M. Pattabiraman's Blog

Nifty 50 or Nifty 500, which index fund should I choose?

It is well known that passive fund enthusiasts recommend an index fund that captures as much of the market as possible – large cap, mid caps, small caps. This gives you complete market participation at low cost. According to the NSE, “The Nifty 500 Index represents about 92.29% of the free float market capitalisation of...

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National Pension Scheme Fund Screener Sep 2025: Shortlist consistent performers

This is a National Pension Scheme Fund Screener to shortlist consistently performing NPS schemes. You can also identify NPS schemes that offer a higher return than the benchmark while maintaining lower risk. This is similar in design to the freefincal Equity Mutual Fund Performance Screener. Inside, you get discounted links to our robo advisory tool...

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How should I benchmark my equity MF returns?

In this article, we discuss a reader’s question, “How should I benchmark my equity MF returns?”This is an important step for those investing in active mutual funds as it often reminds them that beating a benchmark index is not easy. See: Why are you recommending index funds when your portfolio has beaten the market? However, it...

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Does long-term equity SIP investing work? (110 year analysis)

Last Updated on September 6, 2025 at 9:35 am Everyone associated with a mutual fund says, “the best way to build wealth is via SIP in an equity mutual fund over the long term”. However, where is the proof that a long-term equity mutual fund SIP would work? In this article, we analyse 40+ years...

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How do I increase equity exposure in my investment portfolio?

Many readers ask us from time to time how to increase their equity exposure for long term financial goals. Their current portfolios are debt-heavy and largely ill-liquid. This is a serious problem many investors face, particularly those who started earning early in their 20s. In my case, I started earning and investing for retirement only...

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Nifty vs Nifty Next 50 vs Nifty Midcap 150 vs Nifty Smallcap 250: Return Comparison Sep 2025

We compare the rolling returns of Nifty 50, Nifty Next 50, Nifty Midcap 150 and Nifty Smallcap 250. We publish this comparison from time to time. This is the September 2025 edition. Returns for a financial instrument that fluctuates can be calculated in two ways: Point-to-point returns: The effective annual compounded growth rate (CAGR) is...

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Stocks with low volatility and momentum for Sep 2025

We publish a list of stocks with low volatility and momentum each month. We provide data for BSE 500 and BSE 100 stocks. There are now three different screener files available. (1) Stocks with low volatility and momentum from the BSE 100 large cap universe are available as a separate file (2) Stocks with low...

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What is your mutual fund investment strategy?

Whenever I share my investment portfolio in annual audits or other articles, readers ask about my investment strategy. See, for example, “17 Years of Mutual Fund Investing: My Journey and Lessons Learned.” “How did you select the funds you hold?”, “How do you decide when to exit a fund?” and so on. Others are angry...

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What to do if you can’t invest enough for retirement

Are you shocked to see the corpus required for retirement and the necessary investment amount? See, for example, the results of a retirement planning exercise. Don’t worry. The situation is perfectly normal, and you still have a shot at financial independence in retirement. Here are some generic steps to consider during and after a retirement planning...

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My worst fear in personal finance: unexpected recurring expenses

I believe securing our family and wealth with multiple safeguards is essential. To do this, we must ask, “What could upset our plans or harm our family?”. While I was setting my affairs in order, I often used to ask, “What is the worst that can happen to us from a financial standpoint?” This always...

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