This is how you can plan for your child’s education and marriage in 12 steps. 1. When to start planning. The moment the pregnancy is confirmed! 2. What do you do first? Evaluate your insurance cover and buy more if required. 3. How to evaluate insurance coverage? Let us consider a couple with a two-year-old…
Continue reading →This index fund screener is based on tracking error and returns difference wrt benchmarks (also known as tracking difference). It will help users evaluate how efficiently an index fund has tracked its underlying benchmark. It will also help them understand how tracking a midcap index or the Nifty 100 or 500 differs from tracking the…
Continue reading →We discuss the performance consistency of actively managed small cap funds by comparing them with the Nifty Midcap 150 index. Some readers may be surprised as to why we are not choosing a small cap index like Nifty Small Cap 250. This is because we are not trying to pursue a PhD here (I made…
Continue reading →We discuss the different ways in which you can use the Freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Screener. The screener has two pages – a rolling returns sheet and a trailing returns sheet. The Sep 2025 edition is the latest screener at the time of writing. At all times, the top link in this archive is the…
Continue reading →This ETF screener is based on tracking errors and differences (ETF return minus index return). It will help users evaluate how efficiently an ETF has tracked its underlying benchmark. The tracking error is the ETF’s standard deviation minus the index’s monthly return differences. The lower the tracking error, the more efficient the ETF is in…
Continue reading →We discuss what investors should appreciate before selecting an index fund tracking the Nifty LargeMidcap 250 Index Fund. At the time of writing, five fund houses – Edelweiss, HDFC, ICIC Pru, Mirae Asset and Zerodha offer index funds tracking this index. See our earlier review: Zerodha Nifty LargeMidcap 250 Index Fund Review. The Nifty LargeMidcap 250…
Continue reading →You may have seen that mutual fund annualised returns are computed using a method known as XIRR (extended internal rate of return). We explain what this means using a simple example. When you make a single investment (lump sum for want of a better word) in a mutual fund or stock, the return (after a…
Continue reading →We have added a Coast Fire calculation option to the freefincal robo advisor. Coast Fire is best explained with an example. Suppose you are 25 years old and wish to retire by age 55. You estimate the retirement corpus required to maintain your current lifestyle to be Rs. 5 Crores. Suppose you wish to invest each…
Continue reading →The latest freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Performance Screener is now available. Use it to screen for consistently performing equity mutual funds. You can screen based on fund category & benchmark to identify mutual funds that offer higher returns than the benchmark while maintaining lower risk. Inside, you get discounted links to our robo advisory tool…
Continue reading →Many investors display strong emotions whenever a mutual fund or MF asset management company gets into trouble (bond defaults, redemption pressure, front running, etc.). One group blames the AMC, the regulator, and finfluencers and goes into “I want my money back mode” Another group attacks those who are critical of the AMC under pressure and…
Continue reading →It is well known that passive fund enthusiasts recommend an index fund that captures as much of the market as possible – large cap, mid caps, small caps. This gives you complete market participation at low cost. According to the NSE, “The Nifty 500 Index represents about 92.29% of the free float market capitalisation of…
Continue reading →This is a National Pension Scheme Fund Screener to shortlist consistently performing NPS schemes. You can also identify NPS schemes that offer a higher return than the benchmark while maintaining lower risk. This is similar in design to the freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Performance Screener. Inside, you get discounted links to our robo advisory tool…
Continue reading →In this article, we discuss a reader’s question, “How should I benchmark my equity MF returns?”This is an important step for those investing in active mutual funds as it often reminds them that beating a benchmark index is not easy. See: Why are you recommending index funds when your portfolio has beaten the market? However, it…
Continue reading →Everyone associated with a mutual fund says, “the best way to build wealth is via SIP in an equity mutual fund over the long term”. However, where is the proof that a long-term equity mutual fund SIP would work? In this article, we analyse 40+ years of the Sensex and 110 years of the S&P…
Continue reading →Many readers ask us from time to time how to increase their equity exposure for long term financial goals. Their current portfolios are debt-heavy and largely ill-liquid. This is a serious problem many investors face, particularly those who started earning early in their 20s. In my case, I started earning and investing for retirement only…
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