Ex-Banker Calls Out Costly Trading Apps, Speaks About Zerodha, Groww: 'I Won't Even Recommend That To My Father'

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Chirag Madaan, a 24-year-old former banker and IIT graduate, has spoken openly about why he quit his 17 LPA banking job. He took aim at what he calls a“toxic” work culture. He spoke about the pressure on bank employees to sell expensive trading apps to customers when cheaper and better options are freely available in the market.

In a viral Instagram Reel, Madaan says bank employees are expected to sell trading apps to customers at costs as high as ₹10,000 per year. They're asked to do so even when platforms like Zerodha and Groww are free and performing well.

“Zerodha and Grow are performing really really well. So, why would a customer prefer a bank trading app at a ₹10,000 a year cost? Why? I mean, I won't even recommend that to my father,” he says in the viral video.

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Madaan says he could not convince himself that those banking apps were genuinely better. That made it nearly impossible for him to recommend them honestly to clients.

Madaan also speaks about a specific incident that stayed with him. An ultra-HNI client once asked him to review his portfolio, which included liquid fund plans. It was recommended by a previous branch representative of the same bank. The returns on those plans were lower than a basic fixed deposit.

"Even after having so much financial illiteracy in the market, we bankers are so pressurised that we were forced to mis-sell," he said.

Also Read | Bengaluru man loses ₹91 lakh to fake trading app; here's what Zerodha's CEO says

He adds that, as a bank employee, he could not openly tell the client that the earlier recommendation was wrong. That put him in a difficult position.

Note: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. LiveMint has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.

Toxic Work Culture

Beyond the mis-selling issue, Madaan describes a stressful workplace where the 9-to-5 schedule gradually became 9-to-7, 5 working days became 6 and even lunch breaks were reduced to 15 minutes.

Employees were expected to bring in deals worth ₹10 crore per month. Those who fell short faced pressure from branch managers and wealth managers. They had to start from zero in the following month.

Also Read | Zerodha's Nithin Kamath says fake trading app scams are 'mega nuisance'

Leave and advances were also flagged as issues. Madaan suggests that even approved benefits were treated as liabilities by the organisation. For sick leaves, they had to prove why they had fallen sick.

The ex-banker says that he was compelled to push financial products he did not personally believe in. Since his resignation, he has moved on from banking.

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