Investments

Stranger on a Train

It’s not about the 1951 Alfred Hitchcock psychological thriller, but about my commute, and an invigorating conversation with a stranger 😉.

Few days back, while travelling home from the office, a co-passenger in metro asked me directions to an address. The chat started through an address, which I explained him descriptively. He shared some details about him business travel and told that he learns new routes every time he visits a new city. When he asked me about my whereabouts, I introduced myself as a Mumbaikar and a financial advisor.

He couldn’t wait for me to complete… and started discussing his equity and mutual fund portfolio. This wasn’t new for me, as I had many such experiences in the past. In India, whenever we see a doctor or financial advisor, we start with our illnesses or portfolio discussions.

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What are Portfolio Management Services?

PMS

Portfolio Management Service (PMS) is a financial service designed for High Networth Individuals (HNI). HNI investors generally prefer customized investment options and thus PMS is suitable for such investors. PMS is offered by various entities such as asset management companies, banks and brokerages registered with SEBI. PMS Managers are highly qualified investment professionals with extensive knowledge and research experience.

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Should You Go for Child Plan?

should you buy child plan?

Every parent wants the best for their child. They want them to get the best of education and be financially secure and are willing to compromise or postpone their own dreams for the sake of their children. It therefore becomes necessary to choose the right financial plan for their future. Planning for their future needs to be started as early as possible. Assuming an inflation of 8%, it is safe to conclude that cost of education will rise significantly in the next 10 to 20 years. Many companies offer Child plan for these needs. So is Child plan the right option for your child’s need or should you consider other options?

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STP – investing in the volatile time

STP Transfer

STP stands for “Systematic Transfer Plan”, which means, one doesn’t want to invest in one GO, but in Parts, over a Period of time. For instance, you have 10 lacs in hand and seeking investment avenues for the entire 10 lacs. Easiest way is to shortlist a fund & invest fully (i.e. entire 10 lacs). But in the current market scenario, where market is swinging every second month (since last one year);is it a wise decision to invest fully?

STP comes as a rescue, where one can make this volatility work for your own benefit. First & foremost, let’s understand, one cannot ever time the market, therefore no point acting like a cowboy, or getting ideas based on celebrity talk-shows/ articles.

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Reducing FD rates, a concern for retired

Reducing-Fd-Rates

Mr. Joshi, a senior citizen is worried man today. His income from FD has been getting less by the day and on other hand monthly expenses have been rising. To add to the worries are the rising medical expenses. For the generation that has retired in last few decades, retirement pension or interest income from FD was the income support in old days.

Changing times call for different approach. A good mix of fixed income and market linked products is the answer to ensure optimal investment returns. Investing Rs 15 lakh in Pradhan Mantri Vayu Vandana Yojana provides assured return of 8% with monthly income of Rs 10,000.

Investments in debt and balanced funds schemes can give higher returns and better protection of capital. These investments are tax efficient if invested over three years. A small exposure to equity mutual funds over 3-5 year horizon can provide for capital appreciation. The increased returns should also be used for having adequate insurance cover to meet medical expenses. A small sum in liquid fund for emergency needs can take care of any contingency.

Are your bank FD safe with PSU banks?

Are-your-PSU-banks-FD-safe

The recent news of Bank scams and huge losses incurred by banks are making the common man jittery over the safety of one’s hard earned savings. Bank FD is the most natural option used by salaried class to park their savings to provide for the future needs. One, because the nationalised banks are owned by the government and its was indirectly a guarantee that your funds are in safe hands. Whenever there has been a doubt about the viability of a Bank, RBI has stepped in and ensured safety of investor deposit by merging of weaker banks with the stronger ones. Let’s have a look at the regulatory provisions to know how safe your deposits are.

Bank deposits in value terms are insured by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (DICGC), a wholly owned subsidiary of the RBI. The deposit insurance covers all commercial banks, local area banks, regional rural banks and cooperative banks. You should be aware that only Rs 1 lakh of your savings is insured. This limit has not been revised since long. As an investor you should also know the worst-case scenario in case something untoward happens.

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Demonetisation effect

demonetisation-effect

With demonetisation almost nearing its completion & 80% of the old notes back with the banks, most of us are questioning, what next?

Well, to start with, we are moving in the phase where quite a lot of individuals & families have either declared or will start operating with white money now. In short, we have more people having white money in hand going forward, which will soon start demanding white investments.

Real estate & gold, which used to be the main source for black-money, now will (more…)

Black or White – what do I do?

black-money-tax-scan

Our dear Prime Minister is known for surprise, and the biggest was on 8th evening, when he announced to demonetize INR 500 & 1000 currency notes. It’s a known fact, that in India we have a parallel economy running on black money, also known as shadow economy. Whatever measures & schemes offered by government, still they were not able to control or stop the flow of black money. Finally, the masterstroke!!!

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