The Budget emerges as a measured, credible and forward-looking policy document that reinforces India's commitment to remaining a stable, reform-oriented economy amid an increasingly fragmented global landscape, says A Balasubramanian.
Mutual fund investment through systematic investment plans (SIPs) has surged to an all-time high of Rs 3.34 lakh crore in 2025, driven by growing investor appetite for disciplined, long-term wealth creation.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced an increase in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on Futures and Options trade with a view to discouraging small investors from speculative trading in derivatives, which led to a sharp decline in the stock market.
India's market regulator has found that Bank of America shared confidential details ahead of a 2024 block trade and later misled regulators during the investigation.
Global risks include a potential delay in the US-India trade agreement, the possibility of a sharp correction in US equity markets, and renewed geopolitical tensions.
2025 marked a shift in investor preference when it comes to MF schemes.
ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company has set a price band of Rs 2,061- Rs 2,165 per share for its Rs 10,600-crore initial public offering (IPO) that will open on Friday. At the upper end of the band, the country's largest asset manager will command a valuation of Rs 1.07 trillion.
The Union Cabinet's decision to raise the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the insurance sector to 100 per cent is unlikely to significantly boost foreign investment as distribution remains a critical factor, requiring overseas players to partner with Indian businesses, experts said.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) on Thursday said it has sold 3.53 per cent stake in RBL Bank for Rs 678 crore, representing a 62.5 per cent gain on the investment. On July 26, 2023, the Mumbai-based diversified firm had announced the acquisition of a 3.53 per cent stake in RBL Bank as a treasury investment at a cost of Rs 417 crore.
'The outlook for the next Samvat is more constructive, as many of the earlier drags are gradually becoming supports.'
The strong domestic flow offset selling by foreign portfolio investors who pulled out $23.3 billion (Rs 2.03 trillion) from domestic equity markets in CY25.
Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund, which manages assets over Rs 9,000 crore (Rs 90 billion), is eyeing acquisition and targets to grow by over 30 per cent this fiscal.
The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) board has approved liberalised part withdrawals for subscribers, allowing up to 100 per cent EPF withdrawal, and rolled out the 'Vishwas Scheme' to reduce litigation through rationalised penal damages.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone has repaid Rs 1,500 crore loan and will repay another Rs 1,000 crore in commercial papers due in March. The Adani Group firm paid Rs 1,000 crore to SBI Mutual Fund and Rs 500 crore to Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund on commercial papers that matured on Monday, as scheduled.
'Investing in these funds makes sense if their net yield over better-quality funds -- corporate bond funds or banking and PSU funds -- is meaningful.'
Birla Sun Life Insurance on Wednesday announced that it has adopted the Automated Underwriting and Risk Analysis software to automate its underwriting process which would enable the company to issue policies in just 30 minutes.
Net inflows into equity mutual fund (MF) schemes scaled a record high in July as the market correction and a raft of new fund offerings (NFOs) lifted lump-sum collections. Active equity schemes raked in a net Rs 42,702 crore in July, going past the previous high of Rs 41,156 crore in December 2024. Systematic investment plan (SIP) inflows continued to scale new highs, rising over 4 per cent month-on-month (M-o-M) to Rs 28,464 crore.
Birla takes over as chairman after his group increased its stake to 51 per cent in November 2012 from the earlier 50 per cent.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Monday proposed relaxations for asset management companies (AMCs) to serve pooled non-broad-based funds, giving an opportunity to fund houses to expand their business.
Only experienced investors with a high risk appetite, a grasp of market cycles, and comfort with volatility and timing risk should invest.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Milind Vadjikar your insurance, stocks, mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has asked at least 10 general and life insurance companies to submit a detailed road map for their listing strategies by the end of this month, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the matter. "The regulator met four life and six general insurers last month and asked them to provide their listing strategies by the end of February," said one of the sources.
Invest in these funds through the SIP route with at least a seven-year horizon.
SBI Mutual Fund recently launched the SBI Quant Fund. Its new fund offer (NFO) opened on December 4, 2024, and will close on December 18, 2024. Currently, 11 fund houses manage quant funds with assets worth Rs 9,013.6 crore.
Quant funds are a unique offering in the MF space as the investment decisions are driven by a blend of active and passive strategies.
India's thriving mutual fund (MF) industry is drawing interest from several firms, with multiple applications submitted to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for asset management company (AMC) licences.
'A long-term investor with a 4 to 5 year horizon could invest in this theme via SIPs.'
The Rs 84,000 crore domestic fund of funds (FoFs) space, which was in the doldrums over the past 18 months, has now caught the attention of investors due to a change in the tax structure in Budget 2024. The broader category, which includes offerings across equity, debt and commodities, has seen a spike in the inflows over the past two months. FoFs typically deploy the pooled capital in one or multiple MF schemes rather than investing directly into equities, debt or commodities.
The 2023-24 (FY24) July-September quarter (second quarter, or Q2) proved to be a mixed period for asset management companies (AMCs). While the two largest listed AMCs, HDFC and Nippon, reported robust growth in both revenue and profits, the other two, Aditya Birla Sun Life and UTI, experienced profit declines. HDFC AMC reported an 18 per cent year-on-year increase in Q2 revenue to Rs 765 crore, while Nippon's revenue rose 15 per cent to Rs 475 crore.
Omkeshwar Singh, head, Rank MF, a mutual fund investment platform, answers your queries:
Given gains in equity prices, it is not surprising that the earnings of asset management companies (AMCs) are growing quicker. The earnings momentum looks set to continue. Good fund performances have thus led to AMC earnings upgrades although valuations are high. Recent market performance and net flow trends have led to earnings upgrades by between 3-8 per cent for FY25-27.
Brokerages have lowered the price targets of asset management companies (AMCs) since they failed to beat revenue growth expectations in the January-March quarter (fourth quarter, or Q4) of 2022-23 (FY23). The regulator's plans to lower the fee charged by AMCs also added to concerns. While HDFC AMC and Nippon Life India AMC reported modest growth in revenue from operations in Q4FY23, UTI AMC and Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC delivered yet another weak quarter.
'Currently, our individual first premium would be in the Rs 3,000-Rs 3,200 crore range. We want to take that to about Rs 6,000 crore in three years.'
'Those satisfied with returns and not expecting further rally could be booking profits and also stopping SIPs.'
The mutual fund (MF) gross inflows through the systematic investment plan (SIP) route topped the Rs 20,000 crore mark for the first time in a calendar month as investors opened a record 6.4 million SIP accounts despite a spike in market volatility. The number of accounts opened last month was almost 50 per cent higher than the registrations seen in March. "India's MF industry has reached yet another milestone with the SIP book crossing above Rs 20,000 crore in April 2024.
rediffGURU Nikunj Saraf suggests considering small-cap, mid-cap, and multi-cap mutual funds.
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