Ademat account is an account that allows investors to hold shares and securities in a digital format. It eliminates the hassle associated with physical certificates and paperwork and also aids investors in keeping track of all the investments they make- be it in shares, bonds, exchange-traded funds, or mutual funds. Now, if you change your broker or transfer shares from one demat account to another, you can do so through both offline and online methods.
Manual procedure
To manually transfer shares from one demat account to another, one must get the delivery instruction slip (DIS) from the broker. There are some mandatory fields in the DIS that must be filled in to do the transfer.
First, the investor is required to produce the Beneficiary owner ID (BO ID)- the 16-digit ID of the broker. The BO IDs of both the current and new brokers need to be mentioned in the DIS. Next, the investor needs to mention the international securities identification number (ISIN). This number is the unique identity that helps identify every single share in the demat account. This number is needed to clarify which shares have to be transferred. Lastly, the slip requires a mention of the mode of transfer. In the case of an intra-depository, one must choose the ‘off-market transfer’ option. Otherwise, the ‘inter-depository transfer’ option must be picked.
Then, all that is needed is a signature account holder. Handing over the completed slip to the current broker (who may apply some charges for the transfer) completes the process.
Online procedure
India’s Central Depository Services Ltd (CDSL) has a feature called EASIEST (Electronic Access to Securities Information and Execution of Secured Transactions) to help people transfer shares between demat accounts online. The process begins with registering oneself on the website. To register, one must click on the ‘Register Online’ link and pick the option EASIEST. After filling in the details, a copy needs to be handed over to the DP, who will send it to the central depository, which will then verify the details. Following a waiting period that usually lasts a couple of days, the login credentials are emailed to the requesting party. After logging in using these credentials, one can see their broker list and transfer shares between demat accounts.
