Skip to main content

Here’s all you should know about Systematic Investment Plan

You dream of a secured financial future but cannot commit a large sum of money, SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is an answer.
 
As the name suggests, Systematic Investment Plan is a smart and planned investment approach wherein you invest a small pre-fixed amount at regular intervals into specific mutual fund/funds.

What should you do start Systematic Investment Plan?

First you need to choose the fund in line with your investment objective. The available mutual fund schemes can be broadly divided into equity funds, debt funds, gold funds, and hybrid funds. You can choose any depending on your investment horizon and risk profile. If you are looking for higher returns, you can invest in equity funds while if the safety of investment is your prime objective, then debt funds can be your choice as they invest in a range of low-risk securities such as government bonds, corporate deposits, commercial papers, treasury bills, etc.

How does Systematic Investment Plan work?

It’s quite simple. You need to decide the regular amount of saving and time horizon. For longer time horizon (more than 3 years), you can select Wealth Builder on nivesh.com and for shorter horizon, you can select Better than RD option. After completing your transaction, you can make first payment through internet banking, cheque or already registered bank mandate. Subsequent transactions will automatically get debited from your linked bank account. You get a certain number of units based on the ongoing market rate called NAV or net asset value for the day. Every time you invest money, additional units of the scheme are purchased at the market rate and added to your account.

Why should you invest in Systematic Investment Plan?

Baby steps towards right investment can ensure promising financial future.
  • SIP can be started with as low as Rs 500 or Rs 1000 per month.
  • Investing in an SIP brings financial discipline.
  • It is a convenient and hassle-free investment as your one-time instruction ensures auto debit from your account at pre-defined intervals.
  • SIP can be started with low amounts, which means you can stay committed for long term without affecting your finances. If you stay invested for long term, the wealth builds at an accelerated pace because of compounding effect.
  • Since a fixed amount is invested at regular intervals, you get to purchase more units when the prices are lower and vice versa. This gives you the benefit of Rupee Cost Averaging (RCA), which basically balances out the volatility of the market in the long term.

What is Rupee Cost Averaging and how does it benefit an investor?

We understand that via an SIP route, an investor invests a fixed sum say every month. This approach eliminates the need to time the market as the money is invested periodically irrespective of the levels of the market. This means that over a period of time your cost of acquisition of the unit comes down to be much lower than what you would have otherwise paid. This is called rupee cost averaging.
 
Let’s understand this with an example: Say Mr. X invests Rs 3,000 every month in an SIP
If Mr. X had invested the entire Rs 12000 in lumpsum in January, he would have got 600 units, while by investing in a monthly SIP, he accumulated 800 units by the end of April. And his average cost at the end of April works out to Rs. 15, which gives him return of 33% on NAV of Rs. 20, while investing in lumpsum in January would have given him no return.
 
Moreover, SIPs provide flexibility and liquidity, as there is no lock-in period and full and partial withdrawal is possible during or after the SIP tenure. The amount of SIP amount can be increased or decreased too. However, early redemption is not advisable as the longer you stay invested, the more wealth you accumulate.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

What are hybrid mutual funds and how are they taxed?

What are hybrid mutual funds and how are they taxed? Every investor is different. There are some who like taking risks and enjoy the potential of high returns. On the other hand, there are some who are very conservative in terms of taking risks. They don’t mind the low returns as long as they are assured of capital security. Then there are those who are in the middle of the risk spectrum. They are not too aggressive neither too conservative. They look for moderate risks with moderate returns. To suit the investment preference of these different types of investors, mutual funds come in different variants. One such variant is the hybrid mutual fund which is suitable for moderate investors who lie in the middle of the risk spectrum. Let’s understand the concept of hybrid mutual funds and their tax implications – What are hybrid mutual funds? Hybrid funds are mutual funds which invest in both equity as well as debt instruments. The return potential of equity investment is adde...

Have you saved enough for your child’s future financial needs?

Mutual Funds Plan for children is the answer to secure your kid’s financial future Every parent aspires to offer the best to their children – sound education, a decent lifestyle and most importantly, adequate financial security for them to pursue their dreams. But in order to fulfil these desires, it is necessary that planning and regular investments are done early on. And what better than Mutual Funds to achieve these objectives? What are Mutual Funds Plans for children? Mutual Funds Plans for children are the mutual fund schemes specially designed keeping in the mind the long term financial needs of a child. How do Mutual Funds Plans for children Work? They invest proportionately in both equity and debt instruments to maintain a balance between growth and regular income, depending on the scheme. These are mostly hybrid funds that seeks to generate income by investing in debt, money market instruments and equity and equity related securities. They are ideal for investors ...

Tax free benefits make whole life ULIPs the perfect retirement plan

When your clients look for investment returns and insurance coverage, the first product which comes to your mind is a Unit Linked Insurance plan (ULIP). A ULIP is an insurance plan which provides a unique combination of market-linked returns as well as life insurance coverage. Moreover, the new age ULIPs which are now available in the market promise additional benefits, both in terms of coverage as well as benefits offered. Modern-day ULIPs have, in fact, undergone a sea of change compared to traditional ULIPs which were available about a decade or more back. Some of the notable changes include the following – The charges under new age ULIPs have reduced drastically. While, earlier, the premium allocation charge and other charges associated with the policy rode up to 40% or more, current ULIPs have charges lower than 5%. With the reduced charges the revamped ULIPs offer higher allocated premiums which, in turn, provide better returns to customers The coverage tenure under many ...