Jago Investor is running an “action month” where they talk of “pure action”, you commit to taking certain action: buying a term plan, buying health insurance, starting an SIP, organizing your financial life, and surrendering useless policies. Manish will keep in touch and there are prizes from multiple sponsors, such as MProfit (a neat software to manage investments), Moneysights (a fin portal), FundsIndia (buy or sell MFs online).
Disclosure: These are all people I know, and folks I think are doing a great job on the financial internet, so deem me interested. There is nothing in it financially or otherwise from me, other than the goodwill of these awesome people.
What am I going to do? I’ve already got term plans but I’ll buy the next round ditching the current ones next year after premiums go down (they will after the results from the census are incorporated). I’ve got health insurance for the family. I won’t do an SIP because I actively manage my money. I need to reorganize some of my financial life like get out of some very old mutual fund investments or to at least get them online so I can transact when I want (I will do this). And finally, I will not surrender my useless policies because surrender is worse than paying to the end of term for them (I’ve calculated). My actions shouldn’t determine yours – you should take your own decisions.
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SEBI has in a new circular, allowed transaction charges of Rs. 100 per transaction for transactions above Rs. 10,000, to be deducted from the transaction itself. For new subscribers, distributors will be paid Rs. 150.
That means for a cheque of Rs. 10,000, only 9,900 will be invested for new investments into new fund schemes, and Rs. 9,850 for existing subscribers of a fund scheme. Distributors can opt-out of this charge entirely for all of their customers (not selectively per customer or per transaction). SIPs will be charged that amount as well, but over 3-4 installments.
FundsIndia has announced that they won’t charge this for any of their customers; I hope others will follow suit. I buy online with HDFC Bank right now, but if they start charging, I will move to FundsIndia or go direct. (Haven’t bothered because I’m lazy)
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AMCs have also been asked to deduplicate folios within six months. I wonder how many folios will be shown once deduplicated.
MFs will now have to reveal data by geography (top n cities and so on), and total commissions paid to distributors of Retail/HNI investments greater than 100 cr. AUM raised.
