ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
A new equity or stock based mutual fund is going to enter the Indian markets. The fund belongs to ICICI Prudential Asset Management mutual fund house and is called the ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund. As the name suggests, this fund will collect money from Indian investors and invest it in the US based companies.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund NFO, whether this ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund.

ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund.

What are the NFO dates for ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund?
Image sourced as screenshot from official ICICI mutual fund site

The NFO period for ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund is from June 18, 2012 to July 2, 2012. After the NFO period, the regular buying, selling and redemption of fund units will start at a date not yet known.

What is so unique about this ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund?
The fund offers uniqueness in terms of allowing Indian investors to invest their money in US markets i.e. in stocks of US listed companies, through the mutual fund route. Now there are already a lot of similar funds available in Indian markets which offer investors a choice to invest money in foreign markets, here are a few of them:

- ING Latin America Equity Fund: focussed on Latin America

- HSBC Brazil Fund

and we even have an ETF or Exchange Traded fund
- Motilal Oswal Most Shares NASDAQ-100 Fund

plus there can be many more.
So this ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund already has a direct competition from Motilal Oswal Most Shares NASDAQ-100 Fund as both are US specific.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund?
There are many mutual funds available as listed above.

What are the risks of investing and trading ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund?
There are always risks involved in any kind of investment.
The ICICI Mutual Fund advertisement leaflet claims that USA is a large economy, high GDP nos, strong fundamentals, and the usual blah, blah, blah which one can find in all mutual fund promotional schemes. However, an investor should also keep the risks in mind.
This fund is going to invest your money in US based listed companies - listed on NYSE and NASDAQ. Foreign Exchange or Forex risk automatically comes in. With the USD-INR forex rate showing high volatility, no one can be certain about how the returns will be after forex consideration. What if you make investment when the dollar is costly against the rupee so you invest more, but at the time of redemption the situation changes and you get less returns even if the US based investments have done well.
Then there are the risks due to global economical factors. Risks of stocks selected by the mutual fund manager not doing that good and so on.
These inherent risks are to be taken by the investor.

Final Thoughts about ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund?
In summary - Another mutual fund focussed on US listed companies. Investors can look for this as a diversification tool at the market or country specific level provided they understand the risks listed above, especially the forex risk.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

Tax benefit will NOT be available in ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund.

There will be 2 plans for investors to choose from:

Multiple options available for investments:
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout & Reinvestment

ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund Entry Load: NIL
But it comes with very high exit load at the initial stage:
ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund Exit Load: 3% for exit (repurchase/switch-out) on or before 3 months, 1% for exit from 3 months (+1 day) to 1 year from the date of allotment.
NIL beyond 1 year.

Asset Allocation: Not much info is available except that it will be stocks of US listed companies trading on NASDAQ and NYSE. Investments might also be made in ADR and GDR of Indian and other foreign companies trading on US exchanges.

SIP or systematic investment plan? Available.

The benchmark for ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund will be S&P 500 Index

We could not get any info about the fund manager for ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund.

Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
A new equity or stock based mutual fund is going to enter the Indian markets. The fund belongs to Taurus mutual fund house and is called the Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund. As the name suggests, this fund will keep its focus in the banking space by investing the money collected from investors in the stocks of companies operating in the BFSI sector i.e. Banking & Financial Services. That would means stocks of banks, NBFC, financial services companies will be in the portfolio.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund NFO, whether this Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund.

Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund?
Image sourced as screenshot from official Taurus mutual fund site

The NFO period for Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund is from May 2, 2012 to May 16, 2012. After the NFO period, the regular buying, selling and redemption of fund units will start at a date not yet known.

What is so unique about this Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund?
If this has to be answered in simple terms, this fund does offer something unique in terms of being a mutual fund dedicated to BFSI. A mutual fund which will try to focus on the BFSI sector and invest the money collected from investors in the bank and finance company stocks.
In the past as well, there have been many banking mutual funds :

- Lotus India Banking Fund

- ICICI Prudential Banking & Financial Services Fund

- Sundaram BNP Paribas Financial Services Opportunities Fund

Even few ETF's like:

- Reliance Banking Exchange Traded Fund RBETF

- Bank BeES an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF)

and many more.

So, there is lot in the market in the BFSI sector for investing through the various available Bank focussed mutual funds and ETF's.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund?
There are many mutual funds available as listed above. Add it them the list of ETF (Exchange Traded Funds) and Index Funds, the no. will shoot even higher. See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here
However, there can be more similar products offerings from other fund houses as that list is not complete.

What are the risks of investing and trading Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund?
There are alwasys risks involved in any kind of investment.
The Taurus Mutual Fund claims that India is going to grow and so will the BFSI sector grow and the story goes on & on. Problems with sector specific funds is that they take the hit when the entire sector goes down.
Another problem with Banking and Fincial services sector is that it is highly sensitive to the interest rate fluctuations as well as global developments. Since the interest rates are directly or indirectly controlled by the government, just a small change leads to big moves in the bank and financial stocks in either direction.
Also, there is a big dependency on global developments. Something happens in a European economy, that has a direct or indirect impact on banks across the globe. So by investing in any such sector specific fund, the investor has to take the sector specific risk.
These inherent risks are to be taken by the investor.

Final Thoughts about Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund?
In summary - Another mutual fund focussed on Banking & Financial Services sector. Offers nothing different or unique except for focus on BFSI which is already offered by other fund available in the market.
Investors can also look for ETF's like the Bank BeES ETF by Benchmark or the Reliance Banking Exchange Traded Fund RBETF.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

Tax benefit will NOT be available in Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund.

There will be 2 plans for investors to choose from:

Multiple options available for investments:
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment, Sweep facilities

Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund Entry Load: NIL
Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund Exit Load: 1% for exit (repurchase/switch-out/SWP) on or before 1 year from the date of allotment.
NIL beyond 1 year.

Asse Allocation:
Equities and equity related instruments of Banking & Financial Services sector - 80% to 100%
Debt and Money market instruments - 0% to 20%

SIP or systematic investment plan? Yes Available.
Minimum application amount 1000 Rs. for SIP, SWP, STP

The benchmark for Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund will be BSE Bankex Index

Mr. Sadanand Shetty will be the fund manager for Taurus Banking & Financial Services Fund.

IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
A new equity or stock based mutual fund is going to enter the Indian markets. The fund belongs to IDBI mutual fund house and is called the IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund. As the name suggests, this fund will keep its focus on the top 100 stocks as per the market cap, hence this is primarily a large cap focussed fund.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund NFO, whether this IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund.

IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund.

What are the NFO dates for IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund?

Image sourced as screenshot from official idbi mutual fund site
The NFO period for IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund is from April 25, 2012 to May 09, 2012. After the NFO period, the regular buying, selling and redemption of fund units will start from May 22, 2012.

What is so unique about this IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund?
If this has to be answered in simple terms, there is nothing unique in this offering. Just another mutual fund which will try to track the performance of the top 100 stocks being traded on NSE. So basically, it is boiling down to being a large cap fund where the fund manager will try to replicate the performance of the "CNX 100 Index" which contains top 100 stocks on NSE. The fund managers will select among those top 100 stocks (but may not be limited to them) and try to generate returns similar to "CNX 100 Index". Obviously the tracking error will come in and after charges the returns will vary for the end investor. So overall, this is another large cap focussed mutual fund by IDBI.
In the past as well, IDBI has come up with many funds as follows:

- IDBI Nifty Index Fund

- IDBI Nifty Junior Index Fund

- IDFC Small Cap Equity Fund

As one can observe, most of the funds from IDFC are market-size specific - either focussing on large caps, mid caps or small cap stock profiles.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund?
There are literally hundreds of mutual funds available. Add it them the list of ETF (Exchange Traded Funds) and Index Funds, the no. will shoot even higher. See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here
However, there can be more similar products offerings from other fund houses as that list is not complete.

What are the risks of investing and trading IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund?
Basically, any investor who is looking for investing in top 100 market cap stocks of NSE through the mutual fund route can invest in this mutual fund from IDBI. However, the risk is obviously there.
As an investor of thi mutual fund, you will be taking a risk on the performance of this fund which may not necessarily be replicating the top 100 stock index. There is dependency on fund managers stock selection (which is inherent in any mutual fund investment).
Then, the overall stock market risk is always there. What if the stock market collapses during your period of investment in this fund.
These inherent risks are to be taken by the investor.

Final Thoughts about IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund?
Another large cap focussed fund from IDBI adding to the already available large cap mutual funds.
See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

Tax benefit will NOT be available in IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund.

There will be 2 plans for investors to choose from:

Multiple options available for investments:
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund Entry Load:
IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund Exit Load: 1% for exit (repurchase/switch-out/SWP) on or before 1 year from the date of allotment.
NIL beyond 1 year.

Asse Allocation:
Equities and equity related instruments of constituents of the CNX 100 Index - 70% to 100%
Debt and Money market instruments - 0% to 30%

SIP or systematic investment plan? Yes Available.
Monthly SIP Option: Rs. 500 and in multiples of Re. 1/- thereafter, per month, for atleast 12 months or Rs. 1000 and in multiples of Re. 1/- thereafter, per month, for a minimum period of six months.

Quarterly SIP Option: Rs. 1500 and in multiples of Re. 1/- thereafter, per quarter, for a minimum period of four quarters.

The benchmark for IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund will be CNX 100 Index

Mr. V. Balasubramanian will be the fund manager for IDBI India Top 100 Equity Fund.

Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
Another mutual fund house is going to make an entry into the multi-asset fund offering. This time it is the world renowned Morgan Stanley Mutual Fund India which is going to launch its mutual fund called the Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund NFO, whether this Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund.

Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund?

The NFO period for Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund is from 17th January 2012 and will close on 31 January November 2012. After the NFO period, the regular buying and redemption of fund units will start.

What is so unique about this Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund?
The unique thing about this mutual fund is that it is offering a mix of 3 different assets for investments - Equity (Stocks), Debt and Gold. So basically, when an investor invests his money in this Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund, his invested money will be allocated to 3 different asset classes - Stocks, Debt and Gold - in the proportion as mentioned by the fund managers. Hence, this Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund offers a good option for diversified investing. However, investors should note that this kind of product is not the first one to be offered in the Indian markets. There already exists similar triple asset funds - examples are Axis Triple Advantage Fund and Taurus MIP Advantage Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details, which can also be looked on by the investors. Specially in the way how these existing funds with 3 asset classes have performed in the recent past.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund?
As of now, we are aware of atleast 2 such triple asset funds already available in the market.
1) Axis Triple Advantage Fund and

2) Taurus MIP Advantage Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details
However, there can be more similar products offerings from other fund houses.

What are the risks of investing and trading Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund?
Diversification is good - but it comes at a cost. Investing in more no. of assets will mean more brokerage and transactional costs and fees.
Diversification also leads to limiting the profit, apart from limiting the losses. For e.g., if gold prices shoot up, but returns from stocks is negative, all the profits from increase in gold prices will be nullified by the loss in stocks.
The proportion in which your invested money will be split across the 3 assets will also matter.

Final Thoughts about Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund?
Another multi-asset fund offering which may appeal to investors looking for diversification. Although it comes with its own set of risks as mentioned above.
See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

Tax benefit will NOT be available in Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund.

There will be 2 plans for investors to choose from:

Plan A: Debt and Money market instruments: 80-100%; Equity and Equity Related Instruments: 0-20%.
This plan will NOT have any exposure to Gold.

Plan B: Debt and Money market instruments: 65-100%;[i] Equity and Equity Related Instruments and [ii] Gold Exchange Traded Funds: 0-35% where each of [i] and [ii] will not exceed 20% of net assets.

Multiple options available for investments:
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund Entry Load:
Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund Exit Load: 1% if exit within 1 year ; 2% is exit within 6 months (this is high compared to other gold funds)
NIL beyond 1 year.

SIP or systematic investment plan? Yes, but only through ECS mode.
The benchmark for Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund will be a Composite benchmark depending upon the plan:

Plan A: 80% of CRISIL Composite Bond Fund Index + 20% S&P CNX Nifty

Plan B: 70% of CRISIL Composite Bond Fund Index + 20% S&P CNX Nifty + 15% Domestic Price of Gold*

Mr. Jayesh Gandhi and Mr. Ritesh Jain will be the fund manager for Morgan Stanley Multi Asset Fund.

Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
After a long time, we are seeing an ELSS or Equity Linked Savings Scheme NFO coming out. Recent;y, the joint venture between Union Bank of India and KBC asset management came out with their first offering called Union KBC Equity Fund and now this ELSS Tax saver fund will add another product to their portfolio.

The Union KBC Mutual Fund House is launching their Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund. In this article, we will analyze how good is this Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund NFO, whether this Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund.

Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund.
What actually is an ELSS or Equity Linked Savings Scheme Fund?
An ELSS is a special mutual fund which invests the money collected from the investors in the equities listed in the stock market like any other mutual fund. However, ELSS comes with the advantage of tax benefit - i.e. the invested amount qualifies for tax deduction under section 80(C) (Section 80C Tax Savings: Complete List of Qualifying Investments) with a sum total limit of 1 Lakh Rs.
Since it is offering tax benefit, it comes with a condition - there is a lock-in period of minimum 3 years for an investor to get tax benefit on the invested amount. For e.g., if I invest Rs. 50,000 in an ELSS and claim tax benefit on that, then I am not supposed to withdraw this money atleast for next 3 years. I can withdraw that money by redeeming the fund units before 3 years, but I will loose out on the claimed tax benefit.
You can find more info on ELSS scheme in the article: Tax saving By Equity Linked Saving Schemes ELSS

What are the NFO dates for Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund? The NFO period for Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund is from 8 November and will close on 9 December 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and redemption of fund units will start, on date 19 Dec 2011.

What is so unique about this Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund?
Nothing special, it's just another ELSS Mutual Fund offering investments in equity market with the advantage of tax benefit on the condition that you stay invested atleast for 3 years. There are lot many other competitor ELSS products already available in the market - like SBI Tax Advantage fund.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund?
Lots and lots are availble, here are a few: Principal Personal Tax Saver Fund (ELSS), then SBI Tax Advantage fund, Reliance Equity Linked Savings Fund and many more

What are the risks of investing and trading Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund?
The benchmark for Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund is the BSE 100 Index. The fund manager will attempt to give similar returns like the tracking index but the tracking error will surely creep in.
By investing in any mutual fund, you are risking your money as per the will and wish and investment decisions of the fund house and fund manager.

Final Thoughts about Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund?
Another ELSS scheme from a relatively new mutual fund house which has just started fund management business. Offering a tax saving ELSS might allow them some more money collection as compared to a normal mutual fund. The timing appears to be a bit early as tax year in India comes to a close in April. My thought is that possibly lauch in January would have given them more capital collection, as that is the time people really start looking for tax saving investments.
See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 500 and in multiples of Rs 500 afterwards.

Tax benefit will be available in Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund, subject to lock in period of 3 years from the date of allotment.

Multiple options available for investments:
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund Entry Load: No info available
Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund Exit Load: No info available 1% if exit within 1 year ; 2% is exit within 6 months (this is high compared to other gold funds)
NIL beyond 1 year.

SIP or systematic investment plan? No info available.
BSE 100 Index will be the benchmark for tracking the performance of Union KBC Tax Saver ELSS Fund

DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
Another renowned mutual fund house, DSP BlackRock, has come out with a new fund offer or NFO, for its newly launched fund called DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund

The DSP BlackRock Mutual Fund House is launching their DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund. In this article, we will analyze how good is this DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund NFO, whether this DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund.

DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund.
What are the NFO dates for DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund?
The NFO period for DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund is from 30 September and will close on 14 October 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and redemption of fund units will start, but the precise date is not known.

What is so unique about this DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund?
Investors should undestand this very clearly that this is actually a Fund of Funds (What's this?). What it means is that this fund will not invest in any companies or stocks diectly, instead it will invest in other fund, Called BlackRock Global Funds-World Agriculture Fund. It is this fund which will invest in stocks/companies in the agriculture sector at a global level.
A related NFO for a Fund of Funds is offered by DSP Merrill Lynch but it is in the energy sector. It is DSP BlackRock World Energy Fund. Another example is Blackrock Absolute Return Strategies Fund

So investors should be aware that they are actually putting their money into the Global Agri fund and that exposes them to the forex currency risk. What if the return of the BlackRock Global Funds-World Agriculture Fund is 25%, but because of currency fluctuations, the net returns you receive comes down to just 12%.
The main idea behind investing in agricultural sector through this fund is that there is imbalance between food supply and demand. And being a basic need, there is a lot of good return opportunity by investing in agriculture sector. All these assumptions are based upon increasing world population needing more food, thereby making good profitable opportunitites for agriculture based businesses and hence the companies in the agri sector which this fund will choose to invest. Ultimately, its the skills of the fund managers to pick the right company for better returns.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund?
There are no agriculture fund details available with FT Times as of now, but there are other commodity funds which may provide some exposure to agri sector in India like Mirae Asset Global Commodity Stock Fund or SBI Magnum COMMA Fund

What are the risks of investing and trading DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund?
The benchmark for DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund Fund is the DAX Global Agribusiness Index. By investing in such a fund, you are taking the risk on forex as explained above.
Also being fund of funds, If the returns from the end fund fluctuates, so will the returns generated from this fund will keep fluctuating in either direction.

Final Thoughts about DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund?
Another fund of fund which is focussed on the Agriculture sector. A good option for investors who believe that this fund of funds will enable them to get good returns besides the forex risk and global exposure risk.
See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund

Mr. Mehul Jani will be the fund manager for DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund.

Multiple options available for investments in DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund :
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund Entry Load: Nil
DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund Exit Load: 1% if exit within 1 year
NIL beyond 1 year.
SIP or systematic investment plan? No specific details available

DAX Global Agribusiness Index will be the benchmark for tracking the performance of DSP BlackRock World Agriculture Fund

IIFL Nifty ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about IIFL Nifty ETF: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion. We've been giving a lot of advice about investing in ETF or Exchange Traded Funds. Here is an Example of Nifty based ETF.
Adding to the list of existing Nifty based ETF's, the

India Infoline Asset Management Company Ltd (IIFL AMC) has come out with its own Nifty based ETF called the IIFL Nifty ETF

The IIFL Mutual Fund House is launching their IIFL Nifty ETF. In this article, we will analyze how good is this IIFL Nifty ETF NFO, whether this IIFL Nifty ETF offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in

IIFL Nifty ETF.

IIFL Nifty ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about IIFL Nifty ETF.

What are the NFO dates for IIFL Nifty ETF? The NFO period for IIFL Nifty ETF is from 28 September and will close on 12 October 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and redemption of fund units will start, but the precise date is not known.

What is so unique about this IIFL Nifty ETF? All funds- whether they are ETF or Mutual Funds have a cost attached to it - it can be in the form of fund management charges, fund adminsitration charges and so on. What appears to be unique about this IIFL Nifty ETF is that it claims to be the lowest on cost structure for fund management. As per the details available, this IIFL Nifty ETF will have only 0.25% fees and expenses for fund management charges - claimed to be the lowest in the MF industry. Other than that this is another Nifty based Exchange Traded Fund or ETF with the usual ETF benefits of low cost, precise tracking of the underlying index with minimal tracking error, benefit of intra day price movements to take advantage of trading on an index with the flexibility of stock trading and so on. See all advantages here Advantages of Nifty based ETF

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to IIFL Nifty ETF? Apart from that, there are many other Nifty or Sensex based ETF's or Index funds which are available for investments as well as intraday trading for betting your money on the movements of Nifty and Sensex: 1. Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund
2. Sahara Sensex ETF
3. Quantum Index Fund (Nifty) ETF
4. Nifty Benchmark ETF
5. Birla SunLife Nifty ETF
6. Motilal Oswal MOSt Shares M50 ETF and many more

What are the risks of investing and trading IIFL Nifty ETF? The benchmark for IIFL Nifty ETF Fund is the S&P Nifty 50 Index. By investing in such a fund, you are taking the risk on overall Indian Markets, as included the 50 shares of Nifty 50. If the Nifty fluctuates, so will the returns generated from this fund will keep fluctuating in either direction. But overall, the index based index funds and ETF's are learnt to have outperformed the rest of the mutual funds in better probability.

Final Thoughts about IIFL Nifty ETF? Another Nifty based ETF adding to the list of Nifty (and Sensex) based index funds and ETFs already available in the Indian markets. You can look for investing in this if you believe the Nifty index will generate better returns and this ETF will closely match the performance of Nifty, with minimal tracking error.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit

Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in IIFL Nifty ETF

Mr. Manish Bandi will be the fund manager for IIFL Nifty ETF

Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
The Edelweiss Mutual Fund House is launching their Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund which will be a new entry in the mutual fund space from the brokerage house of Edelweiss. Edelweiss has been in news for their growth and expansion plans, which are expected to be beyond the usual trading and brokerage business, and the lauch of this Midcap based Mutual fund is a step in that directions.
In this article, we will analyze how good is this Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund NFO, whether this Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund.

Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund.
What are the NFO dates for Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund?
The NFO period for Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund is currently open (from 4th August 2011) and will close on 18th August 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and redemption of fund units will start, but the precise date is not known.
What is so unique about this Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund?
We've covered a lot about Mutual Funds and ETF's in detail with examples of returns calculations in our articles like Example of Nifty based ETF. However, please note that this is NOT an ETF, it a normal mutual fund which will be based upon the End of the day NAV pricing for mutual fund units.
This new Mutual Fund from Edelweiss is expected to work the same way as any other mutual fund - Collect money from investors, pool it together, purchase shares from mid-cap sector belonging in the midcap range of top 101-300 stock and attempt to generate the returns.

So in essence, there is nothing very unique about this Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund. Just another mid-cap based mutual fund in the Indian Stock market giving more choices to the investors to bet their money on the mid-cap sector (as well as on the stock picking skills of the Edelweiss fund manager)

The asset allocation for Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund will be as follows:
80% to 100% will be invested in the Equities in the mid cap company stocks of top 101 to 300 companies by market capitalization.
Rest 0-20% will be in debt and money market instruments for unit redemption and creation purposes.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund?
As mentioned above, there are lots of other mid cap funds available in India for investment. Here are a few Standard Chartered Small and Mid cap Equity Fund, an ETF in midcap space Motilal Oswal MOSt Shares M100 ETF-Fund, IDBI Nifty Junior Index Fund, etc.

We also have a comparative article on the performance of the Mid cap sector v/s large cap sector with some calculations, as explained in this article: Large Cap ETF v/s Mid Cap

The Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund will track the standard benchmark index BSE Mid-Cap Index for tracking its performance.

What are the risks of investing and trading Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund?
By investing in such a fund, you are taking the risk on overall midcap market. If the midcap sector collapses, then so will be the fate of your investments in this fund.
Along with that, you are also taking the risk on the performance of your fund manager. If the fund manager is not able to replicate the stocks in the same proportion as that of underlying index, your returns might suffer (it might perform better than benchmark also, although a rare case)
You are also taking the tracking error risk. Since not 100% of your money will get invested in this fund (only 80%-100%), the tracking error comes in.

Final Thoughts about Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund?
Nothing special, just another midcap based fund adding to the long list of midcap funds already available in the Indian markets.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund

Mr. Paul Parampreet and Nandik Mallik will be the fund manager for Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund.

Multiple options available for investments in Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund :
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund Entry Load: Nil
Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund Exit Load: 1% if exit within 1 year, NIL afterwards.
SIP or systematic investment plan? No concrete info, but expected to be avaialble post NFO period.
No tax benefit will be available in Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund
BSE Mid-Cap Index will be the benchmark index for tracking the performance of Edelweiss Select Midcap Fund

Birla SunLife Nifty ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Birla SunLife Nifty ETF: Review, Analysis, Details & Investment Opinion.
The Birla SunLife Mutual Fund House is launching their Birla SunLife Nifty ETF. Interestingly, there seems to be a lot of Nifty based Exchange Traded Funds now being launched by the various fund houses. Recently, it was the Religare Nifty ETF (See Details) which was launched by Relgare, and even biral Sunlife had come out with its Gold based ETF called Birla Sun Life Gold ETF. So ETF's or Exchange Traded Funds seems to be the flavour of the season and Birla Sunlife has jumped on the bandwagon to get a piece of cake.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this Birla SunLife Nifty ETF NFO, whether this Birla SunLife Nifty ETF offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Birla SunLife Nifty ETF.

Birla SunLife Nifty ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Birla SunLife Nifty ETF.
What are the NFO dates for Birla SunLife Nifty ETF?
The NFO period for Birla SunLife Nifty ETF is currently open and will close on 18th July 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and selling of fund units will start, but the precise date is not known.

What is so unique about this Birla SunLife Nifty ETF?
We've covered a lot about ETF's in detail with examples of returns calculations in our articles like Example of Nifty based ETF.
This new ETF from Birla Sunlife is expected to work the same way. Collect money from investors, pool it together, purchase Nifty based shares in the same proportion as they are listed in Nifty index and attempt to generate the returns similar to Nifty.
However, there comes a tracking error, which essentially means that the returns generated by fund manager of Nifty ETF may not be exact replica of the returns generated by Nifty Index, due to many trading activities and buying/selling/redemption of units by individuals.
So in essence, there is nothing very unique about this Birla SunLife Nifty ETF if you compare it to other Nifty based ETF's. Instead, investors are now spoilt for choice in the Nifty based ETF space as there are lot of them available.

The asset allocation for Birla SunLife Nifty ETF will be as follows:
95% to 100% will be invested in the nifty based securitites
Rest 0-5% will be in debt and money market instruments for unit redemption and creation purposes.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Birla SunLife Nifty ETF?
As mentioned above, there are lots of other Nifty based Exchange Traded Funds available in the market which are similar to this Birla SunLife Nifty ETF
The Birla SunLife Nifty ETF will track the standard benchmark index S&P CNX Nifty Index for tracking its performance.

What are the risks of investing and trading Birla SunLife Nifty ETF?
By investing in any index based ETF, you are taking the risk on overall market. If the overall Indian stock market (represented by Nifty & Sensex) collapses, then so will be the fate of your investments in this fund.
Along with that, you are also taking the risk on the performance of your fund manager. If the fund manager is not able to replicate the stocks in the same proportion as that of Nifty index, your returns might suffer (it might perform better than Nifty also, although a rare case)
You are also taking the tracking error risk. Since not 100% of your money will get invested in this fund (only 95%-100%), the tracking error comes in.

Final Thoughts about Birla SunLife Nifty ETF?
Another good option for trading the overall Nifty Index. Being an ETF it will give you the benefit of Intraday price movements and benefit from them as a trader, if you can. As a long term investor, you can buy and hold it without much of recurring expenses.
The brokerage charges would apply only on transactions.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit
Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in Birla SunLife Nifty ETF

Mr. Satyabrata Mohanty will be the fund manager for Birla SunLife Nifty ETF

JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Opinion.
The JPMorgan Mutual Fund House is launching their JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund. Interestingly, this is not the first off-shore fund launched by JP Morgan. In the past as well, they have launched other country specific funds (like JPMorgan JF Greater China Equity Off-shore Fund and JPMorgan India Alpha Fund)

In this article, we will analyze how good is this JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund NFO, whether this JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund.

JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund.
What are the NFO dates for JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund?
The NFO period for JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund is from 10 June 2011 and will close on 24 June 2011. After the NFO period, the regular buying and selling of fund units will start from 5th July 2011.


What is so unique about this JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund?
First things first - it's an offshore fund, basically a Fund of Funds (What's this?). In this particular case, this JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund will collect money from investors, and then invest in an foreign fund called JPMorgan Funds - JF ASEAN Equity Fund, by purchasing the units of that fund. So ultimately, your money will reach the JPMorgan Funds - JF ASEAN Equity Fund (end-fund).
What this end-fund will do is invest that money in stocks/shares of compnaies which belong to ASEAN countries i.e. members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). There are around 10 member countries of ASEAN group - Combodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, etc.
So this becomes a regional fund investment, and will be a good option for investors who wish to bet their money on the companies of countries from the ASEAN region.

Don't like ASEAN country investments, but want to go west? Then there is the Brazil focussed fund called the HSBC Brazil Fund-HBF, from HSBC.

The asset allocation for JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund will be as follows:
80% to 100% will be invested in the units of the end-fund, i.e. JPMorgan Funds - JF ASEAN Equity Fund
Rest 0-20% will be in debt and money market instruments for unit redemption and creation purposes.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund?
As mentioned above, there are lots of other country specific funds available in the market which are similar to this JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund - the only difference in that they focus on different countries - China, Brazil, ASEAN, etc. There is another unique fund which offers a mix of both China and India, called the Mirae India-China Consumption Fund. So as an investor, you have a lot of choice specific to countries.

The JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund will track the benchmark Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) South East Asia Index (Total Return Net) for tracking its performance.

What are the risks of investing and trading JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund?
To repeat again, its a fund of funds. So ultimately the performance depends upon the end fund and how that fund manager plays around with your money.
Then, there is a big currency risk. Remember, this fund will invest in companies of 10 different ASEAN countries, which trade in differnt currencies. Hence, you will have to take the currency risk. What if the end fund gives a faboulous return of 50% in its own currency, but because of currency fluctuations, the net returns you get go down substantially.
Then, also note that only 80% to 100% will be invested in the end fund, rest 0 to 20% will be kept in debt instruments. So not all of your money will acctually get invested.

Final Thoughts about JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund?
A good option for investors who are interested in overseas destinations like ASEAN and other countries. If you trust the fund managers of JP Morgan, and believe the ASEAN country companies will generate good returns, and you will not get hit by the fores rates fluctuations, this is the fund for you.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit plus the premium, during NFO period
Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund

Mr. Namdev Chougule will be the fund manager for JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund.

Only Growth Option is available in JPMorgan JF ASEAN Equity Off-shore Fund

Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Opinion.
The Religare Mutual Fund House is all set to enter the ETF space in india with the launch of their Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund. This appears to be the first ETF by the Religare Mutual Fund house. Although in the past, there have been other mutual funds from Religare (like Religare Business Leaders Fund).

In this article, we will analyze how good is this Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund NFO, whether this Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund.

Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund.
What are the NFO dates for Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund?
The NFO period for Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund is from 23 May 2011 and will close on 06 June 2011.

What is so unique about this Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund?
In my honest opinion, there is nothing much unique about this Nifty based ETF from Religare, as compared to other Nifty based ETF's already available. This is just another Exchange Traded fund which will invest the money collected from investors into the stocks which constitute the Nifty index in the same proportion of the index constituents.

The asset allocation will be as follows:
95% to 100% will be in Indian equities in proportion of the index constituents
Rest 0-5% will be in debt and money market instruments for unit redemption and creation purposes.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund?
There are lots of other ETF's available in the market which are similar to this Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund.
There are many other Nifty based ETF (like ETF- Exchange traded fund -Benchmark Funds; Motilal Oswal MOSt Shares M50 ETF) and quite a lot of Nifty based index Funds (like Quantum Index Fund (QIF ETF) & Reliance Index Fund-Nifty Plan).

The Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund will track the benchmark S&P Nifty 50 index for tracking its performance.

What are the risks of investing and trading Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund?
Being an ETF, it comes with the advantage of real time trading and price fluctuations which can be beneficial for traders as well as investors. On the risk side, it is the same story as with an other ETF - the investors take the risk of overall market falldown and hence the value of the ETF units going down.

Final Thoughts about Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund?
Just another ETF based on Nifty.
When it comes to ETF's, I dont advise investors to go through the NFO route, rather buy them directly on the exchanges once the NFO period is over and regular trading starts. Although withe zero entry load and zero exit load, investing through this NFO will be beneficial so as to save on brokerage charges during the buying leg, but the investor need to check this with the fund house.
However, if you apply through NFO, then you will have to apply with the minimum application amount.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit plus the premium, during NFO period
Minimum investment Rs 10,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

No tax benefit will be available in Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund

Mr. Pranav Gokhale will be the fund manager for Religare Nifty ETF Exchange Traded Fund.

Union KBC Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Details about Union KBC Equity Fund: Review, Analysis, Details & Opinion.
The Union Bank of India, which is a government PSU bank and the KBC Asset Management Company based in Belgium, have come together to launch the Union KBC Equity Fund. This appears to be the first Mutual Fund by the Union Bank of India and it is offered as a joint proposition along with the local arm of a foreign based Asset Management firm named as KBC Asset Management.

In this article, we will analyze how good is this Union KBC Equity Fund NFO, whether this Union KBC Equity Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Union KBC Equity Fund.

Union KBC Equity Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Union KBC Equity Fund.
What are the NFO dates for Union KBC Equity Fund?
The NFO period for Union KBC Equity Fund is from 20 May 2011 and will close on 03 June 2011. Scheme reopens on 17th June 2011 for normal trading.

What is so unique about this Union KBC Equity Fund?
There is nothing unique about this Union KBC Equity Fund which can set it apart from the rest of the common Equity based mutual funds - it is just another mutual fund which will collect money from investors, pool it together and invest in securities as decided by the Fund Managers of Union KBC Equity Fund. The only thing is that this is the first offering from the Union Bank of India in the mutual fund space, so it will be interesting to observe how the fund managers of this bank will perform with their mutual funds in the mutual fund market.
The asset allocation will be as follows:
75% to 100% will be in Indian equities
Rest 25% will be in debt and money market instruments.

What are the other competitor products available in comparison to Union KBC Equity Fund?
Since this is just another mutual funds, there are lots of other funds available in the market which are similar to this Union KBC Equity Fund. The Union KBC Equity Fund will track the benchmark BSE 100 index for tracking its performance.

What are the risks of investing and trading Union KBC Equity Fund?
All the usual market risk and similar stuff as common to all mutual funds. This Union KBC Equity Fund will also have its performance dependent on the stock selection of the mutual fund managers.

Final Thoughts about Union KBC Equity Fund?
Nothing specific or unique about this Union KBC Equity Fund - just that it is the first equity fund from the house of Union Bank of India which is being offered as a joint venture along with KBC Asset Management of Belgium. Investors who trust the find managers can take a shot at this fund.

See List of All Mutual Fund and NFO Articles here

During NFO period each unit cost Rs. 10 per unit during NFO period
Minimum investment Rs 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 afterwards.

Multiple options available for investments in Union KBC Equity Fund :
Growth Option
Dividend Option - Payout, Reinvestment facilities

Union KBC Equity Fund Entry Load: Nil
Union KBC Equity Fund Exit Load: 1% if exit within 1 year, NIL afterwards.
SIP or systematic investment plan? Avaialble post NFO period.
No tax benefit will be available in Union KBC Equity Fund
BSE 100 Index will be the benchmark index for tracking the performance of Union KBC Equity Fund
Mr.Ashish Ranawade will be the fund manager for Union KBC Equity Fund