The impending merger between Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) with HDFC Bank may create challenges for large-cap fund managers, most of whom are already grappling to match the returns generated by their benchmarks. The combined weight following the merger in the benchmark Sensex and Nifty 50 indices is likely to be much higher than permissible limits for active mutual fund (MF) schemes. This could have a bearing on the performance of large-cap funds if HDFC Bank shares outperform the markets, as the schemes will be forced to remain underweight on the stock to adhere to the single-stock cap.
'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.'
Stocks of smallcap and midcap companies, which had caught the fancy of retail investors, also feature in the portfolio of leading politicians in addition to bluechip stocks.
The weakening of inflation, prospects of economic growth, geopolitical uncertainty and comfortable system liquidity may result in the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to cut the repo rate by another 25 basis points, opine top economists. They also said the external economic pressures like trade policies and others would require continued RBI's accommodative stance and policy support for the Indian industry to sustain the growth.
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.
Investors continue to back-up equity mutual funds in June as such schemes attracted a net inflow of Rs 15,498 crore on strong flows from systematic investment plans despite volatility in the stock market and relentless selling by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs). This also marked the 16th straight month of positive inflow in equity schemes. Inflows into equity mutual funds in June was lower compared to the net inflow of Rs 18,529 crore seen in May, data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) showed on Friday.
If they act now, they can reshape the strategic map of Asia without firing a shot. If they wait, the next opportunity will come only after a serious Taiwan Strait incident -- by which time the price will be far higher, and the room for boldness far smaller -- the opportunity may well be lost by then. The question is no longer whether this can or should be done, points out Varun Arya.
At a time Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) is under the scanner due to the alleged bribe-for-loan scam at its housing finance arm, the mutual fund company of the corporation has been continuously losing business. Its assets have dipped substantially this year. As the mutual fund industry faces redemption pressure, LIC Mutual Fund, a state-owned fund house, has performed worse than the industry so far in the current financial year.
An improvement in the liquidity situation is visible as also an increased inflow into mutual funds this month, a top mutual funds industry official said on Wednesday. The apex bank has cut its cash reserve ratio by 3.5 per cent and repo rate by 1.5 per cent since October, thereby considerably easing liquidity pressure in the system.
Undeterred by the stock market volatility, uncertainty due to the Ukraine-Russia war and high inflation, equity mutual funds continue to remain attractive choice for investors for the 15th straight month, registering a net inflow of Rs 18,529 crore in May on robust SIP numbers. This was higher than Rs 15,890 crore net inflow in April, data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) showed on Thursday. Equity schemes have been witnessing net inflow since March 2021, highlighting the positive sentiment among investors.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is looking at reducing the fees of all mutual fund schemes - equity funds (open- and close-ended), debt funds, index funds and even funds of funds (or FoFs, mutual funds that invest in mutual funds).
While Angel One and Unifi Capital have obtained the final licence, Jio BlackRock, Capitalmind, Choice International and Cosmea Financial Holdings have received in-principle approvals.
As per the revised structure, the ARN fees for NBFCs have seen the biggest decline of 80 per cent to Rs 100,000 (from Rs 500,000 earlier), while fees for proprietary firms have also been slashed considerably from Rs 10,000 to Rs 3,000.
'Although mid- and small-cap funds have the potential for higher growth, they come with inherent higher volatility.'
The Unit Trust of India Asset Management Company on Saturday called for a lower tax regime for mutual fund industry for the benefit of average investors.
Mutual funds (MFs) have lined up information technology (IT) funds, indicating that technology stocks are back on fund managers' radar after a hiatus. Over the past 18 months, stock prices for companies in the software space have either corrected or remained subdued. Fund houses have launched five IT-based sectoral funds in the past three months, with three of them taking the passive route.
Various online platforms let you invest in direct mutual funds.
ETFs may be an option if you are considering only large-cap funds, experts tell Tinesh Bhasin.
Portfolio management services (PMS), catering to higher networth individuals (HNIs), are facing tough competition from emerging alternative investment funds (AIFs), evident from their dwindling client base. In May, the number of clients for the industry stood at 125,390, down 20,528 in two months, shows data from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). "PMS managers also have a high active ratio, which means their portfolios are quite differently positioned and more actively managed, compared to the benchmark, which is also a highlight for long-term investors.
rediffGURU Ramalingam Kalirajan answers your personal finance queries.
'Those satisfied with returns and not expecting further rally could be booking profits and also stopping SIPs.'
'...hesitate to support the risk-taking it requires.'
Only a limited set of investors should invest directly in corporate bonds.
Rediff.com caught up with Reliance Capital Asset Managment CEO Sundeep Sikka, to discuss the success of Reliance Mutual Fund.
Invest only if you wish to go overweight on the sector.
Lately the mutual fund industry has been witness to a string of mergers between fund houses as well as consolidation of schemes within the same fund house.
Now SEBI registered Mutual Funds would be allowed to accept subscriptions from foreign investors who meet the Know Your Client (KYC) requirements for equity schemes.
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have infused a record Rs 4.6 trillion into Indian equities over the course of Samvat 2080, marking the highest net annual investment in any Samvat to date. This robust domestic inflow has effectively counterbalanced the comparatively subdued investments from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), who contributed a net Rs 90,956 crore within the same timeframe. Against this backdrop, the Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex indices are on track to achieve their best performance in three Samvat years, despite recent market corrections.
The Rs 38-trillion mutual fund (MF) industry is going through a new fund offer (NFO) rush. Since July 1, the industry has launched close to 70 NFOs. This follows the completion of a near three-month embargo period when the industry had vowed to not launch any new offerings till the time it implemented norms around pooling of investor accounts. As a result, between April and June 2022, the industry was able to launch just three NFOs.
Awaiting the right opportunity to deploy their funds into the equity market, the mutual fund industry is stting on a huge cash pile of Rs 20,109 crore, even as Foreign Institutional Investors are pouring funds into equities.
Investors should avoid jumping from their current funds into those that have outperformed lately, advises Arnav Pandya, a certified financial planner.
If you want to buy into the stock markets don't wait for tomorrow. The right time to buy stocks is NOW. And here's why...
wSe believe that investing at its core is a rather simple activity. If investors stick to the basics, they are likely to do well for themselves over longer time frames.
HDFC Asset Management Company (HDFC AMC) reported a healthy profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 430 crore for the July-September quarter (Q2) of financial year 2023-24 (FY24). It rose 20.2 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) and decreased 8.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q). This was driven by good equity returns, leading to a sequential improvement in revenue yields.
The global financial crisis is really the consequence of an excessively short-term outlook, propelled by greed and unstopped by regulation. The short-termism is due to several factors, not least of which is the enormous growth, in the past three decades, of the mutual fund industry.
'BSE has facilitated nearly Rs 35 trillion in capital raising across multiple segments.'
This feat was achieved 25 years after the mutual funds industry was opened to private players. The industry now aims to achieve the next Rs 25 trillion in 5 years.
