Mumbai, Feb. 23 -- The pace of investors joining the stock markets has slowed recently due to tariff-related shocks and global headwinds, even as the overall investor base continued to expand, as highlighted by a report by the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

According to the report, around 17.7 lakh investors joined the stock markets in January 2026, taking the total registered investor base on NSE to 12.7 crore as of January 2026. The exchange had earlier crossed the 12-crore milestone in September 2025, reflecting continued growth in investor participation.

Over the longer term, the investor base has seen significant expansion. Between financial year 2020 and financial year 2026, till January, the number of registered investors has gro...