Stockal investors allege unauthorised US stock sales and Zhibao buys after October 15 access

Nearly 30 Indian retail investors have alleged that accounts on Bengaluru fintech Stockal Securities were accessed without authorisation on 15 October 2026, Moneycontrol reported on 3 November, with follow-up coverage by NDTV Profit and CNBC-TV18. They say US blue-chip holdings such as Apple, Nvidia, Amazon, Tesla, Alphabet and AMD were sold, and the proceeds were used to buy thinly traded Chinese shares, notably Zhibao Technology Inc. (ZBAO). Preliminary losses from investors who spoke to Moneycontrol were put above Rs 100 crore, with the outlet noting the total could rise as more clients come forward.

One investor told Moneycontrol that ten major US holdings worth about $335,768 were sold without consent and replaced with 300,000 ZBAO shares at an average $1.05, before the stock fell nearly 60% to $0.42 by 23 October. Another investor alleged about $3.1 million (roughly Rs 29 crore) of securities were liquidated in minutes, then swapped into a large ZBAO position. Investors said they missed the usual trade-alert emails for the mass sales. Borderless, Stockal's parent, contacted at least one client on 18 October acknowledging suspicious activity and saying DriveWealth had restricted the account.

Stockal told Moneycontrol the circumstances remain under investigation and that, on information so far, a customer's email and credentials may have been compromised through social engineering or phishing. It said its review had not found evidence of a breach of the Borderless or Stockal platform. US clearing partner DriveWealth wrote to an affected investor on 30 October saying the unauthorised access occurred in the investor's interface with Stockal and that DriveWealth was not at fault, while confirming it had frozen the account at Stockal's request. An FIR in Bengaluru names DriveWealth, Stockal Securities, Borderless entities and HDFC Securities; Moneycontrol noted HDFC Securities was not named as an accused in that FIR. Investors have also approached SEBI and the US SEC. Responsibility and final loss figures are still under investigation.