Insurers hike premiums for public infra assets by up to 25% in aftermath of Sikkim cloudburst

Mumbai: Indian insurers are raising premiums for industrial sites, railroads, roads, tunnels, bridges and other public infrastructure assets by up to a quarter in the aftermath of a deluge of claims due to October's glacial lake outburst and unprecedented flooding in Sikkim and sub-Himalayan West Bengal.

India bucks Asian market trend with higher valuation for life insurers: McKinsey
Chennai: The Indian life insurance sector has been a bright spot in the Asian region as life insurers in the country have received higher valuations than in other countries such as China, Japan and Taiwan, according to a report by McKinsey. Valuation of life insurers in the region declined between 2012 and 2022, converging with that of global insurers, due largely to slower growth and a declining population in markets such as Japan and Taiwan. The deceleration in China’s growth also negatively affected valuations.

Shriram Life insurance posts Rs 70 cr net profit in first half of 2023-24

Shriram Life Insurance announced an 88 per cent increase in new business premium for retail and group policies in H1FY24 at Rs 860 crore compared to the year-ago period. The company sold 142,914 individual policies in the first half of the year, pushing the insurer to the seventh position in the number of policies sold among private insurers in the country.

Growth needs to be in tandem with sustainable economy: Sebi's Bhatia

Speaking at an international finance conference on the "Role of Financial Markets in Sustainable Growth through ESG Investments", Bhatia said, countries including India, have made a number of important commitments in the last few years to address climate change and moving to sustainable and inclusive economies.

Next Samvat, SIP numbers could be in excess of Rs 20,000 crore per month: Sunil Subramaniam
Sunil Subramaniam, MD & CEO, Sundaram Mutual, says “the recent drop in the oil prices will lead to a slowdown of FII outflow and maybe some FII flows starting to come in. So, Diwali can be a muskaan wali Diwali because the delayed Diwali means that the festive season is only now starting in terms of the consumer durables, auto, housing kind of sectors and so the next quarter numbers will hopefully show a very robust consumption output and which will lead to better valuations for that sector. So, overall, lots of good news in the pipeline.”

Equity mutual funds surge 42% in October
Mumbai: Flows into equity mutual funds in October jumped 42% over the previous month led by continued investor appetite for small-cap schemes. This marks the 32nd straight month of inflows into equity schemes in the wake of the record-breaking stock market rally.

Mirae Asset Mutual Fund launches UPI AutoPay mandate
Mirae Asset Mutual Fund announced the launch of UPI AutoPay Mandate for SIP registrations. The initiative is jointly developed by Mirae Asset Mutual Fund, KFintech and BillDesk to help investors of Mirae Asset Mutual Fund to register SIP mandate using UPI AutoPay feature. It simplifies the overall investment process by reducing the investment time and improving the overall investment experience, said the fund house.

Amfi appoints Venkat Nageswar Chalasani as new chief executive
Industry body Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Wednesday said it has appointed Venkat Nageswar Chalasani, former deputy managing director of State Bank of India, as its new chief executive. This announcement followed the end of NS Venkatesh's tenure, who served two consecutive terms of three years each.

Local funds buying takes AUM Vs FPI ratio to a record
ET Intelligence Group: The ratio of assets under management (AUM) of domestic funds to foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) rose to a record 0.52 in October from 0.47 a year ago amid sustained inflows even as FPIs were in the selling mode.

Large-cap MF inflows turn positive as risk-off mood brings investors

The tide seems to be slowly turning in favour of large cap mutual fund schemes amid high valuations of mid and small cap schemes. The large funds have once again started gaining traction after a series of outflows in the previous few months. According to the data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), the large-cap schemes reported an inflow of Rs 723.8 crore in October 2023 on the back of outflows worth Rs 5,751 crore in the five months to September.

MF industry sees SIP contribution top Rs 1 lakh crore in H1 FY24

Mumbai - The mutual fund (MF) industry has seen sustained inflows through the systematic investment plan or SIP route, with the numbers hitting record highs almost every month.

9 equity mutual funds offer less than 8% SIP returns in three years

Most mutual fund investors are celebrating the handsome returns offered by their equity funds. For example, many mid cap and small cap investors have made over 25% in this year. Even most flexi cap schemes offered more than 15% in 2023. However, some investors were plain unlucky. Data crunching by ETMutualFunds showed that SIP investors in nine equity mutual fund schemes have made less than 8% in a three year horizon.

Minimum investment in HDFC Gold Fund and HDFC Silver ETF Fund of Fund reduced to Rs 10

HDFC Mutual Fund has announced the change in minimum subscription amount for two of its schemes: HDFC Gold Fund and HDFC Silver ETF Fund of Fund.

InCred Holdings secures ₹500 cr equity funding commitment
Mumbai: InCred Holdings Ltd (IHL), the holding company of InCred Financial Services Ltd (IFSL), on Thursday said, it had secured commitments totalling  ₹500 crore in its latest round of equity funding, positioning it to join the ranks of Indian Unicorns after the closure of its Series D fundraise. The equity round garnered interest from various investors, including a global Private Equity Fund, Corporate Treasuries, Family Offices, and UHNIs, per an IHL statement. The equity capital of ₹500 crore will be strategically deployed across InCred’s core business verticals: Consumer Loans, Student Loans, and MSME Lending.

India's 10-year bond yield hits 5-week low tracking oil, US peers
Indian government bond yields settled lower on Wednesday as investors took comfort from easing oil prices and lower U.S. yields.

From Russia with love: Corporate bonds may get Vostro funds to boost trade settlement in rupee
New Delhi: India is considering a plan to allow surpluses in Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) to be invested in corporate bonds in order to give a push to international trade settlement in rupees. Under existing regulations, investment from SRVAs is restricted to government securities and treasury bills.