It is a genius plan. Simply tell the naive investor that one should not time the market and invest regularly via SIP as it will reduce risk. Convince them that automating something will make them disciplined and show them a few select data points of how rewarding this approach has been. Then the seller gets…

With most AMCs complying with SEBIs mutual fund categorization rules, the implications are slowly sinking in. Since most mutual funds have changed in nature, their past history is now useless. Star ratings are useless. My monthly mutual fund screeners are useless. The selection methods I have discussed earlier are useless. SEBI has hit the reset…

ICICI dynamic fund has now become a mutli-asset fund. Is this a huge change from an equity to a debt fund? Should you now consider exiting or hold on? If you download the ICICI Mutual Fund Notification for changes in its hybrid and its equity scheme you might notice some amusing patterns. For eg. (1) ICICI…

Here is a simple way to understand how grandfathering works when calculating LTCG tax on equity instruments. Download a free equity LTCG tax calculator to estimate the tax to be paid before you withdraw from an equity mutual fund, You can also use it to calculate STCG, and it will work with debt mutual funds…

Most readers may be aware that SEBI has laid out norms for mutual fund categorization and many AMCs have fallen in line. It is frustrating that the big AMCs like ICICI, HDFC, Franklin and others have delayed conforming to this order. Makes me want to speculate that they have deliberately waited for the financial year to…

I have Rs. 500 SIP running in Sundaram Select Midcap fund since Aug 2009. As readers may recall*, this is not for me, but for a relative, started when she was about one for her college. Here are some lessons from that investment. I was using this to prepare slides for a “basics of money”…

Many investors are under the impression that to get higher returns, one must take on more risk. This is reasonably true if the investment duration is “long enough” and completely wrong for shorter durations. In a two-part post, I consider the risk and return associated with all mutual fund categories. This is an updated version…

The 10% tax on all equity mutual fund dividends is a blow to all those who sold and bought funds that offered monthly dividends. This is a blessing as it would reduce mis-selling and hopefully mis-buying, but begs the question: is it possible to generate tax-free regular income from mutual funds? The answer is yes – but…

If you have invested in mutual funds, the annualized returns that you see in portfolio trackers are from an XIRR calculation. It is important to understand that XIRR is an “adjustment” and not get carried away with the large numbers that you see. A simple explanation of what is XIRR. XIRR or extended internal rate…

We are aware that debt mutual funds are subject to a dividend distribution tax (DDT). From April 1st 2018, equity mutual funds will also be subject to DDT. Here some examples as to how DDT affects mutual fund dividends and lowers returns.  This post is in response to Ankit Jain’s comment in Equity Mutual Fund Dividends are…

I discuss simple ways in which a mutual fund portfolio associated with a long-term goal can be reviewed. This is a grey area in personal finance and there is no optimal way to do this. Each individual must necessarily develop their own style of review.  So multiple solutions are the norm here. This post is…

Download a free spreadsheet Mutual Fund Portfolio Growth Visualizer With Index Benchmarking. This will allow you to compare the growth of your mutual fund portfolio with a variety of BSE and NSE benchmark indices. This was to compare my retirement equity portfolio with Sensex and Nifty Next 50. Now it is your turn! Along with the sheet,…