Earnings from bribe may be made criminal offence under Income Tax Act

In a bid to tackle tax evasion and check generation of illicit money, the government is considering classifying earnings from illegitimate sources like bribery and corruption as criminal offense under the income tax laws. “The income earned from illegitimate means could be classified as a criminal offense in the Income Tax Act”, said a senior Finance Ministry official.

The official said the issue of tightening the tax laws is being considered by a committee set up by the government to suggest measures to check the menace of black money and prevent its generation.

Generally tax avoidance on income earned through legitimate sources is treated as a civil offence under the Income Tax Act.

Elaborating on the possible illegitimate sources, the earnings from which could be classified as a criminal offence, the official said, “these could include income from bribe, corruption, terrorism, narcotics, money laundering etc”.

Once such deeds are classified as “criminal offences” under the Income Tax laws, it would become easier for the tax authorities to “quickly book” such culprits and recover the income from illegitimate means, sources said.

The issue of making tax evasion a criminal offence is being considered by a high-powered committee headed by the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).

The mandate of the panel is to suggest within six months changes in laws to curb generation and recover black money and prevent its illegal transfer abroad.

Bharti to sell entire stake in AXA JVs to Reliance Industries

Bharti Enterprises said on Friday it would sell its entire stake in two insurance joint ventures with AXA to Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries Ltd.

Bharti will use the proceeds from the sale towards other group businesses in India and abroad, it said in a statement.

Bharti entered into the joint ventures with the AXA Group in 2006 and held a 74 percent stake in both these ventures - Bharti AXA Life Insurance and Bharti AXA General Insurance .

'Retail Investors' have lesser share of 'Market Capitalisation'

The chart shows that retail investors' share in the market capitalisation of actively traded stocks on the BSE has been on the decline and is currently the lowest in last few years. The proverb 'once bitten, twice shy' quite explains the story. If you look at the numbers, retail investors held 19% share of the market capitalization in 2006. Then the market crashed in 2008 and since then their share has been on the decline. It is a clear indication that the volatility in the stock markets has put off retail participants.


It also tells that to get most out of such volatility Mutual Fund SIP would have surely helped & if it was one with 'Goal Orientation' & 'Asset Allocation', one would be reaping its benefits. It also clearly tells that retail investors are actually flowing with the markets but if they flow against the tide, they will make more wealth. "Remember, that by following the masses one cannot be the winner, only acting smartly & wisely will make you the one."

(As on 31st March, 2011)
Data source: Business Standard

Panel recommends MIS term to be reduced to five years from the current six-years

Monthly Income Scheme (MIS) of the post office remains the flagship product under small savings scheme owning to better returns. MIS alone garnered Rs 54,302 crore against the total fund generation of Rs 2,50,931 crore during 2009-10. Thus, nearly 20 per cent was contributed by the product, as per the report by Committee on Small Savings Scheme.

Since the effective rate of interest on MIS has been higher than other scheme, it is popular among those subscribers seeking regular additional income.

The product provides monthly income and yields an effective annual rate of interest of 8.82 per cent inclusive of 5 per cent maturity bonus.

Under the scheme, the depositors get Rs 80 per month for 6 years for MIS deposit of Rs 12,000. At end of maturity the money is returned along with a bonus of 5 per cent per annum.

The maximum deposit ceiling under the scheme is Rs 4.5 lakh in single account and Rs 9 lakh in the joint account.

Besides, this the other popular small savings scheme are Public Provident Fund, Recurring Deposit, Kisan Vikas Patra and National Savings Certificate.

During 2009-10, Public Provident Fund mobilised Rs 33,449 crore, Recurring Deposit Rs 30,353 crore and Kisan Vikas Patra Rs 21,167 crore.

“Whereas the term deposit rates of post offices are broadly aligned with the market rates, the effective rate of interest on MIS is significantly higher than the bank deposit rate and the G-sec yields of comparable maturities,” the report prepared by government panel noted.

Notwithstanding the rigidity in pre-mature withdrawal of the scheme, MIS is a relatively popular instrument in view of the higher than market rate of return, the panel headed by RBI Deputy Governor Shyamala Gopinath observed.

The panel recommended the MIS term be reduced to five years from the current six-years.

source: PTI

Know your Provident Fund (PF) account details online from 1st July

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) on Wednesday said account details would be available online from July 1.

“You can watch the account balance of your PF online from July 1,” Assistant PF Commissioner Kanchan Roy said at an interactive session at Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“This indeed would be a great help to about 5 crore PF subscribers in India,” he said.

EPFO plans to replace PF account number with unique identification number, a move which will help in speedy transfer of a subscribers’ funds in case of job change and allow them to track their accounts online.

The replacement of PF account number with the UID number will be done after inter-connecting all regional and sub offices of the EPFO by March, 2012.

Mutual funds pay extra to banks for ‘exclusive sales’

Mutual funds are leaving no stone unturned to keep distributors in good humour.

Asset management companies (AMCs) are paying a higher upfront fee to distribution subsidiaries of foreign and private banks nowadays to drive 'exclusive sales' of their schemes, mainly equity. This commission is in addition to the upfront and annual trail fees that mutual funds pay distributors for selling their schemes, said top AMC officials.

AMCs are paying large distributors anywhere between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 2 crore this year as part of the so-called marketing support fees. Last year, such payout was in the range of Rs 45 lakh to Rs 75 lakh. Fund houses said distributors, who have been deprived of the entry load after its ban since August 2009, are demanding a higher fee, citing difficulty in selling equity schemes in unfavourable market conditions.

The marketing support fee would depend on the size of the fund house and performance of the equity scheme, AMC officials said, "Fund houses with large asset bases, performing funds and good credentials will have to pay less. New and ailing fund houses will be required to pay higher fees," said the chief executive of mid-sized fund house "The benefit of paying additional fees is that bank distributors will strive harder to sell schemes of fund houses which have paid the money," he said.

The chief executive adds that bank distributors sell only those funds that are doing well. "They do not push products that are not in favour or are losing money. Bank distributors take turns to include top performing schemes of fund houses (which pay extra money) in their quarterly fund recommendations," he said.

Most top bank distributors including HDFC, HSBC and Citibank, among others, have hiked marketing support charges this year, say mutual fund industry sources. But, the banks deny this. "We only accept upfront commission and trail from fund houses to sell funds. We're an open architecture distributor; we advise funds of almost all fund houses (to our clients), if they are performing well," said Abhay Aima, head of equities, private banking and third party products, HDFC Bank .

According to Aima, exclusive tieups are only done on the distribution side. "The fund house pays for marketing expenses. Under such tie-ups, we give them good shelf display, exclusive space for selling their funds, help them host investor melas and arrange campaigns. But at no cost, we take money to advise a particular fund," Aima added. A senior Citibank official, requesting anonymity, said, "We only collect upfront commission and trail fees from asset management companies. Citi sells funds of 21 fund houses. It has no exclusive tieups with any particular fund house."

Fund houses pay an upfront commission in the range of 0.75 - 1% and 50 - 75 bps as annual trail fees. Bank distributors are also promised an additional 25 bps trail (termed loyalty fees) if investors stay for more than five years.

An email query sent to HSBC did not elicit a response. According to industry sources, by accepting money for exclusive promotion and marketing support, bank distributors are already working on tied-agency concepts, which the recently constituted Sebi mutual fund panel is planning to introduce. Bank distributors have always been accused of resorting to aggressive portfolio churning by fund industry experts. Going by registrars' data, portfolio churning is high among investors who are serviced by bank-promoted distributors. Only 21% of equity AUM mobilised by banks remained with fund houses for more than 900 days vis-a-vis 53% collected by independent financial advisors. 

My Comments -

Many of our investors have suffered churning impact because of bank employees lack of knowledge & experience of the very product they recommend. Quite often they sold the product without understanding there exact need & requirement.

The best way is to go is by making an appropriate financial plan with the help of a professional. Proper cash flow analysis has to be done & portfolio has to be made not just by one measure rather by all the measures required like asset allocation, need analysis, goal orientation, risk appetite, insurance need, retirement planning etc.

One thing is for sure without trying, one cannot know its true benefits.

"TO HAVE A HAPPY LIFE PLANNING IT IS QUITE VITAL."

Total AUM of MF Industry Declines by 6.87% in May 2011

Total Assets Under Management (AUM) of the mutual fund (MF) industry fell by 6.87% or by Rs 53926 crore to Rs 7.31 lakh crore in May 2011. The decline was attributed due to huge outflow of funds from Liquid Funds, Income Funds, Other ETFs. It declined by Rs 39603 crore, Rs 11141 crore and Rs 631 crore respectively. 

The net outflow from the industry was recorded at Rs 48850 crore in May 2011 as against a net inflow of Rs 1.84 lakh crore in April 2011. Though there were huge outflows from debt funds, money flowed into Equity Funds (Rs 1546 crore), Gold ETFs (Rs 569 crore), Fund of Funds Investing Overseas (Rs 343 crore) and Balanced Funds (Rs 217 crore). 

Funds mobilized from 41 newly launched schemes in May 2011 stood at Rs 7941 crore, out of which Rs 7416 crore came from 37 close ended income funds.

Low Retail Investor Interest A Cause Of Concern

H N Sinor, CEO, Association of Mutual Funds of India, tells Tanvi Varma that mutual funds should be viewed more as 'investment managers'.

Of late, the mutual fund industry has seen some de-growth, especially in equity funds. What according to you are the reasons and how does the industry plan to tackle this?
We are concerned about this. While most of the segments under the financial services industry i.e. banking, insurance, NBFCs, have seen an annual growth of 15-25% during the last 2 years, the mutual fund industry has seen a decline in business during the period.

We have seen a lot of volatility in institutional participation, but we are more worried about low retail participation. We have seen stagnation in equity, balanced and tax-saving schemes that most retail investors invest into.

There are various reasons for this including low investor awareness, mindset of investors, fund house performances and the role of the distributors and financial advisors. Investor awareness is a long-term issue and is essential in bringing in more participation. Investors still identify mutual funds with capital markets and are apprehensive, while the fact is that funds help to spreads one's risks, especially when you don't have the expertise, and generate better returns.

What is the role of the financial advisor or distributor in servicing an investor, post the entry-load ban?

Mutual funds need to be pushed and that is where the distributors come in. Post entry-load ban (which came into effect from August 1, 2009), we are still trying to figure out what will be the change in the business model, which can be a win-win for all stakeholders-investor, manufacturer and distributor.

Unless all are in sync with each other, the industry cannot grow and the investor will not benefit. Earlier, the investor used to pay the financial planner by way of entry load, which was embedded in the money one invested. This is the practice in markets such as the US and Europe. But now, a financial advisor has to collect his commission directly from the investor. It is difficult for a distributor to go to individual investors and get a fee from him, unless the investor is an HNI and a portfolio management fee is charged on an annual basis. This model has not worked.

Do you think we can go back to the entry load system?

I doubt it.

How is the Indian mutual fund industry doing compared to those in developed markets?

Internationally, the mutual fund industry has come about by way of investments from compulsory saving instruments that get tax breaks like the 401k retirement savings in the US. Pension and provident fund investments automatically flow into mutual funds, which are actually called 'investment managers'. In India, mutual funds are voluntary investments and often face competition from other products such as bank deposits, insurance, unit-linked plans, other pension products, etc.

We have simple things to be done. All compulsory savings should come naturally to investment managers. We don't need insurance companies to have their own treasuries. All money pooled by insurance companies and pension money should come to investment managers (let us not call ourselves mutual funds) to the extent that they are required to be invested in the capital market.

Further, there have been turf wars in the investment community. Pension regulators want pension under them, the Forward Markets Commission (FMC) wants the commodity Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) under them. We cannot have fragmented regulators. Ideally we should have a super-regulator at some point, though I think this is wishful thinking.

How cost-efficient is our mutual fund industry?

We are extremely cost-efficient compared to global markets. The annual expense ratio in the US, for instance, is around 4%, while our mutual funds (equity) work on 2 to 2.5%. In fact mutual funds work on a shoe-string. This business gives only 10 to 15 basis points on the entire assets under management (AUM).

Now-a-days we don't see many new fund offers (NFOs) hitting the market. What has changed?

The regulator has not seen NFOs in good light and permission is tough to come by. They believe that we have too many schemes and that manufacturers should focus on their mother schemes.

How adept are the financial advisors or distributors of mutual funds in advising investors?

Both financial advisors and agents have to pass the same exam, whether he is a commerce graduate or a doctorate. Ideally, an advisor should be put through a tougher examination. For agents also, the Associatoin of Mutual Funds of India (Amfi) is trying to ensure that only serious people are in this business. We increased our fee from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000 for individuals. Earlier, large number of agents did not even update themselves in terms of skill-sets. We are changing that by making certification tougher.

There are a lot of new funds houses in the mutual fund space. What would your advice be to the retail investor?

Although there are no entry barriers, there is a licensing arrangement in place, which comes with strong duediligence by the regulator. Investors must take it for granted they have been properly scrutinised and are not fly-by-night operators. The ultimate aim of regulators is to ensure that small investors' money is protected. So, one should not worry about new names. What is more important is performance, the kind of offering etc.

Will the new Direct Taxes Code change the way people make investments?

Immediately, we could see a negative impact. Having said that, people will get used to it. We have been trying with the Revenue Secretary to get some leeway on investments in equity-linked savings scheme (ELSS). In spite of the changes, people should continue with their mutual fund allocation and think of it as a long-term plan. Systematic investment is the best route of investment for the middle class, salaried person.

source: Business Today

Equity Diversified Funds with High Large Cap Tilt See High Growth over Two Year Period

AUM of Equity Large Cap Funds See a significant growth 

Equity Large Cap Funds that have major portion of its exposure in fundamentally strong scripts have sailed through the ups and downs in the Indian equity market during the last two years. The Assets under Management (AUM) of this category has seen a significant growth, up over 100% from Rs 25914.75 crore in March 2009 to Rs 55466.38 crore in March 2011. The return from this category of schemes, have been in the range of 1.66% to 29.03% return over two year time period upto 25 May 2011. 

Though the markets have gained in the long term, in the last few months' market have got beating. Indian equities have skid down since the beginning of the new calendar year 2011 due to various factors as global cues, political crisis, high crude prices & inflation and Reserve Bank of India had increased the interest rates to curtail inflation. Sensex has been in the range of 17463.04 points to 20561.05 points (data from 1 January 2011 to 25 May 2011). 

Risk-Return Analysis for Large Cap Equity Funds 
 

Equity Large Cap Funds had delivered an average two year return of 15.53% as on 25 May 2011. We have tried to explain with the help of a diagram, which is divided into four quadrants, with each quadrant containing schemes of a particular risk-return profile. The size of the bubble indicates the size of the fund. (Returns are compounded annualized and open ended growth schemes alone are considered).

Funds Positioned in Low Risk High Return quadrant: During the two year period ended 25 May 2011, equity large cap funds covered in the Low Risk High Return quadrant had returns in the range of 16.51% to 29.03%. There were sixteen schemes which appeared in this quadrant. 

The schemes in the low-risk high returns quadrant outperform the peer group on the risk-adjusted returns basis as they deliver higher returns compared to the peers without exposing the portfolio to very high risk. Quantum Long-Term Equity Fund had taken a low risk of 0.94% and had delivered a two year return of 29.03%. The other schemes which had been in the same quadrant include, HDFC Equity Fund with a low risk of 1.13% had delivered a high return of 26.97%. HDFC Core & Satellite Fund had taken a low risk of 1.07% and delivered a high return of 26.01%. HDFC Top 200 Fund with a low risk of 1.12% delivered high return of 22.20%. DSP BR Equity Fund with a low risk of 1.06% delivered high return of 21.12%. Principal Large Cap Fund with a low risk of 1.06% delivered high return of 20.90%.

Funds Positioned in High Risk High Return quadrant: The schemes in the high-risk high returns quadrant follow a very aggressive approach and deliver high compounded annualized growth return (CAGR). The equity large cap funds covered in the High Risk High Return quadrant had posted returns in the range of 16.15% to 20.01%. Templeton India Growth Fund had taken a high risk of 1.18% and had delivered a two year return of 20.01%. 

The other schemes which had been in the same quadrant include Sundaram India Leadership with a high risk of 1.32% had delivered a high return of 18.19%. Birla Sun Life Top 100 Fund had taken a high risk of 1.18% and delivered a high return of 17.96%. Tata Pure Equity Fund with a high risk of 1.17% delivered high return of 17.30%. Sundaram Growth Fund with a high risk of 1.31% delivered high return of 16.41%. Reliance Vision Fund with a high risk of 1.19% delivered high return of 16.15%.
 
Fund Analysis

We have analyzed the top four equity large cap funds based on the sharpe ratio. Sharpe Ratio reflects the risk adjusted returns, that is, the returns per unit of risk. A high ratio is always better than a low ratio. 

Quantum Long-Term Equity Fund though being one of the small fund in the equity large cap fund category with a corpus of Rs 76.68 crore as at the end of April 2011, it has managed to deliver a high risk adjusted over the two year time period. Moreover this scheme has topped this category in terms of return over two year time period. The latest portfolio of this scheme indicates that it has high exposure towards sectors such as Banks (14.10%), Software (8.96%), Finance (7.76%) and Automobile (7.03%) among the others. This scheme has outperformed its benchmark index, TRI Sensex by 2.37%, 14.54% and 11.09% over 1 year, 2 year and 3 year time period respectively.

HDFC Core & Satellite Fund has outperformed its benchmark index, BSE 200 by 4.65%, 11.90% and 10.58% over 1 year, 2 year and 3 year time period respectively. The schemes latest portfolio indicates that its has high exposure towards sectors such as Software (15.92%), Banks (9.47%), Pharmaceuticals (7.66%) and Capital Goods – Electrical Equipment (7.55%) among others. 

HDFC Equity Fund and HDFC Top 200 Fund from the HDFC Mutual Fund family have continued to be top performers for investors over long time. The size of these funds is huge and the fund manager has compensated the investors with good returns for investing into these funds over long run. Both these funds have outperformed their respective benchmark by huge margin over 1 year, 2 year and 3 year time period.

DSP BR Equity Fund has high exposure towards sectors such as Banks (12.32%), Finance (7.64%), Software (7.28%) and Crude Oil & Natural Gas (6.11%) among others. It has outperformed its benchmark index, S&P CNX 500 by 3.33%, 8.46% and 7.67% over 1 year, 2 year and 3 year time period respectively.

Conclusion

The equity diversified funds with high large cap tilt are expected to do well due to its advantage of investing in fundamentally sound scripts. Equity Large Cap Funds offer better protection to investors in the downturn. These schemes are suitable for investors who are not aggressive but would like to benefit from the equity markets over long run. 

Moreover these funds would get assistance from India's economic growth. India's domestic economy continues to remain on a strong footing with long term growth prospects visible. The same is expected to drive the equity market over a longer period of time.

Higher crude oil prices, higher inflation and higher interest rates kept the equity market sentiments lower in recent times. Equity Large Cap Fund investors should make of the dip in the market as an opportunity to invest for long term.

IRDA asks all insurers to file a certificate confirming compliance with the stipulations on public disclosures

Effective from year ending March 2011 

Insurance Regulatory Development of India (IRDA), effective from the year ending March 2011, have asked all the insurers to file a certificate confirming compliance with the stipulations on public disclosures. 

IRDA had issued the Exposure draft inviting comments from all the stake holders on public disclosures by the insurance companies in 2009 and finalized the public disclosures to be made by the insurers in January, last year. 

In April 2010, in order to have uniformity among the insurers on disclosures IRDA mandated that all insurers should file public disclosures at periodic intervals. Insurers were also asked to host on their website the disclosures for a minimum period of 5 years. But the insurers were not required to display last 5 years data on quarterly and half yearly basis. According to the formats specified by IRDA, insurers were required to display information based on the yearly audited statements. 

Now the IRDA have asked all the insurers to file a certificate confirming the compliance with the stipulations on disclosures requirements on the insurer's website and on publication in the newspaper. The certificate is to be submitted to the authority within one week of applicable timelines under respective disclosures requirements as stipulated by IRDA.

Reliance MF Extends Reliance SIP Insure Facility under Three Schemes

With effect from 8 June 2011 

Reliance Mutual Fund has provided an add on feature of life insurance feature cover under a Group Term Insurance to Individual Investor opting for an add on feature which is called “Reliance SIP Insure”, without any extra cost to the investor. (the Cost of the Insurance Premia is being borne by Reliance Capital Asset Management Limited (RCAM).

Reliance SIP Insure facility has been extended to schemes such as Reliance Long Term Equity Fund, Reliance Infrastructure Fund and Reliance Small Cap Fund with effect from 8 June 2011.

Revised Feature of “Reliance SIP Insure” – with effect from 8 June 2011

Sum Assured: An amount equivalent to the aggregate balance of unpaid SIP installments, subject to a maximum of Rs 10 lakhs per investor across all schemes / plans and folios will be invested in the Nominees' account.

Eligibility Criteria: Only individual investors whose completed age is between 18 years and 45 years (inclusive of both) at the time of investment.

SIP Tenure:

a) Maximum Period of Contribution for SIP: No upper limit for SIP tenure. The investor can opt for Perpetual SIP also. However the insurance cover ceases when the investor attains 55 years of age or upon the completion of the SIP insure tenure whichever is earlier.

b) There will be an exit load of 2%, if the accumulated units acquired or allotted under Reliance SIP Insure are redeemed or switched out or the SIP Insure is discontinued or it is defaulted before the maturity of committed SIP Insure tenure or before completion of 55 years of age whichever is earlier as opted in the respective scheme either by the SIP Insure unitholder or by the nominee, as the case may be.

Upon completion of 55 years of age, if there are still balance unpaid SIP installments, those will be treated as with the relevant exit load as may be existing from time to time. The following exit load structure is applicable for all kinds of redemptions in the following schemes as on date: Reliance Growth Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Vision Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Equity Opportunities Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Equity Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Equity Advantage Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Regular Savings Fund – Equity Option, Reliance Regular Savings Fund – Balanced Option, Reliance Banking Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Pharma Fund, Reliance Media & Entertainment Fund, Reliance Diversified Power Sector Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Natural Resources Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Quant Plus Fund – Retail Plan, Reliance Long Term Equity Fund and Reliance Infrastructure Fund – Retail Plan.

1 % if redeemed / switched out on or before completion of 1 year from the date of allotment of units. Nil if redeemed / switched after completion of 1 year from the date of allotment of units.

While Reliance Small Cap Fund has the following exit load:

2 % if redeemed or switched out on or before completion of 12 months from the date of allotment of units.  1 % if redeemed or switched out after 12 months but on or before completion of 24 months from the date of allotment of units.

While nil load in Reliance Tax Saver (ELSS) Fund.