How To Buy Apple Stock (AAPL) In India

International stocks, by and large, have been in the limelight, enticing enthusiastic investors with their spectacular returns, especially those posted by the U.S. tech giants and the global disruptive trends such as meme investing which make room for massive speculative gains.

Whether you’re an Apple fanboy or you can’t quit your Android, there’s no denying Apple Inc’s (AAPL) power in the stock market. Apple is the world’s largest technology and valuable company in terms of revenue and market capitalization. 

According to its most recent earnings report, Apple’s third-quarter revenue grew to $94 billion and the market capitalization is $2.3 trillion. Apple’s stock price is constantly changing, but it has been above INR 11,000 a share for over a year, as of August 30, 2021. Meanwhile, AAPL’s stock price has fallen almost 14% year to date. 

If those numbers have you salivating for a slice of AAPL,  you don’t have to worry as you can now invest in U.S. stocks with the following process. 

How to Buy Apple Stock (AAPL)

1. Select a Brokerage

An online brokerage is your gateway to buying and selling stocks. In addition to enabling you to purchase Apple shares, online brokerage accounts also provide a wealth of research, educational materials and account types to help you meet your investing goals.

Traditionally, investments in U.S. stocks have been made through mutual funds with a U.S. or global focus. In recent times, direct investing has been on the uptick and is facilitated either through an international brokerage firm or through an Indian brokerage firm, which has an affiliation with a U.S. brokerage firm. 

In either case, the international brokerage firm buys the shares and holds them in an omnibus for the Indian investor. Thus, the custody of these stocks lies with the U.S. broking houses. Further, the direct investment options entail huge costs in terms of fixed foreign exchange conversion costs for every transaction (approximately INR 500 for every $500) and a high bid-ask (difference between the bank’s buy and sell rates) of 2% from the spot rate.

Fees, services and investment options can vary from one broker to another, so compare multiple brokerages to find the right one for you.

2. Via NSE IFSC 

In a bid to enable Indian investors to diversify their portfolio, the NSE International Financial Services Centre or the NSE IFSC, one of the two recognized stock exchanges in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (“GIFT City”), has introduced a product offering to enable retail Indian investors to trade in select U.S. stocks, viz., the top 50 stocks by market capitalization and top five exchange traded funds (ETFs) by assets under management, at the IFSC.

GIFT IFSC in Gandhinagar, Gujarat is the maiden IFSC in India. All transactions in the IFSC are carried out in foreign currency other than Indian rupees.

AAPL is traded on the NSE IFSC and can be bought or sold between 9:15 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. IST Monday through Friday. However, NSE does have pre-hours and after-hours trading, which you may be able to access through your online brokerage.

The pre-market trading hours are 9:00 a.m. until 9.15 a.m., and its after-hours trading runs from 3.40 p.m. until 4.00 p.m. IST. ​​If you place an order outside of the hours during which your brokerage allows you to trade, it will be processed once trading resumes.

To invest in AAPL stocks via the NSE IFSC platform, follow these steps:

Step 1. Open a trading account with a brokerage firm that is registered with NSE IFSC, and provide the documents like Aadhaar card and PAN card to complete the know your customer (KYC) process. 

Step 2. Add funds to your account to buy and sell stocks. You can use these grants for derivative trading or speculation purposes. 

Step 3. Once you fund your account, you can purchase the Apple stocks. But, don’t forget it allows you to make a fractional investment only, that is you can have fractional ownership of AAPL stocks. 

3. Indirect Investment

You can indirectly invest through mutual funds (MFs) and exchange traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. equity market via domestic or foreign brokers. You don’t need a trading account for it or need to pay any amount for the deposit. It’s a cost-efficient way to invest in AAPL shares. Many brokerage companies are likely to hold units of the Indian ETFs that track U.S. stock market indices. 

Things to Consider When Investing in Apple Stock 

• Make sure that you complete your documentation for the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) successfully. Strictly follow the rules and regulations put together by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). According to the RBI, Indian residents can invest up to $2,50,000 in an accounting year. 
• The best way to invest in U.S. stocks is via direct investment rather than mutual funds and exchange traded funds.
• Various brokerage firms collaborate with the foreign national banks that will help you get good foreign exchange rates. 
• The transaction should be done in USD to buy AAPL stocks.

(With inputs from Nikita Tambe and Kat Tretina)