A mutual fund scheme is required to have a benchmark. SEBI wants every fund to choose and share comparative performance with this chosen benchmark. A benchmark is typically a publicly available market index such as the Sensex, Nifty 50, Nifty 500, BSE Mid cap, etc. This is true for equity funds. In case of debt or hybrid funds, some institutions, such […]
The biggest investment mistake
Being an advisor, I get an opportunity to evaluate several investor portfolios. Almost every time, my observation is the same. The portfolio selection is driven by one single parameter – best past performance. This is the single guideline that, most probably, drives your investment decisions too. Whether you invest in stocks, mutual funds, gold, commodities, real estate or for […]
The Myth of the mutual fund NAV
“Where can I see the NAV of my fund?” a user asked me. “Why do you need to see it?” The user went silent. I did not understand. Is it because the user thought I was dumb to ask the question? “How do I know the current price of my fund?” “Well, how does it matter?” I persisted. “What do […]
Should I invest in this mutual fund scheme? (Download a 20 point MF selection checklist)
Out of the thousand of schemes and options, a mutual fund investor faces a hugely complex job of figuring out those 5 or 6 schemes that should make it to his/her winning portfolio. Further, once the investments start, there is something more attractive that keeps showing up. Then there is opinion from the media and the experts. A lay investor […]
Here are 10 new tax rules of 2017 that you need to know
With the Budget 2017 and the Finance Bill 2017 of the Government of India approved, there are new tax rules related to taxes that have been introduced. Here are 10 rules that you can impact you as an individual. You need to be aware of the same and thus, possibly benefit from them.
Debt Mutual Funds and Structured Obligations (SO) – Does it mean more risk?
The Franklin Ultra Short Bond fund is a debt mutual fund which invests in various short term corporate bonds, government securities and money market instruments. If you look at the holdings of this fund, you will observe that they all carry a credit rating. A credit rating gives an idea about how safe or not is the […]