Generally, debt products are expected to have lower volatility than equity mutual funds. However, many investors find that debt fund volatility is a lot higher than what they anticipated. This is because of incorrect expectations and a poor understanding of the factors that influence debt fund returns. In this article, we discuss a simple way…
Continue reading →Most investors calculate the investment amount required for their retirement and in for a rude shock. Sleepless nights are quite common! Very few investors manage their finances right after such a shock and start investing with focus and conviction. In this episode of ‘reader audit’, we meet Mr Tinker (name withheld on request), who got…
Continue reading →It is now possible for retail investors in India to directly buy US stocks. One question that is now becoming popular among the investor community is, “can I buy US stocks (in particular US tech stocks) directly instead of investing in a US index like Nasdaq 100 or S & P 500?” SEBI registered fee-only advisor Avinash Luthria…
Continue reading →“What return can I expect from a Nifty 50 SIP over the next 10 years?” This is a typical newbie question. We have pointed out that no one can or no one should expect returns from mutual funds. Yet we still see statements on social media that 10-12% return is “easily possible”. On what basis…
Continue reading →In this edition of reader story, let us peruse a message from Virendra (published with permission) about how he set his finances in order with the help if goal-based investing. In particular, how the result of a retirement calculator drove him into action. His journey is similar to mine – driven by the fear of making…
Continue reading →Focused mutual funds are schemes that can invest in a maximum of 30 stocks in large cap or mid cap or small cap stocks or across market cap (multicap). The scheme must invest 65% of assets in equity and must mention its market cap alignment. In this article, we find out how focused mutual funds…
Continue reading →Those who argue that the stock market recovery is not to be trusted can use the Nifty 50 Arbitrage Index for support. The index that tracks the price difference between “buying equities and selling equivalent equity futures” has registered a fall over the last three months (13 weeks to be exact). Pointing to a drying…
Continue reading →A natural, emerging question among investors looking for professional help from a SEBI registered fee-only advisor is, “If the financial planner only recommends index funds, why should I engage with him?” We requested SEBI Registered Investment Advisor Swapnil Kendhe to explain the nature of the financial planning process and what clients are actually paying for.
Continue reading →In the last year (as on 29th May), two gilts ETFs returned 13% and all direct plan gilt funds moved up between 10% to 17%. Is this then a good time to buy gilt mutual funds?
Continue reading →With RBI 7.75% bonds no longer available and yields from tax-free bonds destroyed by increasing demand, investors looking for a “reasonable” mix of low volatility, credit quality, tax efficiency and liquidity can consider arbitrage mutual funds for long-term goals. How can return can we expect from arbitrage funds? An analysis of all the funds in…
Continue reading →With the repo rate at its lowest, fixed-income investment rates which were already heading south over the last few years are likely to stay there and move down further in future. Equity returns have been consistently heading lower and lower too. This can destroy all financial plans especially retirement which does not come with a…
Continue reading →When I first computed the overall equity mutual fund portfolio return for my retirement corpus after the crash it was close to 10%. I thought, “hey that does not seem bad! Maybe with time, the XIRR sensitivity to market movement is lower”. Turns out, there was a problem in the calculation and the return is…
Continue reading →As on 9th April 2020, more than 90% of equity mutual funds now have a 10-year SIP return in single digits (before tax)!
Continue reading →Here is how ten and fourteen-year SIPs in Nifty have fared during this market crash
Continue reading →A look at how a SIP and lump sum investment in the regular plan and direct plan of the same fund have performed over the last seven years
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