Life cycle funds may suit people who are starting their investing journey. They may suit those who do not want to monitor their investments frequently. Busy professionals, beginners and delegators, who lack the time, information or interest to manage asset allocation actively, may find these funds useful.
The newest entrant to the Rs 46-trillion mutual fund (MF) space - Zerodha - plans to focus strictly on the low-cost passive segment and offer its products solely through the commission-free digital route, as it aims to replicate its broking success in the MF space. "We will offer an array of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and index funds that would help investors take varied exposures and build portfolios based on their financial needs and risk tolerance. "Zerodha Fund House (FH) products will be exclusively distributed online and available as direct plans to engage directly with individual investors and consumers, taking advantage of the pronounced shift from physical to digital interactions," said Vishal Jain, chief executive officer, Zerodha FH.
Passive funds have resumed gaining ground in the mutual fund (MF) industry after a slowdown in 2024, with their share of assets under management (AUM) reaching an all-time high in 2025. The surge has been driven largely by robust inflows into gold and silver exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
With domestic markets turning choppy, investors are increasingly scouting for opportunities overseas to diversify portfolios and hedge against a weakening rupee.
'While investing in a silver ETF, one should be aware that it has historically exhibited higher price volatility than gold.'
After a stellar 2023, the mutual fund industry sustained its growth momentum in 2024 with an impressive Rs 17 lakh crore surge in assets, driven by buoyant equity markets, robust economic growth, and increasing investor participation. Experts are predicting the positive trend will extend into 2025.
'It makes sense to have gold in one's portfolio keeping the political and economic risks of 2024 in mind.'
Most investors should have a 5% to 10% allocation to gold for diversification. They should stagger their investments to mitigate timing risk.
Despite strong AUM growth, MFs lag behind other popular investment avenues. MFs received only 6 per cent of total household savings in 2021-2022.
Until now, these platforms were either working through an investment advisory (IA) or stockbroking licence.
'Liquid ETFs help in cash management by enabling a smooth transition between equity and cash within the same settlement cycle, as they trade in the same segment as equity.'
Bootstrapping has put Nithin Kamath of Zerodha in a position where he can trifle with talk about valuation, points out Suveen Sinha.
Online mutual fund (MF) investment platforms like Groww, Zerodha Coin and Paytm Money, which allow investments in direct MF schemes for free, will soon be able to charge their customers or the fund houses for executing transactions. "They can charge some money but commission-like structure won't be allowed," Madhavi Puri Buch, chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), said on Tuesday. At present, none of these online investment platforms generate any revenue through the MF sales.
The best way to achieve financial security isn't by cutting out every vada pav or limiting yourself to home-cooked meals; it's by making yourself indispensable at work, says Vatsal Ramaiya.
While Jio MF will undoubtedly grow in size, it will have to cross multiple hurdles even to emerge as the market leader, observes Debashis Basu.
Investors may have to wait a little longer for Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based block mechanism in the secondary market even as the market regulator has set the effective launch date as January 1, 2024. Several brokerage firms said they may take a few months more to implement it. Investors will be able to register for this facility only if the stock broker has opted for the UPI block facility.
The flows may stem and redemptions pressure increase following the market meltdown of Monday amid mounting cases of coronavirus infection globally.
India's mutual fund (MF) industry had barely any retail footprint when it completed 50 years in 2013. MFs had Rs 7 trillion in assets under management (AUM) in March 2013, of which around Rs 5 trillion was in institution-focused debt funds. By comparison, bank deposits in the country stood at Rs 67.5 trillion around the same time.
Omkeshwar Singh, Head, Rank MF, a mutual fund investment platform, answers your queries
'Personally, I have reached that stage where I think material things can't give you any satisfaction.'
Besides a great idea, it takes pluck, and some luck, to get going.
Many people struggle to claim or liquidate investments and insurance policies due to procedural issues.
Bug bounty hunters or independent ethical hackers are certified cybersecurity professionals or security researchers who crawl the web, scanning the systems for gaps through which hackers can sneak in and alert the companies, says Shivani Shinde.
Thousands of retail investors are reaping the benefits of the disruption that the latest technologies have brought to the equity market. Brokerage firms are aggressively investing in technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data and analytics, social media, chatbots, virtual assistants and so on.
Investors must withdraw funds, open a new trading account and transfer assets.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, Research, Religare Broking, answers your queries.
Omkeshwar Singh, Head, Rank MF, a mutual fund investment platform, will answer your queries.
Markets ended lower amid volatile trade with Sun Pharma leading the decline.
