New Delhi, June 1 -- What began as a licence for brokers to offer Indian clients access to international markets through GIFT City has evolved into a broker's tool for managing costs and taxes.

A growing number of brokers are getting the GAP license not to build a global investing business but to route their own prop trades through GIFT City. Currently half of the GAP license holders are prop firms. The shift is driven by a combination of lower regulatory costs and greater flexibility in accessing global markets.

Out of the 14 GAP license holders at present, seven are using the license to manage their own money-also called prop trading-while the remaining seven are providing the service to individuals in India, said Pradeep Ramakrishnan...