Zebu blog

Tag: investment strategies

  • Do You Have What It Takes To Invest In Small-Cap Funds?

    Many small-cap mutual fund investors saw 100% gains in the previous year. It’s no surprise that we receive several inquiries each day from people who want to know if they can still make great returns by investing in small-cap funds. Some investors are also concerned about whether they should sell small-cap funds because the stocks have already appreciated significantly. So, what should your plan of action be?

    Is it possible to invest in small-cap mutual funds in a secure manner? What aspects should you consider before selecting mutual funds? Is it feasible to avoid losses in small-cap mutual funds by playing it safe?

    Investing in small-cap funds comes with its associated risk. However, if you do it with Zebu, one of India’s leading share market brokers, we will give you the best online trading platform and investment platform to perform a comprehensive analysis. With us, you will have access to the to trade and invest in small-cap stocks.

    Before you invest in small-cap mutual funds, keep the following tips in mind.

    Before you go any farther, you should clarify one point. If you invest in equities mutual funds, especially small-cap mutual funds, you simply cannot avoid risk and volatility. Small-cap funds, as you may know, invest in very small companies with a promising future. However, the majority of these businesses have governance flaws and fail to deliver on their promises. If these companies falter even slightly, the stock market will punish them harshly. In a short period of time, the share prices could be reduced to zero. When you invest in small-cap schemes, you are incurring this risk.

    What are your options for dealing with this threat? You can’t completely prevent it, but you can soften the blow with a few safeguards. To begin with, you should only invest in small size funds if you have a very long investment horizon, meaning, you can hold the fund for several years. If you don’t have at least seven to ten years, don’t invest in small-cap plans. This will allow you to recuperate your losses over time.

    Two, small-cap funds should never be the mainstay of your portfolio. Small-cap schemes are notorious for going through extreme swings in prices. As a result, they will not provide you with consistent returns. So, it is better to limit your exposure to them to a fraction of your portfolio.

    Three, choose fund houses and managers who are well-known for their expertise in managing small-cap funds. Always keep in mind that investing in small-cap schemes is really difficult; it requires recognising potential firms, taking significant interests in them ahead of time, and patiently holding on to them in order to profit. Only a few fund managers have been able to consistently give superior performances over time.

    Four, make sure that the fund isn’t too big. In the small-cap space, finding investment opportunities is quite challenging. It becomes exceedingly difficult when you have a vast corpus. This is why many fund houses are forced to stop their subscription programmes after a specific period of time. As a result, select a scheme with a limited corpus.

    Last but not least, do not begin investing in small-cap schemes when you see tremendous gains and then abandon them at the first hint of a downturn. This is a certain way to lose money. If you get concerned about your assets during a market downturn, it is apparent that you lack the essential risk appetite to participate in small-cap schemes. Invest in small-cap schemes frequently over a long period of time, regardless of market conditions, if you have the proper risk profile and a long-term investment plan.

    Finally, small-cap investments are only for the most daring investors. If every market slump gives you the jitters, it’s best to stay away from them.

    As we have mentioned before, small-cap stocks come with an immense amount of risk. But for those brave hearts who back up their investments with authentic research, we at Zebu have the best trading account for you. As one of the fastest-growing share market brokers in the country, we are proud to offer the best online trading platform for our clients. To know more about them and how you can invest in small-cap funds with us, please get in touch with us now.

  • Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE): What Is It?

    Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) is a movement of individuals committed to extreme savings and investing strategy that enables them to retire significantly sooner than typical budgets and retirement plans allow. FIRE was born out of Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez’s 1992 best-selling book Your Money or Your Life. It came to reflect the book’s central premise: People should analyse every expense in terms of the number of work hours required to pay for it.

    The FIRE retirement movement is a direct challenge to the traditional retirement age of 65 and the business that has developed to encourage people to plan for it. By allocating the majority of their income to savings, members of the FIRE movement aspire to be able to retire decades before they reach 65 and live entirely off tiny withdrawals from their holdings.

    The concept of FIRE is extremely popular with millennials and there is no reason that Gen Z Indians will not follow suit. Followers of FIRE work for several years and save up to 70% of their annual salary. When their savings accumulate to approximately 30 times their annual expenses, or approximately $1 million, they may decide to quit their jobs or retire entirely.

    At Zebu, we understand that traders and investors with very high aspirations need nothing short of the best Indian trading platform with its plethora of features and scanners. As one of the top brokers in share market in India, we have the privilege of providing our users with their best trading accounts.

    To fund their living expenses after early retirement, FIRE enthusiasts make small annual withdrawals from their investments, often between 3% and 4% of the sum. Depending on the size of their funds and desired lifestyle, this may require extraordinary care in monitoring costs as well as a commitment to investment upkeep and reallocation.

    Types of FIRE

    Fat FIRE—This option is for the conventional worker who wishes to save significantly more than the average worker but does not wish to sacrifice their existing way of living. It is often not feasible without a high salary and active savings and investing plans.
    Lean FIRE—This involves a strong dedication to minimalism and extreme savings, necessitating a significantly more restricted lifestyle. Numerous Lean FIRE devotees live on less than $25,000 per year.
    Barista FIRE—This is for those who choose to reside in the grey area between the two options above. They abandoned their typical 9-to-5 occupations but maintain a less-than-minimalist existence through a combination of part-time work and savings. The former enables individuals to receive health insurance, while the latter stops them from withdrawing assets from their retirement accounts.

    Who Is FIRE Really For?

    The majority of people believe that FIRE is only for people who have a big salary, typically in the six figures. Indeed, if your goal is to retire in your 30s or 40s, this is almost certainly true. However, there is much for everyone to learn from the movement’s ideals, which can help individuals save for retirement and even attain an early retirement, albeit not quite as early as 40.

    And keep in mind that the first part of FIRE stands for financial independence, which, if attained, enables you to work at something you enjoy rather than something you have to do. According to author Robin, FIRE is about more than early retirement; it teaches you how to consume less while living better.

    Meticulous planning

    The FIRE movement emphasises the necessity of developing a clear strategy and sticking to it, which are principles that will assist anyone in saving for retirement and building a sizable emergency fund.

    Economic self-control

    To attain a FIRE retirement, you must maximise your income while keeping your spending to a minimum. While retiring by 40 requires extreme measures, everyone can benefit from creating and adhering to a budget while working as hard as possible to earn as much money as possible, whether through a better job, adding a second one, or creating additional revenue streams through side hustles or rental property ownership.

    A prudent investment

    Nobody can retire comfortably if they do not invest in their retirement funds. FIRE devotees invest a greater percentage of their income than the ordinary person would. However, the notion of setting aside a fixed proportion of your salary each month for investment — and beginning as soon as possible — will enable you to grow your retirement savings to a level that will ensure your financial stability in your later years.

    According to Robin’s comments, the book’s purpose is not to impart a master plan for early retirement; rather, it is to demonstrate how to live better while spending less in order to live a more fulfilling life while consuming less of the world’s resources.

    If you are a FIRE enthusiast, we would love to support your goals with the best trading accounts from Zebu. As one of the top brokers in share market, we have created the best Indian trading platform for waiting for you to take charge of your financial future. To know more about our products and services, please get in touch with us now.

  • Signs That You Need To Change Your Mutual Funds Scheme

    You conduct research, select a mutual fund plan that meets your aims, budget, perform all kinds of analysis, and then invest in a mutual fund scheme. Then, when the investment period comes to a close, you can reap the rewards of capital growth. It is as simple as that, right?

    Not always. Investing in a mutual fund entails more than just putting money into it and waiting for it to pay off at the end of the investment term. To truly enjoy its full benefits, more effort is required from your end to constantly monitor and analyse various parameters of your portfolio. To achieve optimal capital growth, you must keep a careful eye on it and manage it well during the investing period. Sometimes, switching between funds is necessary to avoid market risks, avoid fund underperformance, and avoid fund performance stagnation.

    Signs that you need to change your mutual find scheme

    Change in investment goals

    Before you begin investing in mutual funds, you must first devise a strategy that is tailored to your specific objectives, risk appetite, investment horizon, budget, and other objectives. The type of mutual fund schemes you should invest in is determined by these criteria. Mutual fund investments can be divided into three categories based on their investment horizon: short, long, and intermediate. Risk appetites are divided into three categories: aggressive, moderate, and conservative. It is important to keep your expectations in check in terms of the kind of profits do you hope to get from your mutual fund investment. In this instance, mutual fund schemes might be classified as income-oriented, balanced, or growth-oriented.

    When investing in a mutual fund scheme, you may have had a certain goal in mind. But what happens if your goal shifts in the middle of the project? You can switch between funds in this situation to suit your new investing goal, horizon, and risk tolerance.

    On a side note, one of the first things to keep in mind when it comes to investing in mutual funds is to identify the top brokers in share market . Zebu is a leading online share broker that offers one of the lowest brokerage fees when it comes to investing in mutual funds. Read on to know more about when to change your mutual fund plans.

    Your scheme is underperforming

    There’s no guarantee that the mutual fund scheme in which you invested will perform well over time. You may have analysed prior fund performance and tried every permutation and combination to find the right mutual fund investment for you. Despite your best efforts, you never know when your scheme will underperform or become vulnerable to hazards, even in favourable market conditions. To ensure that your portfolio does not become stagnant, you must switch to a different fund. To keep the portfolio balanced, over-weight mutual funds should be rotated.

    You simply feel like you made the wrong choice

    When it comes to even the safest investment options, mistakes are bound to occur (especially if you are doing the research by yourself). Fortunately, investing in mutual funds is not one of them. Worry not if you bought in a mutual fund without doing your homework or understanding key technical features, only to discover later that it isn’t a good fit for your goals or risk tolerance. Your current assets can easily be reallocated into a portfolio that matches your needs.

    In the world of mutual fund investing, erroneous predictions are more common than you would think. Sometimes, even seasoned fund managers can get their analysis proved wrong. For these reasons and more, it is crucial that you keep a close eye on your mutual funds and keep your options open and diverse. Apart from this, to maintain balance and enhance fund performance, an investor should rotate the assets in his or her portfolio on a regular basis.

    With Zebu’s seamless investment platform, which is one of the top brokers in share market, you can get started with direct mutual funds and make more than 1% of the returns you would otherwise make with managed mutual funds. And with our lowest brokerage fees, you can confidently make changes to your scheme as per your requirements. We are, in fact, one of India’s leading online sharebrokers.

    To know more, please get in touch with us now.