Interest rates are favourable in the US. However, either the university or a greencard holder should be a guarantor.

Education loans: From India or US?

Business Standard

There is a growing interest for financial literacy among young adults. In the last six months, I have had young graduates &mdash; most of whom who have taken up jobs to acquire work experience so that they can pursue a masters&rsquo; degree later &mdash; asking me about financial planning. Also, there has been enthusiastic response from young BPO employees to workshops on managing money, organised mostly by their employers.

Financial literacy among young adults

These are schemes launched by mutual fund houses, wherein, one can invest only during the new fund offer period. Once this is over, one cannot invest. These schemes can have a debt or equity mandate. Also, they have a pre-specified maturity period or a lock-in, after which the scheme may either become open-ended or wind up its operations and return the investment to the investors, calculated in accordance with the net asset value (NAV) on the maturity date. However, the second option is rarely exercised for equity close-ended schemes. These schemes are listed on either the Bombay Stock Exchange or the National Stock Exchange after the NFO period ends. The NAV is generally disclosed on a weekly basis.

What are close-ended schemes?

Sundaram Mutual Fund has joined the gold rush by launching Sundaram Equity Plus. The fund aims to invest around 65-85 per cent in equity and a maximum of 35 per cent in gold-exchange traded funds (ETFs). According to the fund house, the scheme will primarily focus on opportunities in Indian equities, with the addition of a gold-ETF providing diversification and exposure to the relative attractiveness of gold in certain phases.

Just Gold is not enough

Protect, accumulate, distribute - stick to the order.

Three cornerstones of wealth management

Kotak Mahindra Bank has revised its base rate and benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR) by 50 basis points each. The bank&rsquo;s base rate would now be 9.25 per cent and BPLR would be 18 per cent, effective from Tuesday. The bank also raised interest rates on term deposits by 25-50 basis points across various maturities with the peak rate at 9.75 per cent.

Kotak Mahindra Bank raises base rate, BPLR

Prepaying or foreclosing loans on second or rented homes in the initial years is not tax-efficient.

Tackling rising interest rates

I am 30 years and working with an advertising firm. I have six credit cards, of which I use only two regularly. I pay off my credit card dues on time. Yet, for consolidating my finances, I wish to surrender the four cards that I don&rsquo;t use much. However, I plan to apply for a home loan in a few months. And, I recently learnt that unutilised credit cards reflect well on your credit history.

Debt Counselling: Sanjay Agarwal

Though 4-6 per cent returns are on par with bank savings accounts and debt MFs, risks are higher.

Currency derivatives are not for retail investors

Few decades ago, legendary banker J P Morgan was asked how he lent money. His reply is worth its weight in gold for every investor. &ldquo;I lent money against character, character and only character,&rdquo; he answered. What is true in banking is also true in equity.

How to pick lagdi stocks?

The new rate will be nowhere near 9.5%, says official.

EPFO set to lower rate this year

It is a part of the takeover code as defined by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). When a company acquires up to 15 per cent stake in another listed entity, an open offer gets triggered. This means the acquiring company must make an offer to existing shareholders to buy an additional 20 per cent stake in the company. And, it is typically kept open for about a month, from the date of announcement.

What is an open offer?

Besides the company fundamentals, take discount differential into account.

Opportunity for arbitrage in FPOs

When Kartik Mehta returned to India after 15 years in Dubai, he was taken aback by the paperwork that awaited him.

Financial checklist for home-bound NRIs

I had accumulated Rs 40,000 on my credit card, which I had repaid, but misplaced the payment receipt. However, I still keep getting reminders from my bank, asking for the payment. I have not used the card ever since and I now wish to discontinue it.

Banking: Prashant Joshi

Mutual funds offer liquid funds and ultra short-term funds in the debt category, which are suitable for short investment periods. Ultra short-term funds were earlier known as liquid plus funds.

What short-term investment options do mutual funds give?

State bank of India (SBI), India&rsquo;s largest lender, has increased its base rate and its benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR) by 75 basis points (bps) each, following the recent policy rate increases by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

SBI raises base rate, bplr by 75 basis pts 

All insurance policies stipulate a time frame for lodging a claim after the incident of loss. For mediclaim policies, it was 30 days earlier. Now, the time frame has been revised to seven days. If the claim is lodged beyond this period, insurance companies conveniently reject it on the ground that it was not lodged on time, without bothering about the genuineness of the claim. This is not permissible, as held by the Maharashtra State Commission as well as the National Commission.

Can insurance firms reject late claims?

Option can be exercised only for self-applications and after a year of non-payment.

You can seek tax refunds through RTI

During the results season, many companies declare dividends to share profits with shareholders. At times, equally profitable companies also have a different stance regarding dividend declaration.

Investing: Rishi Nathany

Both a top-up and loan against your car are available at rates marginally lower than personal loans.

Use your car as collateral

Personal Finance: Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

Personal Finance: Investing, Planning, Retirement, Loans, & Insurance | Business Standard

Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

Page 862 - Personal Finance