Now the question is, in which category of MFs to invest, equity or debt or balanced. Equity funds are relatively more risky because of the uncertainty and volatility in the equity markets. In today’s scenario, when the interest rates are rising, most of the bond funds are facing the brunt because the increased interest rates have pulled down the prices of most of the bonds and their portfolio has come down in value. There is no clear cut direction the interest rates might take in the future. So even the bond funds are a risk in such a scenario. This leaves only the balanced funds. Let us take a closer look at these balanced funds.

Balanced funds are those funds, which invest a certain percentage of their corpus in equity and rest in the bonds. This gives the benefits of both the equity investment and fixed income investment. In today’s scenario, it would be best to invest in a balanced scheme of a MF. The reason being, investing in such a MF would give the benefits of diversification across the class of securities.

After the introduction of index futures, it has become easier for the MFs to hedge themselves against the market risk. But even that hedge works up to a certain point of time, so the exposure to the equities should be limited. Also, there are balanced funds that take more exposure to certain sectors, like some Indian MFs were doing trying to ride the ICE boom. But such funds are again more risky because the returns from such funds depend upon the performance of a particular sector.

The investment in bonds assures a steady stream of income without taking the entire risk inherent in the bond funds. Again, in today’s scenario, where the direction of interest rates is clueless, one should not take excessive exposure to bonds market. That’s why a balanced fund is an ideal investment in today’s scenario. A quick look at the returns from the schemes of two of the MFs would put the things in a better perspective.

Usually, in rising markets, the returns on equities tend to be higher than other investments but they also carry the maximum risk. And now that the SEBI has put a 16% circuit filter, they have become all the more risky. A Balanced Fund provides the benefits of equity investments with limited risk and also a steady stream of income.

Therefore, in today’s market scenario, Balanced Mutual Fund is not having considerable exposure to any particular sector. But an investor needs to keep certain basic rules in mind while selecting balanced funds. Reliance Mutual Fund provides you the best convenient approach for the same. It also provides you with the detailed and exact meaning of mutual funds and so. So go ahead and invest in balanced funds!

For information on reliance growth fund as well as the Infrastructure Fund, we have the necessary information.

Types of mutual funds in India: Open ended schemes: These do not have fixed maturity. Liquidity is the key feature. Here units can be bought / sold at net asset value (NAV) related prices whenever required.

Close ended schemes: These schemes have a fixed maturity period i.e. from 2 to 15 years. Need to be invested at the initial issue and you can buy / sell units on the stock exchange thereafter.

Interval schemes: This scheme is a combination of features which is both close ended and open ended. They may be traded in the stock exchange, open for sale or redemption at NAV related prices in predetermined intervals.

Growth Mutual fund: This scheme will provide you capital appreciation in medium / long term. Under this scheme the majority of the funds will be invested in equities even if there is a short term decline in anticipation of future appreciation.

Reliance Mutual Fund, a part of the Reliance – Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, is one of the mutual funds in the country. RMF offers investors a portfolio of products to meet varying investor requirements and has presence in 159 cities across the country.

Reliance Mutual Fund has launched new products and customer service initiatives to increase value to investors. Reliance Mutual Fund schemes are managed by Reliance Capital Asset Management Limited., a subsidiary of Reliance Capital Limited, which holds 93.37% of the paid-up capital of RCAM, the balance paid up capital being held by minority shareholders.

Reliance Mutual Fund (RMF) has been established as a trust under the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 with Reliance Capital Limited (RCL), as the Settlor/Sponsor and Reliance Capital Trustee Co. Limited (RCTCL), as the Trustee.

RMF has been registered with the Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) vide registration number MF/022/95/1 dated June 30, 1995. The name of Reliance Capital Mutual Fund has been changed to Reliance Mutual Fund effective 11th. March 2004 vide SEBI’s letter no. IMD/PSP/4958/2004 date 11th. March 2004. Reliance Mutual Fund was formed to launch various schemes under which units are issued to the Public with a view to contribute to the capital market and to provide investors the opportunities to make investments in diversified securities.

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