The Pros And Cons Of Investment With Banks And Financial Institutions
Almost everyone wants to retire young and rich. That’s why most people want to start investing so that they get a high return on the money that they have. This lets the money to continue to flow in. You can choose banks or financial institutions for this purpose. Here are some of the pros and cons of investing in conventional methods like Bank fixed deposits, versus financial institute mutual funds.
Fixed Deposits
Fixed deposit is an investment plan where you invest a sum of money in a bank for a set period (tenure) with a specific rate of interest. This is one of the most common investment approaches with banks.
Pros:
Low risk
The safest investment with a bank is a fixed deposit. It gives steady growth and provides maximum security to your principal amount.
Assurance
When you open a fixed deposit, the interest rate is predetermined and remains the same throughout the term. This means that the growth of your principal isn’t subject to any other influencing factors.
Tax benefits
You can get tax benefits when you start a fixed deposit. Your taxable amount will be deducted according to the deposit you’ve made.
Cons:
Lower earnings
When compared to other investment plans, these have a very low rate of return. Although it’s risk-free, the earnings are mediocre at best.
The effect of inflation
When compared to inflation, FDs don’t offer returns good enough to beat the inflation. They’re just a decent investment that offers security at most.
Taxable
In spite of having tax benefits, FDs don’t entirely save tax. The returns you get after maturity are taxable. This means you won’t get the full benefit of your investment. That’s a major drawback.
Low liquidity
FDs come with a lock-in period. This takes away flexibility in your investments.
A premature withdrawal has two side effects. First, you’ll be charged a fee for pre-closure. Second, the interest rate reduces. Both are losses that should be avoided.
Mutual Funds
Stock or equity is the ownership of shares in a company or business.
Pros :
Highest returns
From all investments option, equity/stocks are the best when it comes to returns. If invested properly, the average returns ranges from 12-15%. Some good investors can even reach numbers of up to 20%.
Liquidity
Another advantage with stock investment is that you can withdraw your money anytime you want.
This flexibility works better in the long run since it lets you keep control of your money.
Tax-free Dividend
Many companies give regular dividends on stocks. That’s a great way to generate an alternate income. The best part is that is that it’s not taxable.
Defeat Inflation
With returns being high, stocks are a great option to beat inflation significantly.
Cons:
Highest Risk
Equity is the least secure investment you can make. With some strategic planning and proper management, this can be avoided to an extent.
Reallocation
Equity funds don’t perform all that well when you leave them to mature like FDs and PFs. They need to be monitored regularly.
According to market fluctuation, certain funds might not perform well. In those times, you should reallocate these funds to a more profitable organisation. This isn’t easy and needs you to monitor the market regularly.
Whether you’re investing with banks or financial institution, both have their own merits and demerits. You should take a call based on your current status and financial goals that you’ve set.
