According to mutual fund advisors, these schemes will evolve over a long period. There will be schemes that will be inclined towards large cap stocks and some schemes will be leaning toward mid cap stocks. This will make it easier for investors to choose the schemes based on their risk tolerance.
According to the Sebi mandate, small cap schemes must invest in companies that are ranked below 250 in terms of market capitalisation. These schemes also will have to invest at least 65% in small cap stocks. Small companies go through many ups and downs - more than the established companies in the large and mid cap segments.
As per Sebi norms, the mid cap mutual funds are mandated to invest in companies that are between 101 and 250 in the market capitalisation. These companies can be leaders of tomorrow. That’s what makes them great bets. If these companies live up to the promise, the market will reward the investors handsomely.
According to the Sebi mandate, the large cap mutual funds are mandated to invest in top 100 companies by market capitalisation. Large companies fare better in a volatile market as these companies may be market leaders and resilient to downturns. That is why if you are looking for a relatively safer mutual fund category, you should consider investing in large cap funds.
We have chosen two schemes from five different equity mutual fund categories - aggressive hybrid, large cap, mid cap, small cap and flexi cap schemes – which we believe should be enough for regular mutual fund investors. There are caveats: read till the end to ensure you are picking up the best scheme for you.
ETMutualFunds launched its recommended mutual fund portfolios to invest through SIPs in October 2016. Since then, we have been closely monitoring the schemes in these portfolios and coming up with updates on them regularly
Dynamic bond funds offer flexibility to navigate interest rate cycles, making them a smart bet for investors unsure about the RBI’s next move. With rate cuts expected in late 2025, schemes like Kotak Dynamic Bond Fund and ICICI Prudential All Seasons Bond Fund look promising.
According to the Sebi mandate, short duration funds can invest in debt instruments which have maturity between one and three years. That means these schemes are meant for short-term investments of up to three years or more. They are somewhat in the middle when it comes to interest rate risk.
According to Sebi norms, medium to long term funds have a mandate to invest in debt and money market instruments in such a way that the Macaulay's duration of the portfolio is four to seven years. Since these schemes invest in long-term debt instruments, they are considered risky.
As per Sebi mandate, medium duration funds must invest in debt and money market instruments with Macaulay duration of three to four years. As you can see, these schemes are suitable for investors looking to invest for three to four years or more. However, you should check the portfolio duration of the scheme to ensure that the scheme is in line with your investment horizon.
As per Sebi norms, these schemes must invest 80% of their corpus in government securities. As you see, these schemes invest in government papers or they lend to the government. Therefore, they don’t have any credit risk or they face zero defaults. However, they are extremely sensitive to interest rate changes
Are you planning to invest in relatively-safe debt schemes to take care of your near-term goals? Or are you searching for ‘relatively safe’ debt funds to invest for three years or more? If your answer is yes, you can consider investing in corporate bond funds in August 2025.
Mutual fund advisors say banking & PSU debt schemes are ‘relatively’ safe because these schemes invest only in bonds and papers of banks and public sector companies. Since most of these entities are government-backed, they don’t have the credit risk.
Conservative hybrid mutual funds are the entry to the world of hybrid funds. These schemes invest mostly in debt and a small percent in equity. As per the Sebi norms, conservative hybrid schemes must invest 75-90% in debt instruments and 10-25% in stocks. These schemes are ideal for investors looking to invest a small part of their corpus in equity to earn some extra returns.
Balanced advantage or dynamic asset allocation mutual funds limit equity exposure based on valuations, but that doesn't make them totally safe. Don’t be under the illusion that balanced advantage funds are a safe investment. In fact, many mutual fund distributors make such claims. However, don’t be influenced by such talk. Any mutual fund scheme that invests in stocks can’t be considered as safe. It also cannot avoid volatility and losses totally.
Arbitrage funds are taxed like equity mutual funds. This means they qualify for long term capital gains tax of 12.5% if investments are held for more than a year. If investments are for less than a year, short term capital gains tax of 20% will be applicable.
As per Sebi norms, aggressive hybrd mutual funds must invest 65-80% in stocks, and 20-35% in debt. This mixed portfolio helps to deal with the market volatility better. When the equity market is in turmoil, the debt part of the portfolio softens the blow. This helps new investors to continue with their investments without worrying too much about volatility.
alue investors buy such stocks and wait for the market to discover these stocks. When the discovery happens, the stock prices will go up, and value investors make money. It may sound simple. But it is not very easy to execute. The market may take very long to discover these stocks and it may test your patience. The discovery may not happen at all. That is why value mutual funds are recommended to only sophisticated investors.
According to Sebi norms, focused equity mutual fund schemes must invest in a portfolio of maximum 30 stocks. These schemes have no other restrictions when it comes to investing- like flexi cap schemes they can invest in any market capitalisations and sectors. If that investment strategy appeals to you, you can get to know more about focused equity schemes.
Flexi cap mutual funds offer the fund managers the freedom to invest across market capitalisations and sectors/themes. It means the fund managers can invest anywhere based on his outlook on the market. Flexi cap schemes are typically recommended to moderate investors to create wealth over a long period of time. Ideally, one should invest in these schemes with an investment horizon of five to seven years.
