The Indian mutual fund industry has been in the race to garner more AUM. Fund houses have launched schemes both during upbeat market sentiments and even now when volatility in the Indian equity market has intensified. However, fund houses have been able to capitalise on better during upbeat and positive sentiments than in times when…

In the current environment of intensified market volatility, bank Fixed Deposits (FDs) are preferred by many investors inclined towards low-risk and fixed-income financial instruments. The last few years have seen the peak of FD interest rates, largely driven by a series of repo rate hikes by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) between May 2022 and February 2023. Thereafter,…

Passive funds, such as index funds or equity-oriented ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) are designed to track the performance of popular market indices or sectors, such as the Nifty 50, S&P BSE Sensex, and Nifty 500. Other than these, there are sector and strategy-oriented passive funds investing in indices such as Nifty Quality Low Volatility 30, Nifty Quality…

The Mutual Funds Sahi Hai campaign launched by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), brought much success to the Indian mutual fund industry. Today, the Average Assets Under Management (AUM)of the Indian mutual fund has touched Rs 68.05 trillion, not only because of the mark-to-market gains but also because of real inflows into various mutual fund…

Traditionally, the last three months of the financial year, are considered as the tax planning season, wherein individuals focus on making certain tax-saving investments. However, ever since the New Tax Regime was introduced in the Union Budget 2020-21, the income tax slab structure under it was made attractive over the years to encourage many individual…

An old Spanish novel, Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, carries a pearl of wisdom: “It is the part of a wise man to keep himself today for tomorrow, and not to venture all his eggs in one basket”. The hidden piece of advice in not putting all your eggs in one basket is averting the risk of…

Worried and anxious about the current volatility in the Indian equity market, where the small and midcaps (SMIDS) in particular have been hammered, investors are now wondering what they should be doing with the existing mutual fund SIPs. Many investors, in panic, have already discontinued or stopped their SIPs. The Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) data…

The Indian stock market recently witnessed a sharp correction, particularly in the Small and Mid-cap segment or SMIDs as they are popularly called. Investors who have been riding high on the robust gains in these segments are caught off guard as prices plummeted. This market crash is due to a mix of domestic and global factors at…

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its February 2025 bi-monthly meeting cut the policy repo rate by 25 basis points (bps) to 6.25%. It was for the first time in almost five years that the six-member MPC voted unanimously in favour of a rate cut. The stance of the monetary policy is kept ‘neutral’ to…

Recognising the role of the middle class in India’s growth, the Union Budget 2025-26 has stayed true to its promise. Finance Minister Ms Nirmala Sitharaman announced significant changes to the income tax slab for the FY2025-26 under the New Tax Regime, aimed at leaving more disposable income in the hands of individuals. One of the most talked-about aspects…