[sgiitk]

Franklin Blue Chip is again excellent DSPBR Top 100 is also 5* on ValueResearch. Would these two large-giant caps funds not overlap too much?

[abdriver2000]

Originally Posted by huntrz

HDFC Top 200 , HDFC Prudence and IDFC Premier are top performers in their respective categories. Don't know about the other two. I personally stay away from ETFs. The reason being their redemption depends on the liquidity the AMC maintains by employing the market makers. If you redeem an amount in a normal MF you are guaranteed to get your money back but I am not sure about how the AMC maintains the liquidity in ETFs. Moreover there is nothing as liquid as physical gold. Most of the advisers on tv programs donot talk about their liquidity(some do). Do check their volume from the dmat account before buying.

What to do if you are stuck with an illiquid ETF| ET Slide Shows

What you said makes sense. If I decide on Gold ETF, it will most likely be in Benchmark fund which is the category leader. In a worst case scenario, it would be in Kotak Gold which is 2nd in line yet way behind in terms of AUM.

[abdriver2000]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Franklin Blue Chip is again excellent DSPBR Top 100 is also 5* on ValueResearch. Would these two large-giant caps funds not overlap too much?

I am already invested in DSPBR Top 100. Franklin Bluechip will help me diversify amongst fund houses. Any suggestions here? Should I increase my SIPs in DSPBR or do you suggest any other fund?

[nkapoor777]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

L & T Financial have bought out Fidelity. A real dark horse. They will be renamed L&TMF. Let us see how things go.

The official word says the offer to keep all the existing Fidelity staff by L&T swayed the decision in its favour. But the fact that the equity team will be moving on is quite a bummer. Sandeep Kothari has been a star delivering consistent and impressive returns in funds like Fidelity Equity and Fidelity Tax Advantage. L&T's existing equity setup isn't anything to shout about which is demonstrated by the lackluster performance of their equity schemes. I, for one, will be stopping my monthly SIP in Fidelity Tax Advantage. Worried about the existing investments as well since they are locked in for some time.

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

Planning to SIP in the following:

HDFC Top 200
DSPBR Top 100
HDFC Prudence
IDFC Premier
Franklin Bluechip

Also planning to buy sometimes into Gold ETF. Any suggestions?

There is a lot of overlap in atleast three of the schemes mentioned by you (Top 200, Top 100, Franklin Bluechip). Two out of these should do fine. Ideal combination would be HDFC Top 200 and Franklin Bluechip which will cover a broader universe of stocks across market caps.

Also remember HDFC Prudence is one of the most aggressive balanced/hybrid funds in the marketplace with a very high equity allocation at all times. This results in category leading performances during good times but the fall is also substantial when the tide turns. If the rationale is to allocate funds to a rather more conservative fund than the usual diversified equity funds, you can look at some of the other hybrid funds. For Gold ETF, the difference in performance is hardly substantial to sway an investment decision unless you are investing huge sums. Pick one of Benchmark (Gold BeES) or Kotak Gold due to their consistent volumes to avoid liquidity issues.

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

I am already invested in DSPBR Top 100. Franklin Bluechip will help me diversify amongst fund houses. Any suggestions here? Should I increase my SIPs in DSPBR or do you suggest any other fund?

If you are happy with DSPBR Top 100's performance, increase the SIP amount rather than opting for a new one.

[sgiitk]

@nkapoor777; I am in Fidelity Equity in a not so small way. Tax Advantage has a lock-in so can do very little. @abdriver2000; All I can say is that if you want to enter Franklin Templeton then you can use the Blue Chip to open a folio. Blue Chip is more conservative than the Top100. I am in BC and not Top100. Remember I try to also maintain some balance between fund houses so do not read too much into it.

[yosbert]

Thanks smartcat and sgiitk for you suggestions on debt/liquid funds.
I finally decided to go for BSL Dynamic Bond Fund and Principal Cash Management Fund. I already have HDFC ones in my portfolio.

[yosbert]

I am looking to open a demat account in my daughter's name.
Looking for suggestions and recommendations for a bank/online portal. I am currently using icicidirect for my demat account. In general I am quite satisfied with their service, but just wanted to check out if there are any better options available.

[sgiitk]

A lot will depend on whether you are passive or active. If the latter then you hould link with a trading account. If the former it hardly matters.

I do no recommend using DEMAT on MFs - reason Annual Charges!

[yosbert]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I do no recommend using DEMAT on MFs - reason Annual Charges!

Please pardon my ignorance. If I do not have a DEMAT account, how else do I hold the MFs?

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by yosbert

Please pardon my ignorance. If I do not have a DEMAT account, how else do I hold the MFs?

Mutual Funds are converted to NAV's and is held by the bank that you purchase the fund from. You will get a monthly statement of you NAV value ( units and rupee value) so you can track whether your investment is going upward or downward.

Demats are absolutely necessary only for stock trading.

[sgiitk]

@mobike008; actually the funds are held by the AMC most of which have agents to handle individual accounts - CAMS and Karvy are a couple. You can get statements from the fund/Agent whenever you need. Today you can also access the folio on line. Your bank acts as the broker (often charges a fee of about 2% when investing) and will get you the statements whenever you ask them.

All MFs can be held, bought and sold in DEMAT but as I mentioned I do not want the DEMAT agent to charge me the annual fee which is a percentage of the NAV. Even Gold funds I do not hold in DEMAT (preferring to avoid the DEMAT only ones).

Let me add with the economy and rupees in free fall which waiting out on the Equity schemes (hope beats eternal in the human breast), I am now investing only in medium (to short) term money market funds in Growth. Strictly speaking Dynamic Bond funds may yield the best. These normally give better returns than FDs (esp. if you take the tax liability into account).

[arvind71181]

I was thinking of starting an SIP in the following funds:

SBI Magnum Emerging Business Fund
SBI Dynamic bond fund

The first one is an equity based fund while the other is conservative. Any reviews on these funds? And is it ok to keep both SIPs with SBI or will it be better to diversify??

[sgiitk]

@arvind; You must have checked on the valueresearchonline.com website for ratings?

The first is a sectoral fund, even though it has a 4* rating. I will avoid it. Go for a diversified Equity Fund (large/Giant cap, with maybe limited exposure to mid caps). A couple of good 5* Large Cap funds are DSPBR Top 200 and Franklin Blue Chip. SBI Equity is also a 5* but read later

The Dynamic Bond is a 5* fund so you can go for it.

I will not go with banks for equity funds, instead look at Fund Houses.

Some good are DSPBR, Franklin Templeton, HDFC, IDFC and Fidelity (though I may avoid them till the dust clears after the recent take over by L&T, I am just holding on). For Large cap with a Mid component you can look at the old favourites DSPBR Equity and HDFC Equity. I will not recommend my favourite IDFC Premier for two reasons, it is essentially a mid cap. They will however accept a SIP at any time.

Given the current state of the economy unless you are looking at a SIP of three years plus I will try and avoid the Equity funds for the present.

[yosbert]

@sgiitk, mobike008: Thanks for the clarifications. So, is there a way to invest into MFs (including SIPs) online without going through a bank or broker? I am assuming banks/broker will charge some kind of brokerage fees even without a DEMAT account.

[gaurav_diavolo]

For me HDFC Mid-cap Opportunities Fund is the fund to go if you are a young investor with an investment horizon of over 5 to 7 years. HDFC Tax Saver too to is a good fund for those seeking investments in ELSS under 80C.

For the more bluechip focused fund I recommend going for time tested HDFC Top 200 or DSP BR 100 funds.

For a good mixed bag, Reliance regular savings and ICICI Focused Bluechip Equity funds are good long term options.

Being invested in mutual funds for over 7 years now, I can tell you that only invest in reputed AMCs if you do not want to lose money, I have lost a lot of money with JM Financial, Principal, SBI (the bank is good but the AMC is just ok because of lack of good fund managers) Kotak etc. before getting my act right and regularly investing in HDFC, Reliance and DSP only. Look no further.