Why is it a smart idea to invest in debt funds now?
Most retail investors keep their savings primarily in traditional fixed income investments like Bank Fixed Deposits, Government Small Savings Schemes etc. With the RBI hiking repo rates to 6.25%, the interest rates of Bank FDs and Government Small Savings Schemes have also gone up. However, investors may get higher and more tax efficient returns by investing in debt mutual funds in the current interest rate environment. Why debt funds have the potential to give higher returns? Let us compare a bank FD with a corporate bond. Suppose a 5 year Bank FD is giving 7% interest rate per annum. A company issuing a 5 year NCD, will have to pay higher interest rate or coupon compared to Bank FD. If the company does not pay higher interest rate than bank FD, why will you invest in the NCD? The issuer is paying you higher interest rate because you are taking the risk. In general, the interest rate of a risk free investment will be only slightly higher than the inflation rate. A ma...