You have now seen how money travels from your Indian bank account all the way to your US brokerage. The withdrawal process uses the same infrastructure, just in the opposite direction.

The same SWIFT network carries the instruction. The same correspondent banking relationships move the funds. The difference is that the money is now leaving the US and coming back to India, and a few additional steps apply on the way back.

This topic also covers what the full process costs, because deposits and withdrawals are where most of the fees in international investing actually appear.

Before you can withdraw, your funds need to settle

When you sell a stock or ETF, the proceeds appear in your brokerage cash balance almost immediately. But that balance is not yet withdrawable.

US markets follow a T+1 settlement cycle. This means the actual settlement of your trade happens one business day after the sale. If you sell on a Monday, the proceeds are available for withdrawal from Tuesday onward.

This is not specific to Vested. It applies across every platform that routes trades through any broker. Until settlement is complete, the funds are considered unsettled and cannot be sent out.

Initiating the withdrawal

Once your funds are settled, you place a withdrawal request through your platform’s app. The exact flow varies slightly by platform, but the information required is broadly the same across brokers. You enter the amount, confirm your Indian bank account details, and verify the request through an OTP on your registered mobile number.

One requirement is consistent across all platforms. The bank account you are withdrawing to must be in your own name. This comes from the US broker’s AML and compliance policies, which require that outward transfers go only to accounts where the investor is the primary account holder.

Once submitted, the broker verifies that the funds are settled and initiates the outward transfer.

How the money gets transferred

From the clearing broker, the funds are sent as an outward wire. This travels through the same SWIFT network and correspondent banking chain discussed in T1, with JPMorgan Chase again acting as the intermediary. The difference is that the flow is now reversed — the wire originates in the US and arrives at your Indian bank, which receives the dollars and converts them into rupees at the TT Buying Rate applicable that day.

Most platforms offer two withdrawal routes, and the choice between them affects both speed and cost.

The first is a USD wire. The funds travel as dollars through SWIFT, and your Indian bank handles the conversion on receipt.

The second is an INR route. The conversion happens before the funds leave the system, and the money arrives directly as rupees. This route is generally faster and involves less documentation, since the standard USD wire route sometimes requires you to submit a SWIFT confirmation copy to your Indian bank before it releases the funds — an extra step that can add time.

Not all platforms offer both routes. Whether an INR route is available depends on the specific banking and forex arrangements the platform has set up on the Indian side.

The full withdrawal timeline