New fund offers collection in the current calendar year was the highest in a decade, with 13 of the 70 equity schemes cornering 75 per cent of the amount raised.
'A long-term investor with a 4 to 5 year horizon could invest in this theme via SIPs.'
Mutual funds have launched a clutch of new fund offers in the silver ETF (exchange traded fund) category this year and collected Rs 1,400 crore in assets after the introduction of the newly-created investment asset class by market regulator Sebi in 2021. Further, fund houses including Kotak Asset Management Company have filed draft documents with the markets regulator to float silver ETF as well as silver ETF fund of funds for investors, information with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) showed. These NFOs (new fund offers) are providing an opportunity to the investors to digitally invest and own silver which is easily tradable during market hours.
Commissions paid to mutual fund distributors (MFDs) increased by over 20 per cent for most large fund houses in 2023-24 (FY24), driven by a sharp market rally and strong inflows. The largest fund house, SBI Mutual Fund (MF), which now manages nearly Rs 10 trillion in assets, paid Rs 2,025 crore to its major distributors - 21 per cent higher than the Rs 1,675 crore payout in 2022-23 (FY23).
In contrast with their strong performance in 2020 and 2021, pharmaceutical and healthcare funds experienced a decline in 2022, with returns plummeting by an average 9.8 per cent. This trend has continued in the current year, with year-to-date return remaining in the negative (-4.9 per cent). In the past three months, pharma funds have been hit hard, experiencing a 7.9 per cent decline.
The mutual fund (MF) industry has seen a fair number of new entrants in the last 10 years but none of them have proved to be much of a challenge for the larger players. The list of top 20 fund houses, which manage over 90 per cent of the industry's total assets, continues to be dominated by players who have been in the business for more than a decade. Bajaj Finserv MF may change that, say experts.
Equity-focused schemes may perform better in a bull market, while debt-oriented ones may offer greater stability during volatile periods.
'Your decisions should not be driven by your view on the market, but by your objectives, risk appetite, and time horizon.'
The ideal time to invest in sector funds, is during a downturn so that investors can capitalise on a turnaround in 1.5 to 2 years.
'We have great demographics, and are the fastest growing large economy. And we save.' 'All of which is great for financial services,' Aditya Birla Capital CEO Ajay Srinivasan tells Niraj Bhatt.
While near-term performance is difficult to predict after a huge run-up, fund managers believe the PSU theme's prospects remain sound over the medium to long term.
State Bank of India (SBI), the largest lender in the country, has launched a share sale to institutional investors to raise upto Rs 25,000 crore, the biggest qualified institutional placement (QIP) so far by an Indian firm, and has set a floor price of Rs 811.05, which is at a 2.5 per cent discount on Wednesday's closing price.
Omkeshwar Singh, Head, Rank MF, a mutual fund investment platform, answers your queries.
India's financial sector is dominated by large government-owned and private-sector banks.
The rally in silver may continue if the global economic recovery remains on course.
New India Assurance and Niva Bupa have invested in the Bima Sugam India Federation.
Corrective measures are already being taken by fund managers - overall allocation to the IT firm has been pruned by 120 basis points, from 4.43 per cent in March to 3.24 per cent in July
In addition, he will have to move swiftly to control any damage that may have been caused to the bank's image and investor confidence due to the loan controversy
The Covid winter seems to be finally ending for debt-oriented mutual fund (MF) schemes as interest rates peak, especially for those that invest in shorter-maturity papers. In the past two months, shorter-horizon debt schemes - ultra-short, low-duration, and money-market - have together raked in net inflows of Rs 48,000 crore, the highest for two months since April-May 2021. These schemes invest in shorter-maturity papers ranging from three months to a year.
Largecap companies are generally less vulnerable to economic slowdowns than their mid- and smallcap counterparts.
An allocation to ESG theme funds can bring down the overall risk of an equity portfolio. Investors with long-term financial goals, such as retirement, should not ignore sustainable investing.
Value mutual funds have witnessed robust investor interest, garnering Rs 22,757 crore in inflows in 2024, nearly double the amount seen in 2023, fueled by impressive returns generated by the segment. This surge reflects a shift in investor focus towards fundamentally strong yet undervalued stocks.
Nikunj Saraf, Vice President Choice Wealth, answers your queries.
Silver, which is currently trading at Rs 68,453 per kilogram, has appreciated 21.7 per cent over the past three months. Investors, however, shouldn't get carried away by its recent performance and put their money in it. Instead, they should evaluate its pros and cons and then take a considered decision based on their risk appetite.
Since infrastructure projects have long gestation periods, investors need to enter them with a long horizon of at least 10 years.
'There is no need to do anything, let your SIPs get deducted every month, and stick to your allocation between equity, fixed income and emergency funds and your risk covers.'
HDFC Equity, the largest equity fund, also managed by Prashant Jain, with a corpus of Rs 10,445 crore, has 9.4 per cent of its assets in SBI.
Given the macro setting, the outlook remains positive for each of the four key parameters - inflation, current account deficit, fiscal deficit and currency stability, says Rahul Bhushkute.
Since you are betting only on a few stocks, the risks are high.
The government and the Reserve Bank of India is moving in the right direction to curb the inflationary expectations
Don't exit from growth-style funds as they may benefit next from a shift in investor preference.
Measured by returns in 2013, the top 10 funds had only three from large houses; nimble strategy could be a factor.
Increasing awareness about mutual funds, ease of transactions through digitisation and sharp surge in equity markets have aided asset management companies to add a staggering 3.17 crore investor accounts in 2021-22, with experts saying the trend is likely to continue this fiscal as well. This was a significant rise from 2020-21 when 81 lakh accounts (or folios in mutual fund parlance) were opened, data with the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) showed. The ongoing financial year too appears to be promising in terms of folios as increase in investor accounts will enable people to move beyond fixed deposits and savings accounts, said Priti Rathi Gupta, founder of LXME, a financial platform for women.
rediffGURU Ramalingam Kalirajan answers your personal finance queries.
Opinions vary, but fund managers remain bullish.
In the 52 newly listed companies since 2014, fund managers have a total investment of a mere 2.5 per cent of their assets under management.
Balanced funds are suitable for investors who have low-risk appetite or are new to equities.Those with more than seven-year investment horizon should look at funds that have higher equity exposure.
'The number of first-time investors into MFs can grow four times more than the current rate if we are able to accept the bank KYCs.'
Vishal Sikka who was made vice-chairman till his successor was appointed, also quit the board with immediate effect.
HDFC Bank's latest shareholding data showed that the room for foreign investment has fallen just 5 basis points short of the threshold set by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) to fully include the stock in its indices. Currently, the index provider has applied an adjustment factor of 0.5 since the foreign room is less than 25 per cent. Removal of the adjustment factor will result in inflows of a massive $4.8 billion (Rs 40,000 crore) into HDFC Bank, according to Brian Freitas, a New Zealand-based analyst with Periscope Analytics.
