M. Pattabiraman's Blog, page 15

My Stock Portfolio Analysis: April 2025

This article compares my stock portfolio with an equivalent investment in a Nifty index fund and the Nifty 100 Low Volatility 30 TR index. We post this comparison each month. Before we begin, new readers need to appreciate the context of these investments. Update: We recently added a new tool to the freefincal investor circle...

The post My Stock Portfolio Analysis: April 2025 appeared first on freefincal.

Achieving Financial Independence: A Reader’s Journey to FIRE by Dec 2025

First, I would like to thank you for sharing your views and guidance with all those who want to achieve a peaceful retirement and financial goals. I have been reading your articles since 2018, especially when you gave an alert on Franklin Templeton Ultra short-duration fund, where you highlighted the risks involved and its NAV...

The post Achieving Financial Independence: A Reader’s Journey to FIRE by Dec 2025 appeared first on freefincal.

Should you port your old health insurance policy to a new policy with more features?

Last Updated on April 23, 2025 at 9:17 am Many people have insurance policies from nationalised companies or other private companies purchased 5 to 10 years ago or earlier. At that time, insurance policies were very standardised, and the major choice that had to be made was about the insurance coverage amount. Over the past...

The post Should you port your old health insurance policy to a new policy with more features? appeared first on freefincal.

Cyberattacks – The MF investors worst nightmare

As you may be aware, Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd. was the victim of a cyber attack on April 9th, 2025. At the time of this writing, the restoration is still ongoing. Thankfully, investors can still access their funds via the fund houses registrar and transfer agent (RTA) K-Fintech, MFCentral, MFU or other third-party...

The post Cyberattacks – The MF investors worst nightmare appeared first on freefincal.

How a couple navigate their finances through travel, life and long-term plans

We are back again with our fourth yearly audit of our financial health (the first three parts are linked below). A huge thanks to the numerous yearly audits posted on freefincal – we were also motivated to document ours, at least once a year. Thankfully, we are doing this for the fourth year in a...

The post How a couple navigate their finances through travel, life and long-term plans appeared first on freefincal.

NPS vs UPS: How to make the right choice for your situation

Central government employees must decide between the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) and the National Pension Scheme (NPS) before June. We have already published calculators and opinions on the subject, as regular readers may know. Here are some articles from the full UPS archive. Why I will not opt for the unified pension scheme UPS vs...

The post NPS vs UPS: How to make the right choice for your situation appeared first on freefincal.

Why every earning individual must take term insurance – a real-life lesson

Life has a strange way of teaching us lessons: through wisdom, for some, and through heartbreak. Today, I’m sharing a deeply personal story. It’s not fiction. It’s not borrowed. It’s real. This story continues to haunt me because I witnessed it unfold before my eyes—and I wish it had had a different ending. About the...

The post Why every earning individual must take term insurance – a real-life lesson appeared first on freefincal.

An Engineer-MBA’s Journey to Financial Independence

Last Updated on April 18, 2025 at 9:27 am A reader says, “Thank you for being a source of financial wisdom in my journey. Your articles have given me the needed direction and ideas to plan my finances. My situation might be a bit different from that of most of your readers, but I think...

The post An Engineer-MBA’s Journey to Financial Independence appeared first on freefincal.

Debt and hybrid mutual fund screener (April 2025) for selection, tracking, learning

This is a debt mutual fund screener for portfolio selection, tracking, and learning. It also includes hybrid funds that invest in bonds. It will satisfy investors who wish to invest in money market funds, banking PSU funds, etc. The credit quality of the bonds in the portfolio and the bond maturity profile can be tracked....

The post Debt and hybrid mutual fund screener (April 2025) for selection, tracking, learning appeared first on freefincal.

Can I retire at 38 with a corpus of Rs 2.25 Crores?

A reader asks, “I am 38 years old, currently have a corpus of 2.25 Cr. 70% is in debt { SCSS (30), EPF (25), PPF (25), Arbitrage Funds (70), Debt MF (rest) } and 30% in equity MF. I invested in arbitrage funds as they provide good returns (vs FD) and a means to balance...

The post Can I retire at 38 with a corpus of Rs 2.25 Crores? appeared first on freefincal.