A Depository Participant (DP) is a SEBI-registered intermediary that acts as the link between investors and a depository (NSDL or CDSL). Investors don’t open Demat accounts directly with a depository — they go through a DP instead.
Key Fact
In almost all cases today, your stockbroker is also your DP. This is why opening a “Demat account” and a “trading account” typically happens through a single application with the same broker.
Related Reading
See how this fits into the full account-opening picture in What Is a Demat and Trading Account?.