Traditionally, gold is the most popular investment option for those looking for stable higher returns. Any time of the year, an investor can make a lot of money from gold, if he can time his buying and selling
Gold investment can be done in many forms like buying jewelry, coins, bars, gold exchange-traded funds, Gold funds, sovereign gold bond schemes, etc.
Purchasing gold in the form of gold exchange-traded funds (gold ETFs), sovereign gold bonds (SGBs), issued by the Reserve Bank of India, and gold mutual funds has been gaining popularity of late
The Centre launched Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGB) 2023-24–Series I from June 19 to 23 and has priced it at Rs 5,926. The issuance date for Series I FY24 is June 27
SGBs offer a 2.5% interest per annum, payable semi-annually and maturity is linked with the market price of gold. SGBs offer tax benefits, including exemption from capital gains tax if held until maturity
One can buy SGBs in denominations of 1 gram of gold, and multiples. The SGBs can be bought through Scheduled Commercial banks, Stock Holding Corporation of India Limited (SHCIL), Clearing Corporation of India Limited (CCIL), designated post offices, National Stock Exchange of India Limited and Bombay Stock Exchange Limited
Gold exchange-traded funds are those that depend on the domestic price of physical gold. Here the investment is done in a dematerialised (demat) way, which can be bought and sold on the stock exchange
Some of the top gold ETFs in India at present are: HDFC Gold ETF, SBI Gold ETF, IDBI Gold ETF, Axis Gold ETF, Kotak Gold ETF, Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold ETF, Nippon India Gold ETF, Invesco India Gold ETF, Quantum Gold ETF, UTI Gold ETF, and ICICI Prudential Gold ETF
Gold mutual funds offer investors a convenient and cost-effective way to take advantage of the gold price without physically owning the precious metal
Some of the top gold mutual funds in India at present are: Axis Gold Fund, SBI Gold Fund, Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund, HDFC Gold Fund, Kotak Gold Fund, and ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund (FOF)