digitized on a blockchain network and are represented by crypto tokens. These are issued, stored, and transacted on the blockchain and can represent any compatible stocks or securities.

When tokenizing stocks of a company, an equal number of crypto tokens need to be created as the number of total shares of the company stock. For example, if Google has 12,781,000,000 outstanding shares at the time of writing this article, there must be an equal number of stock tokens to represent the entire Google stock on the stock token exchange.

The purposes or benefits of stock tokens include the ability to buy & trade fractional shares of any listed company (minimum $1 investment), 24-hour trading (even when the markets are closed), higher liquidity than traditional markets, and transferability.

How do Stock Tokens Work?
There are dedicated platforms providing stock tokenizing and trading services. These are called stock token exchanges. They allow their users to buy and trade tokenized stocks or stock tokens for their favourite listed companies across multiple stock markets worldwide.

Here’s how it works:

Depending on the platform, the process might be a little different, but the steps are as follows:

A stock token exchange lists all the supported stock tokens which it allows users to buy and trade on its platform.

When looking to purchase stock tokens of a company, a user can click the buy button. They must have other compatible crypto, stablecoins, or cash (whatever the platform accepts) for payment.

When a user wants to purchase stock tokens of a company, the platform (behind the scenes) purchases the associated shares from the stock market and holds them in a secure brokerage account. New tokens for the stock are minted and assigned to the user, who can hold them in their platform wallet or trade them for a profit.

When a user wants to liquidate (sell) their stock tokens, the platform sells the associated shares and uses the money to buy back stock tokens from the user.

The value of stock tokens is linked with the market price of the associated stocks and changes accordingly.

How Are Stock Tokens Different From Regular Stocks?
To buy or trade regular stocks, you need to sign up with a licensed stock exchange or broker. You can buy shares of a company directly from the stock market at live prices only during trading hours.

Traditional stock trading is, however, greatly limited by exchange hours, flexibility in payments, minimum or maximum investment amounts, middlemen fees, and other complexities. Moreover, buying stocks of a company listed on a foreign exchange can be difficult and expensive in some countries. Stock tokens solve all these problems.

Unlike traditional stocks, tokenized stocks do not require you to get a license or sign up with a broker. While stock exchanges operate during fixed hours, crypto exchanges operate 24 hours a day. Moreover, stock token transactions are faster and less expensive.

The transaction cost of stock token trading is lower compared to stock trading because of the lack of unnecessary middlemen. You can buy stock tokens of any listed company from anywhere in the world through a reliable stock token trading platform with the ability to buy fractional shares (explained below).

The only downside of stock tokens over traditional securities is that users don’t get direct ownership of shares and also don’t get any voting rights or dividends.

The Best Place To Trade Stock Tokens
So if you’re ready to buy some stock tokens of your favourite global companies, you must now be wondering about the best place or way to buy stock tokens.

For now, traditional stock exchanges don’t allow buying or trading tokenized stocks. There are dedicated platforms, called stock token exchanges, through which you can invest in tokenized stocks of listed companies like Apple, Google, Tesla, and many others.

Due to the increasing interest in and demand for stock tokens, the number of crypto exchanges providing stock token trading services is also increasing. Here we talk about the 5 most popular stock token platforms out there.

Reflection.Trading
Reflection.Trading is an online platform where you can purchase, trade and redeem stock tokens of listed public companies like Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix, and many others. Each stock token represents a share of the stock of the associated company. The price of stock tokens on the platform always matches the live price of the associated stocks on a traditional exchange (with a small predefined margin).

It provides access to 60+ stock tokens with high security (protected by Fireblocks), access to global markets, and a 24-hour trading facility.

Join the Reflection Stock Token Platform today and unlock a world of possibilities! Sign up now to access exclusive offers and seamlessly trade stock tokens of top global companies.
Don't miss out, Join us now!

Bittrex Global
Bittrex Global is a popular cryptocurrency trading platform that also supports stock tokens. It provides tokenized stock trading service in partnership with Swiss Digital Assets AG and gives access to stock tokens of many top companies like Apple, Netflix, and Facebook. It may also allow buyers to have voting rights and receive dividends from their purchased stocks.

Currency.com
This is one of the first regular exchanges for tokenised assets, including stock tokens. The difference between this and other stock token platforms is that Currency.com doesn’t actually buy stocks from traditional markets but it only shows their value for the stock tokens on its platform. The list of tokenized securities in which one can invest is truly extensive.

Bitpanda
On this platform, people can buy and trade tokenized stocks with real stocks as their collateral. It provides stock token trading services in partnership with CM Equity and gives access to many popular tokenized assets across many markets around the globe.
The platform also provides dividends to stock token holders.
Hope this article helps you find the right place to buy and trade tokenized stocks. Feel free to share your comments below.

FAQ: Understanding How Stock Tokens Work and Trade

Q1: What are stock tokens?

Stock tokens are digital representations of real-world stocks, allowing investors to trade fractional ownership of a company's stock on a blockchain or cryptocurrency exchange. Each token represents a portion of a single share of a company's stock.

Q2: How do stock tokens work?

Stock tokens are created by tokenizing real stocks using blockchain technology. When you buy a stock token, you are essentially purchasing a digital asset that mirrors the price and performance of the underlying stock. These tokens are typically issued and managed by a cryptocurrency exchange or financial institution.

Q3: Where can I trade stock tokens?

You can trade stock tokens on cryptocurrency exchanges or platforms that offer them. Some popular exchanges like Binance, Reflection.trading, and others offer stock token trading. Ensure you choose a reputable exchange that complies with regulations in your jurisdiction.

Q4: What are the benefits of trading stock tokens?

Fractional Ownership: Stock tokens allow you to buy and trade fractional shares of expensive stocks, making investing more accessible.

24/7 Trading: Unlike traditional stock markets, many cryptocurrency exchanges operate 24/7, allowing you to trade stock tokens at any time.

Global Access: Stock tokens can be traded by individuals worldwide, providing access to a broader range of stocks.

Q5: Are stock tokens regulated?

Regulations regarding stock tokens vary by country and jurisdiction. Some regions classify them as securities and subject them to existing financial regulations. Others may have specific regulations for cryptocurrency assets. It's crucial to understand the legal framework in your area before trading stock tokens.

Q6: What risks are associated with stock tokens?

Regulatory Risks: Changing regulations can impact the legality and availability of stock tokens in your region.

Lack of Ownership: When you hold stock tokens, you don't have direct ownership of the underlying stock, which means you may not have voting rights or receive dividends.

Market Volatility: Like cryptocurrencies, stock tokens can be highly volatile, leading to rapid price fluctuations.
Security Risks: Ensure you use reputable exchanges and wallets to mitigate the risk of theft or hacking.

Q7: How do I buy stock tokens?

To buy stock tokens:
Sign up for an account on Reflection Trading.
Complete your registration.
Connect you crypto wallet or metamask wallet.
Deposit funds into your crypto wallet.
Search for the stock token you want to buy and place an order.

Q8: Are there tax implications for trading stock tokens?

Taxation of stock token trading depends on your jurisdiction's tax laws. In many countries, trading stock tokens may have tax implications similar to trading traditional stocks. Consult with a tax professional to understand your obligations.

Q9: Should I invest in stock tokens?

Investing in stock tokens, like any investment, carries risks. It's essential to conduct thorough research, understand the market, and consider your risk tolerance and financial goals before investing in stock tokens. Consider consulting with a financial advisor for personalized guidance.

Tokenized stocks or stock tokens are digital assets that represent stocks of publicly listed companies. The purpose of stock tokens is to enable everyone to trade top-listed stocks across the world irrespective of their location.

Are tokenized stocks the same as regular stocks?

No. Tokenized stocks are cryptocurrencies, i.e. digital assets that are based on blockchain technology. They are essentially virtual assets and their values are not regulated or controlled by governments or central banks.

Unlike regular stocks, tokenized stocks cannot be traded on a regular stock exchange.

Tokenized stocks are based on traditional stocks and mimic their price actions, but they only exist virtually and have no material presence like regular stocks of listed companies.

Stock tokens can only be traded on a digital exchange or a cryptocurrency exchange. Reflection.trading is an example of a trading platform for stock tokens.

Why do we need tokenized stocks?

Here are some benefits of stock tokenization:

Global access — anyone, anywhere in the world can purchase stock tokens of globally listed companies.
Transferability — one can easily transfer their stock tokens to others like regular cryptocurrencies, and use them for payments, gifts, and more.
Buy fractional shares, i.e. a part of a share of stocks in the form of crypto tokens. Not necessary to buy a complete share if it’s too expensive.
No bank account is needed to buy stock tokens on Reflection.

How do tokenized stocks work?

Let’s try to understand the functioning of tokenized stocks with the example of Reflection.trading, which is a crypto trading platform for stock tokens.

The Reflection platform uses stablecoins to allow its users to buy, trade, and redeem stock tokens. It acts as an investment institution that allows users to buy tokenized stocks on its platform. In other words, the platform can be used to tokenize a stock in order to buy and trade it on the blockchain.

Users looking to buy stock tokens on Reflection must have a certain stablecoin in their wallet. When a user places an order to buy a stock token by sending their stablecoins to Reflection, the platform buys the underlying stock from the market and deposits it in their brokerage account.

In turn, it mints corresponding stock tokens on the blockchain and deposits them in the user’s wallet. The price of each stock token is pegged to the real-time value of the underlying stock.

Stock tokens just like regular cryptocurrencies can be bought, traded, and sold on a supported cryptocurrency exchange. A holder of a tokenized stock will not actually own the underlying stock (and will not have any rights to it) but will gain from the price movement of the stock. They can sell their tokenized stocks at any time on the exchange.

Here’s how to trade tokenized stocks on a crypto exchange:

Find a crypto exchange that supports the trading of tokenized stocks or stock tokens.
Create an account on the exchange platform.
See what payment options the platform has for the trading of stock tokens. Most crypto exchanges, including Reflection.trading, will need you to have a MetaMask wallet or any other crypto wallet to buy stock tokens. On Reflection, you can buy stock tokens using BUSD.
Fund your wallet, i.e. deposit BUSD to your MetaMask wallet.
Buy the stock token at the current market price.

Tokenized stocks are tradable, transferable, globally accessible, and offer more liquidity than regular stocks. They enable you to gain exposure to traditional stocks while also enjoying the benefits of cryptocurrencies such as high security, liquidity, and low fees.