Have never used gold as an investment of choice: Kalaari Capital founder

Vani Kola said she doesn't enjoy the inconvenience of worrying about losing gold or protecting it in bank lockers

Despite the country's penchant for gold, venture capitalist Vani Kola has an alternative take on the precious commodity. Kola revealed that she doesn't own much gold jewellery and hoarding gold has never been her investment choice.

The managing director and founder of Kalaari Capital said that she feels there are better investment options than gold. She doesn't enjoy the inconvenience of worrying about losing it or protecting it in bank lockers.

"I do not buy or own much gold jewellery. As an investment option, there are far better choices. As a choice of personal jewellery, I don't like the hassle of hiding it in a bank, taking it out once in a while, and being worried about losing it," Kola wrote on a post on LinkedIn .

In the post, Kola said that Indians possess an estimated 25,000 tonnes of gold. She also stated that South Africa is the world leader in gold mining and about 2,500 tonnes of gold are mined each year.

India reveres gold as an asset that can endure anything, Kola wrote in her post on LinkedIn.

Kola wrote that gold was considered the 'safest' investment after fixed deposits or post office savings bonds, adding that people from her generation continue to keep 'safety deposit boxes' in banks to safeguard the gold. "Families are probably still doing that! Our lustre for gold doesn't change ... We even have a festival that revolves around buying gold," she said in the post.

Kola also stated that central banks of all countries store gold in huge quantities. "Currently, India holds about 800 tonnes and the US has about 8000 tonnes in reserve. The value of a country's currency has a strong connection with the gold reserves of that country," she wrote in the post.

Kola stated that equity has delivered around 11-14 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR), depending on the index, while gold has delivered a return of six per cent CAGR.