This Dhanteras, ring in a new tradition. Instead of buying physical jewellery, look at other gold investment options.

For the uninitiated, Dhatenras is the first day that marks the festival of Diwali in India, which will be celebrated on November 5 this year. One of the major observances on Dhanteras is purchase of precious metals like gold.

In the good old days, you or your parents may have bought gold ornaments or silver utensils, as a significance of ‘Dhan’ meaning wealth, on the occasion of Dhanteras. But this is a New India. Now, it’s your time to invest in a smart and secure way. Let us look at some interesting options.

Gold funds, ETFs

On Monday, November 05, 2018, stock exchanges NSE & BSE are conducting an extended live session for trading in Gold ETF securities and Sovereign Gold Bonds. Beyond the normal working time, the extended session will start from 16:30 hrs and close at 19:00 hrs. There will be no post-closing session once extended market is closed. All pending Gold ETF securities and Sovereign Gold Bonds orders in NSE/ BSE will automatically be carried forward to the extended trading session and will be available for cancellation from 1625 hrs to 1630 hrs.

Benefits of investing in Gold ETF: 1. Investments in SIP format 2. Buy and Sell through demat A/c. 3. No risk of impurity or theft 4. No Wealth tax / Sales tax / STT

Benefits of investing in Gold Fund: 1. Convenient to Transact 2. No Storage Requirement 3. No Security Risk 4. No Making Charges 5. Easy Liquidity

The list of gold ETF securities available for trading on Dhanteras include Axis Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (AXISGOLD), Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (BSLGOLDETF), Canara Robeco Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (CRMFGETF), HDFC Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (HDFCMFGETF), ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (ICICIGOLD), IDBI Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (IDBIGOLD), Invesco Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (IVZINGOLD), Kotak Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (KOTAKGOLD), Quantum Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (QGOLDHALF), Reliance Nippon Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (GOLDBEES), SBI Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (SBIGETS), UTI Mutual Fund – Gold ETF (GOLDSHARE).

Gold bonds

As mentioned above, you can also trade in gold bonds issued by the government. Sovereign Gold Bond or SGB has made investing in gold much easier and convenient now. With the Government of India’s Sovereign Gold Bonds Scheme, you can earn an assured interest rate of 2.5%, eliminate risk and cost of storage.

Benefits of investing in SGB: 1. Attractive Interest with asset appreciation opportunity 2. Redemption is linked to Gold Price 3. Elimination of risk and cost of storage 4. Exempt from Capital gains tax, if held till maturity.

The list of Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) securities for trading include Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.50% NOV 2024 Tr-VI, Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.50% MAR 2025 Tr-VII, Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.75% AUG 2024 Tr-IV, Sovereign Gold Bonds- 2.50% JUL 2025 Sr-II 2017-18, Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.75% NOV 2023 Tr-I, Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.50% MAY 2025 Sr-I 2017-18, Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.75% MAR 2024 Tr-III,
Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.75% FEB 2024 Tr-II, and Sovereign Gold Bonds 2.75% SEP 2024 Tr-V.

Gold at Re. 1

There are some mobile apps that have exciting offers on gold purchase. For instance, PhonePe had launched Gold Savings on the platform last year to enable customers to buy certified 24 Karat (K) Gold at live, competitive and transparent prices on the app. With the festive season around the corner, PhonePe is giving exclusive offers for customers where they can get up to Rs 6,000 cash back on gold purchases.

Gold purchased by customers on the app is stored in a 100% insured and free locker. As a special offer, customers can also avail flat 100% cash back on gold deliveries during Dhanteras. The offer will be valid until 5 November 2018.

PhonePe was the first payments app to offer a Gold marketplace to its customers. It has partnered with both SafeGold and MMTC-PAMP India’s accredited gold refineries. Customers can monitor live Gold prices to make purchases at transparent prices from the provider of their choice at transparent and competitive prices.

Paytm had launched it’s gold savings scheme in April 2017. The company says people buy Paytm Gold worth up to Rs 500 at regular intervals. Called gold gifting, customers can send 24K 999.9 Purity Gold to each other instantly. In its Gold Saving scheme, customer’s gold is stored in MMTC PAMP’s secure & 100% insured lockers for free and they can get delivery of this gold at anytime. This would eliminate additional fees associated with offline gold purchase like making & locker charges, while offering customers access to trusted and affordable gold savings for the long-term.

Kumar Shankar Roy

Kumar Shankar Roy is contributing editor with RupeeIQ. Kumar is a financial journalist, with a functional experience of 15 years. He tracks mutual funds, insurance, pension, PMS, fixed income/debt and alternative investments markets closely. He has worked for The Times of India, The Hindu Business Line, Deccan Chronicle Group, DNA, and Value Research, among others, across different cities in India. He is deeply interested in marrying data insights with actionable opinion. He can be contacted at [email protected].

View all posts