Investing Insights

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Why you need a Financial Advisor - now more than ever!

History tells us that stocks tend to outperform all asset classes over the long-term. But while paper returns from equities and equity mutual funds remain strikingly impressive, the unfortunate reality is that few investors actually end up reaping their rewards to the fullest possible extent. More often than not, the reason for this dichotomy between published and actual returns is the lack of support of a qualified, competent and unconflicted Financial Advisor acting on your behalf.

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The Dilemma of investing as an NRI

India has been a bright spot in the world economy and has been projected to grow on an average, at a staggering 7% for the next 15 years. According to a PwC report, India is slated to be the 2nd largest economy by 2050 only behind China. What this means is that by investing in the equity market, one could accrue the benefits of long term investing by virtue of the rapid growth in the economy. Investing has never been easy and must be done by way of advice from a professional, who takes into account ones risk tolerance, financial goals or objectives, tenor of investment etc. and then recommends the best possible investment.

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3 Reasons Why You Should Say No to Endowment Plans

The fact that a whopping Rs. 30 lakh crores of our collective household savings are parked in insurance policies is a good enough indicator of our nation’s affinity for traditional (endowment) insurance plans! But are these complex sounding policies that look great prima facie, actually good investments or risk coverage tools? We believe not. Here are three good reasons why you should say a big NO to traditional insurance policies.

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Considering an ELSS? Here are 5 Things to Keep in Mind

If you’re about to partake in the all too common financial-yearend scramble to save taxes, you may be flummoxed by the multitude of options at hand. Your insurance agent may be pushing life insurance as the best option, while your friend extols the benefits of a plain vanilla PPF account or even a tax saving FD with a bank. And yet, there’s an 80(C) instrument that not just has a relatively short lock in period of just 3 years – but has delivered a 5-year category average return exceeding 15% per annum and a 10-year annualised return of more than 17% per annum. These are tax saving mutual funds or ELSS (Equity Linked Savings Schemes. These numbers may seem tempting, but make sure you’ve understood a few things about ELSS funds before you say “Tax Saving Mutual Funds Sahi Hai” and jump in with both feet!

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What is Insurance - Really?

As we approach the last month of the fiscal year, the inevitable mad scramble for saving taxes is bound to commence sooner than later. Tragically, the month of March is also synonymous with countless instances of the “buyers regret” syndrome, with clients succumbing to the age-old fallacy of buying insurance to save taxes – only to regret their decisions deeply later on. This unfortunate outcome really stems from a poor understanding of what insurance really is. Is it an investment? Is it a savings tool? Is it an income generator? All of these? None of these?