Investing: Rishi Nathany

I am a 45-year-old doctor and want to start trading. Should I invest in stocks or consider currency trading? Can I enroll in a course to learn more about trading?
There are many organisations which train people on market trading. However, you should look into their credentials before enrolling with them. Currency trading is done on the derivatives market and is riskier than investing in stocks. Since you are new, you should first take a training course from an accredited institution or read relevant books to gain adequate knowledge. Then, you could consider investing in stocks with small amounts after doing sufficient research. You should consider venturing into derivatives-, equity- or currency-based only after you are well-versed with equity investing and have garnered adequate skills.

My investment advisor says gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are trading at an all-time high. Is it a good time to invest in these and how do you invest? My equity portfolio is worth Rs 8 lakh. I wish to exit some of my investments and divert the funds to gold ETFs.
The entire metal and bullion space has been rising over the recent past. If you are a long-term investor, any time is good time to invest. However, since these have run-up quite a bit, you could ideally stagger your investments into gold ETFs over a long time by buying a certain value of these every month. It would help you get a good long-term average price for your investment. Moreover, adding another asset class like gold to your portfolio would make it more diversified than a pure equity portfolio. You can invest in a gold ETF by opening a trading account with any stock broker and can buy these ETFs like stocks and hold in your demat account. The quantum of money you want to shift from equities to gold will depend on your asset allocation, time horizon and risk profile, for which you should consult your certified financial advisor.

I got a letter from a Bangalore-based investment company last week, asking if I held shares in any unlisted company. Is it possible to hold such shares and is it profitable? Where do I buy these shares from? How are the transactions in this space taxed?
It is best to avoid investing in unlisted stocks. There is no proper price-discovery mechanism for these stocks and pricing is opaque. In the absence of an organised market, you might find it difficult to get adequate liquidity in your investment. Moreover, there is no guarantee that the unlisted stocks you buy would get listed one day. Unlisted stocks do not have the short- and long-term capital gains tax advantage like listed stocks do, as no Securities and Transaction Tax is paid on unlisted stocks. This is another reason to avoid such investments.

The writer is director, Touchstone Wealth. The views expressed are his own. Send your queries to yourmoney@bsmail.in