Sebi on Friday imposed a penalty of Rs 50 lakh on Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company (AMC) and barred the fund house from launching new fixed maturity plan (FMP) scheme for six months for violating regulatory norms. The markets regulator has directed the fund house to refund a part of the investment management and advisory fees collected from the unitholders of the six FMP schemes along with a simple interest at the rate of 15 per cent per annum. The case relates to the fund house's investment in certain FMPs. These FMPs of Kotak AMC had invested in Zero Coupon Non-Convertible Debentures (ZCNCDs) issued by Essel Group entities.
2025 marked a shift in investor preference when it comes to MF schemes.
Capex, infrastructure development, and prudent fiscal management are the key focus areas in the Budget, says Nilesh Shah.
'For most investors, I recommend a low double-digit allocation (10 to 12 per cent) to gold and silver combined.'
Inflows into equity mutual fund (MF) schemes declined for a fourth consecutive month in April, even as systematic investment plan (SIP) inflows reached a record high of about Rs 26,632 crore.
With several $500 million-plus deals in the pipeline -- including ICICI Prudential AMC, Lenskart, PhonePe, Groww, PhysicsWallah, Meesho, Pine Labs, and Zepto -- investment bankers look poised for another year of hefty bonuses in 2025.
Gold prices inched closer to the psychological mark of Rs 1 lakh per 10 grams as the bullion rates surged Rs 1,650 in the national capital on Monday on weak dollar and uncertainties over US-China trade war driving demand. According to the All India Sarafa Association, the yellow metal of 99.9 per cent purity reached Rs 99,800 per 10 grams on Monday. Its value had declined Rs 20 to close at Rs 98,150 on Friday.
Mutual funds (MFs) - flush with cash amid record inflows in July - invested heavily in the Rs 25,000-crore qualified institutional placement (QIP) of India's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI). Fund managers acquired SBI shares worth Rs 10,200 crore last month, making the lender their biggest buy in July.
Inflows into mutual funds' equity schemes increased by over 14 per cent on-month to Rs 41,156 crore in December, even as market volatilities continued. The small and midcap schemes of mutual funds continued to attract investor interest with inflows touching record highs during the month, despite the concerns being expressed about the two segments for the risk they portend, industry body Amfi said.
The contribution from asset management companies (AMCs) has surpassed the Rs 3,000 crore target for the creation of a Rs 33,000 crore backstop facility for debt mutual funds (MFs). The initial corpus for the Corporate Debt Market Development Fund (CDMDF) is nearly Rs 3,100 crore, according to multiple government officials and AMC executives. "The fund is operational now. "The required corpus has been raised by AMCs and the remaining part (Rs 30,000 crore) is in the form of a guarantee from the government which will be activated only in case of a credit event," explained D P Singh, joint CEO and deputy MD, SBI MF.
Mutual fund houses are bullish on the financial sector, notwithstanding the recent beating at the stock market. Fund houses like Kotak Mahindra AMC, Sundaram BNP Paribas & LIC Mutual Fund have drawn up plans to introduce products aimed at the financial services sector. Bank stocks for long had been one of the favourite picks for many fund managers. There was a slowdown in valuations of financial sector stocks but Indian corporate entities still continue to remain attractive.
The change in debt fund taxation is seen as boosting the demand for hybrid funds. It is no surprise then that asset management companies (AMCs) have launched a raft of new products in the multi-asset category. However, they seem to be divided on the asset mix and approach. The multi-asset space, which provides fund houses ample scope to innovate, has seen five launches in as many months.
Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman has presented a forward-looking Budget, reinforcing the government's commitment to 'Reform, Perform, and Transform'.
'The correction in the markets in the initial part of August provided investors a good buying opportunity.'
Smallcap mutual funds recorded net outflows for the first time in 30 months in March as investors pulled out money after the markets regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), warned against "froth" in the mid and smallcap space. Active equity mutual fund (MF) schemes raked in Rs 22,600 crore in March. The March inflow is 16 per cent lower than the two-year high inflow of Rs 26,860 crore in February, shows data from the Association of MFs in India (Amfi).
Equity benchmark Sensex ended marginally higher after a choppy session on Friday as concerns over the economic impact of the second wave of Covid-19 and pace of vaccination weighed on investor sentiment.
Mutual funds recorded Rs 7,600 crore net inflows into active equity schemes in July even as redemptions surged to a 30-month high of Rs 30,400 crore owing to profit booking, reveals data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi). Equity net inflows were 13 per cent lower compared to the preceding month's tally. The inflows were supported by a strong flow from retail investors through the systematic investment plan (SIP) route.
The sharp surge in investment accounts (folios) in midcap and smallcap mutual funds (MF) in recent months is likely driven by the do-it-yourself (DIY) investors. In the first five months of the present financial year (FY 2024), net folio additions in direct MF plans (4.5 million) has outpaced that in regular plans (3.9 million), contrary to the trend seen in the previous three six-month periods. The net folio additions in direct plans in the five-month period (April-August 2023) is 40 per cent higher than the total additions made in the previous six month period.
It is also learnt that Deutche bank has initiated a search for a new head of its private wealth management business in India
Active largecap funds, which have the toughest job in terms of outperforming the benchmark, did better in 2023 as their bets in the mid and smallcap stocks paid off.
Following the 30-day moratorium placed on Yes Bank, asset management companies have asked their clients, who have bank accounts with the troubled lender, to furnish details of alternate accounts for receiving redemption payouts. Redemption is the return of an investor's principal on a fixed income security such as a bond, mutual fund or preferred stock.
Shares of Yes Bank may face selling pressure as the Reserve Bank-mandated three-year lock-in period for individual investors and exchange-traded funds is ending on Monday, according to analysts. The analysts expect distress on the bank counter on Monday as they expect investors, primarily the nine banks led by State Bank, which picked up almost 49 per cent of its stocks in March 2020 for Rs 10 per share -- at a premium of Rs 8 on the face value as part of the RBI bailout, making an exit. Exchange-traded funds are also likely to press the exit button.
Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, which has closed six debt schemes, has said the winding-up process will be delayed in the absence of authorisation from investors and further steps will be possible only after seeking fresh approval from them. It further said that investors who do not have an e-mail ID or mobile number registered with the fund house will not be able to participate in the voting process. The date on which the voting would start has not been disclosed yet.
The Budget has to provide for capex on roads, railways, defence and other infrastructure sectors.
TCS tops the list of 100 wealth creators for the fourth time in a row
InterGlobe Aviation has already raised Rs 832 crore from anchor investors.
Domestic mutual funds (MFs) and foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have been net buyers of stocks in August. Domestic fund houses have continued to invest in stocks, propelled by the success of various new fund offers (NFOs) and strong flows into equity funds. MFs had purchased stocks worth more than Rs 8,300 crore until August 23, according to the data provided on the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) website. Jimmy Patel, MD and CEO at Quantum AMC, says: "The surge in equity investments by MFs is because of two key reasons. One, equity NFOs are getting a strong response from investors, and fund houses need to deploy that money in the markets.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
The Reserve Bank's rate-setting panel, Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), began its three-day deliberations on Wednesday amid expectations of a status quo on benchmark rate mainly on account of uncertainty over the impact of the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, the fears of firming inflation may also refrain the MPC from tinkering with the interest rate in its bi-monthly monetary policy outcome to be announced on Friday. The RBI had kept key interest rates unchanged at the last MPC meeting held in April.
Omkeshwar Singh, head, Rank MF, a mutual fund investment platform, answers your queries.
Ajit Mishra will answer Your Questions on the stock markets on a weekly basis. Please mail your questions to getahead@rediff.co.in with the subject line 'Stock Market Query' along with your name and Ajit will offer his unbiased views.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
Investment experts said the key to generating superior returns was "asset allocation" and taking money out of the table from themes that have performed well and into themes that are available at a discount.
Stockmarket Gurus Raamdeo Agrawal, Manish Gunwani, S Naren and Nilesh Shah discuss their favourite themes for the New Year.
It was because of strong inflows into debt-oriented schemes that saved 2019 from being a "dark-dull year of investing" as inflows into equity funds has dropped this year due to a volatile market.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
IndiGo had debt of Rs 3,912 crore at end of the June quarter.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
Experts prefer domestic consumption-driven plays and defensives such as information technology and pharmaceuticals
Ajit Mishra, vice president, research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
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