One lesson from the COVID-19 pandemic for many people has been about planning their finances well. Seeing how the pandemic affected individuals and industries worldwide, it is only natural if investors wonder where they should invest their money, considering that economies are slowly reviving.
Before you think about investment avenues where you can invest money, you need to answer a few basic questions –
- What are your current financial goals? Whether your investments are for short-term, medium-term or long-term?
- What is your risk appetite? Is it high, medium or low? Are you a risk-taker or a risk-averse investor?
- How much spare funds do you have for investing after meeting your fixed expenses?
Where can you invest money in India?
Every investor’s dream is to earn high returns and face minimal risk. Though this scenario is more idealistic and less realistic, there are ways for you to earn attractive returns if you look beyond traditional mode of investments, such as parking your funds in a savings account.
Government schemes
One of the safest ways to grow your money is by investing in government-backed or government-regulated schemes. Some of the popular investment choices are:
- Public Provident Fund (PPF)
PPF is one of the preferred investments in the market for investors looking to invest with no risk, save their tax and accumulate wealth over long term. The rate of interest is revised every financial year, with 7.1% being the rate of interest for 2021-22.National Pension System (NPS)
NPS helps the investor to earn attractive compounding returns, which are linked with stock and bond market returns, at the retirement age. The investor has the option to diversify their funds among equity and debt asset-classes as per their risk appetite.
Gold
Apart from investing in physical gold, there are quite a few alternatives to owning the precious metal now – digital gold, gold Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), gold mutual funds and Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs). Depending on the duration of your investment and market conditions, investing in gold could help you earn attractive returns.
Stock market
Stock market can be a good place to invest your money and earn good returns. You need to have sound knowledge of the stock market for your investment strategies to work. Conversely, you can also enlist the services of an expert to guide you with your stock market trading decisions.
Mutual funds
Mutual funds are pooled investment vehicles that invest in securities like bonds, stocks and other assets. Depending on your risk profile, you can select whether you want to opt for debt or equity mutual funds.
- Debt mutual funds
Investors who are looking for returns higher than those from savings accounts can invest in debt mutual funds. Depending on the debt fund you choose, such funds invest in a mix of government securities, corporate bonds, treasury bills and money market instruments. These instruments are less volatile and carry lower risk as compared to their equity counterparts.
- Equity mutual funds
Under equity mutual funds, you are investing in a fund that invests in the equity of different companies. Depending on the fund you choose, it can invest in a mix of large-cap, mid-cap, small-cap or multi-cap equity stocks. These come with higher risk but could attract significantly higher returns too.
Read More- Stock Market Vs Mutual Funds Where You Should Invest
Just like investing in stock market, investing in mutual funds also requires you to take into consideration a few parameters before you decide upon which scheme to invest in – identifying the risk levels, studying the returns that scheme could offer, and so on. Conversely, you can also seek expert guidance to get personalized plans that are based on your investment goals, duration, and risk appetite.
Reach out to one today!
