Today, on October 5, Indian gold rates have hiked marginally by Rs. 190/10 grams. In India, 22 carat gold rates are quoted at Rs. 45,680/10 grams and 24 carat gold rates are quoted at Rs. 46,680/10 grams. In most of the Indian cities, gold rates stayed affirmative than yesterday, owing to a positive tone of gold investors globally. The Comex gold future fell by 0.43% but stayed at $1760 showing only a minor drop, while the spot gold prices fell only by 0.71% and were quoted at $1758/oz today till 3.22 PM IST. On the other hand, the US dollar index in the spot market hiked by 0.09% at 93.92 same time today. In India, the Mumbai MCX gold in October future fell by 0.51% than yesterday but quoted at Rs. 46650/10 grams till today 3.34 PM IST.
The data shows that the international gold prices are being able to maintain a decent level and in line with that Indian gold rates are rising. Today, on the spot market, gold prices crossed the $1770 once but fell later. This shows a potential gain of the metal in the upcoming days if the situation stays affirmative for the asset.
Gold rates in different Indian cities are quoted differently, daily. Today’s gold rates in major Indian cities follow:
City
22 carat (INR/10 Grams)
24 carat (INR/10 Grams)
Mumbai
45,680/-
46,680/-
Delhi
45,900/-
50,080/-
Bangalore
43,750/-
47,730/-
Hyderabad
43,750/-
47,730/-
Chennai
44,050/-
48,060/-
Kerala
43,750/-
47,730/-
Kolkata
46,150/-
48,850/-
Indian jewellers have imported a massive amount of gold in September when the international rates were quite subdued. This will pay them now when the prices are rising again ahead of the festive season. India has increased its gold imports in September by 658% than 2020’s lower base.
Now as the gold is glittering again in the global markets and commenting on this, Mike McGlone, Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist told Kitco, “It’s only been about a year since gold’s last peak, and we believe it should be a relatively short matter of time to revisit. Gold has outperformed most major commodities in the past 20 years.” However, he added, “Gold, like treasury prices, has an enduring bull market in its favor, and a correction within that trend improves its relative value. Gold appears too cold approaching the start of 4Q. Risks tilt toward a continuation of September’s stock-market volatility, which should favor gold in 4Q.”
Investing in gold is popularly known as investing in gold jewelleries or gold coins. But some of the investors with better knowledge about the asset markets are realizing the benefits of buying Gold Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) from their regular mutual fund mobile apps. Some fresh and young investors are looking forward to diversifying their portfolios and opting for gold as the best affordable option. They often try to understand how to buy gold ETF, hassle-free, from a regular mobile app. Here is the way how can you invest in gold ETFs regularly, and avoid the worries about gold impurities and storage costs, with easy liquidity.
How can you buy a gold ETF
Investing in a gold ETF is as easy as investing in other company stocks, the procedure is the same as other ETFs. As you buy other ETFs through a mandatory Demat account, you need to have the same to buy gold ETFs. These will also be traded on the BSE or NSE at the current market price of gold. However, the Net Asset Value (NAV) of the ETFs will vary upon the house. The SBI gold ETF price will certainly differ from an Axis gold ETF because of the change in NAV and amount. So according to the company’s ETF costing, you can adjust the numbers of ETFs you are buying. If you have a better budget to invest, you will buy more numbers of ETFs, if you have a crunch in investment amount, you can buy lesser numbers of ETFs. You can start with buying even only one unit ETF to understand the market first. You can enter and exit from the investment any time you wish.
You need to have mobile apps like Groww or Zerodha, etc. along with a Demat account. Log in to your profile there and search gold ETF in the search box. You will be able to see a list of companies that are offering gold ETFs at different prices. For example, you will get SBI gold ETF, Axis gold ETF, ICICI gold ETF, Aditya Birla gold ETF, Kotak Gold ETF, etc. Then select your preferred company fund according to your affordable unit cost or NAV and returns. Tap on the selected fund and you will get the buy option on top. If you want to have a better idea of the fund and want to do some research, you can tap on the ‘fundamentals’ to check about the fund’s performance.
However, to invest in a particular ETF, after clicking on the ‘buy’ option, you need to fill in the details of your preference – like the quantity, and product type. Product type will be of 2 types – like MIS and CNC. For intraday trading, that means you will buy and sell the fund on the same day, you will have to select the MIS option. Otherwise, if you want to keep the gold ETF on hold for longer, then select the CNC option, which is preferred more. You can also hold the gold ETF for few years, for better returns. Then select either the ‘market’ price, which means the gold rate at the current time, or set your price ‘limit’ to buy the ETF. If you select the ‘market’ price then you do not need to put any price, because the app will automatically derive the price from the market. Otherwise set your price ‘limit’ by yourself. in that case, when the market rate will go at your price, you will be able to buy the ETF. You can also set your ‘stop loss’ and ‘set target’ according to your market knowledge, otherwise, you can leave it if you are a new investor. Then select the validity and tap on the ‘buy’ option finally.
After processing check the ‘Execute’ option at the top of your mobile app. There you can see your bought gold ETF details. If you want to see the profit and loss of your gold ETF, go to the portfolio at the bottom of your app. Then under the ‘Position’ option, you can check the daily profit and loss. If you are holding your gold ETF for more than 1 day, then check under the ‘Holding’ option. The gold ETF portfolio will be shown there.
After that, for liquidity, you can exit from the gold ETF at any time. In the same manner, click on your ETF under the ‘Holding’ option. You will find 2 options, – ‘add’ and ‘exit’. Tap on the ‘exit’ option at the bottom to sell your gold ETF. To sell you can again set your target price. Set the exact price you want to sell your gold ETF at, and wait for somebody to buy it. Otherwise, you can also sell the gold ETF at the market price, if the current market rate is better than your purchase rate. Remember one thing carefully, if you have purchased the gold ETF under the MIS option, then you will have to sell it under the MIS option, and if you have purchased it under the CNC option, you will have to do the same at the time of selling.
Before buying or selling gold ETF just check the company AUM. It will help you to get immediate liquidity at any time. The Nippon gold ETF, SBI gold ETF, HDFC gold ETF are the top 3 options preferred by investors because of their higher AUM.
Electronic gold receipts (EGR)
However, SEBI has recently cleared a proposal of setting up a gold exchange where it will be traded in the form of electronic gold receipts (EGR) to have a transparent domestic spot price discovery ecosystem. EGRs will be identified as securities. Ajay Tyagi, Chairman of SEBI said, “EGRs will have the trading, clearing and settlement features akin to any other securities. He added, “The gold exchange, encompassing the entire ecosystem of trading of EGR and physical delivery of gold, is expected to create a vibrant gold ecosystem in India.”
Leading rural insurtech start-up GramCover has raised $7 million through its Series A funding, led by Siana Capital and Inflexor Ventures. Stride Ventures also participated in this round of Series A, the first round of institutional funding led by one or more investors.
Omidyar Network India, Flourish Ventures and Emphasis Ventures (EMVC) have already invested in GramCover. Unitus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor for the funding.
GramCover, a tech-enabled insurance marketplace for rural India, has adopted a unique technology-led distribution and servicing model customised for rural India to minimise the inefficiencies and transaction costs involved in protecting people’s assets and families.
Scale-up plans
With the latest funding, GramCover will strengthen its technology and product offerings to scale up its business and support functions. The start-up will also increase the availability of various insurance products and services on “GramCover Partner” application and expand its point of sale network, tech, sales and operation teams across multiple geographies.
Dinesh Goel, Partner, Siana Capital, said GramCover is well-positioned to continue its high growth trajectory. “Further, the business model helps achieve the twin objectives of profitable growth and providing livelihood risk protection to a large rural population of India,” he said.
Pratip Mazumdar, Partner of Inflexor Ventures, said: “Our investment in GramCover stems from Inflexor’s conviction in backing technology-led enterprises working towards deepening insurance penetration, to create a meaningful impact in a large, under-insured market.”
Launched in 2018 by insuring 1,000 farmers, GramCover has worked with over 1.7 million rural customers providing insurance across products like crop, motor, livestock and health worth ₹110 crore in premiums. The company aims to insure over 10 million farmers in the next two to three years with a premium target of ₹1,000 crore.
GramCover is currently present in Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. It plans to extend its presence across the country further.
Reserve Bank of India, Gangtok had invited request for submission of price quotations for sale of Bank’s car (Hyundai Creta) on July 02, 2021.
In this regard it has been decided to cancel the tender process. A fresh tender will be uploaded shortly. Interested parties may follow up with fresh notification.
General Manager & Officer-in-Charge Reserve Bank of India Gangtok
Chennai: Demand for Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) loans from new borrowers rose 35% on an average in September as more Indians stepped out of lockdown and indulged in revenge purchases.
This surge in new customer acquisition is much higher than the last three months. With the festive season kicking in, lenders expect disbursement to double in the next two months.
ZestMoney’s CEO & co-founder Lizzie Chapman said, “We expect this to be a (festive) dhamaka festive season and the signs are already visible. In September alone, we had 50% more new customers sign up and transact with us.”
There is an increase in interest from retailers wanting to enable BNPL at their stores. BNPL offers at physical stores doubled in September, with new customer applications rising by 10X over the last three months, Chapman said. Besides metro cities, tier-2 and 3 markets have recorded three times more demand compared to metros. “As for consumer demand, we expect TVs and smartphones to be one of the largest categories followed by home appliances, online fashion, home decor etc. Demand for electric vehicles is also high and we are expecting to double our electric two-wheeler business next month,” she said.
Most borrowers come from the age category of 22-36 years.
With a month-on-month customer growth for new loans at a healthy 35%, fintech lender CASHe anticipates the next few months to witness higher demand for products led by the BNPL offering. Its CEO Yogi Sadana said,“We have approved over 40,000 loans in September which has been its best month of the year so far. Around 70% of the demand is currently from metros. However, new customer acquisition from tier-2 & 3 cities is rapidly increasing.”
LenDenClub saw the average ticket size of BNPL loans increase from Rs 9,500 in July to Rs 13,000 in September. Its co-founder and CEO Bhavin Patel said, “We have disbursed about 3.5 lakh loans given till now, of which 80% of loans are completely closed or repaid. We have received over 1.60 lakh applications in September month, of which 18%-20% from new customers, higher august growth 10%-15%.”
Capital Float’s co-founder & MD Gaurav Hinduja said they saw a 30% increase in new customer acquisition in September. “We find the number of new customers signing up for BNPL very encouraging. About 50% of our customers are from non-metro cities,” Hinduja said.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has named 21 people and entities in its first charge-sheet in an alleged bank loan fraud involving Avantha Group promoter Gautam Thapar.
Besides Thapar, the people named include former chief executive of Yes Bank Rana Kapoor, said people with direct knowledge of the matter.
The agency on Monday informed a local court that it has so far unearthed Rs 514 crore of “proceeds of crime” from Rs 2,435 crore of loans taken by Thapar’s group from a consortium of banks, led by State Bank of India. The ED alleged that the funds were spent on purposes other than the ones the loans were sought for and that substantial funds had been stashed abroad.
Names of some employees and associates of the Avantha Group and Yes Bank, and three companies linked to Thapar also figure in the charge-sheeted.
A trunk full of documents, around 3,000 of them, has been submitted by the agency to the court, the people said.
The agency has elaborated upon the alleged modus operandi, role of bank employees and the evidence collected by it during its investigation so far. Appearing on behalf of Thapar, advocate Vijay Aggarwal urged for an early hearing of the case since Thapar’s bail is slated for hearing on October 7.
The court verbally observed that since the charge-sheet was voluminous and would decide the fate of 21 individuals and entities charged by the agency, it court would peruse all the documents before deciding on taking cognisance of the charge-sheet.
The court has fixed the matter for resumed hearing on October 9.
Last week, ET reported about ED’s claim that the alleged bank loan fraud was mutually beneficial for the Avantha Group and Yes Bank.
In its response opposing the bail application of Thapar, the federal agency told a court that proceeds of crime totalling Rs 131 crore had been routed out to companies based in Mauritius.
To buttress its charge that the fraud benefitted Avantha and Yes Bank, the agency had referred to emails dated August 4, 2017 and August 8, 2017, purportedly sent by Thapar to Rana Kapoor, the then managing director and chief executive of Yes Bank. In one of the emails, the agency had alleged, Thapar wrote to Kapoor “hinting that a PE investor has interest in the (Avantha Group) companies and due diligence is ongoing and they will endeavour to provide a safe exit to Yes Bank from the Avantha Group”.
The agency has claimed that a loan transaction between Yes Bank and Oyster Buildwell — a company it said was controlled by Thapar — was a result of “criminal conspiracy hatched by officials of Avantha Group and Yes Bank”.
The ED had arrested Thapar on August 3 on charges of playing a “key role” in laundering more than Rs 500 crore in a bank loan fraud case.
Thapar had denied the allegations, calling himself a “victim” of fraud allegedly played upon him by officials of Yes Bank.
Private lender HDFC Bank on Tuesday said that it has partnered with over 10,000 merchants for its Festive Treats 3.0 campaign, a near 10 fold increase from 2020. Customers can choose from 10,000 offers on cards, loans and easy EMIs.
“As India unlocks, we are also trying to spread a little cheer in the lives of people and help the overall national economic good,” said Arvind Kapil, Group Head – Retail Assets, HDFC Bank. “This is reflected in our range of offers spanning Personal loans, Car loans, two-wheeler loans as well as the Business Loan & working capital loans for really small businesses.”
Some of the key national partners include Apple, Amazon, Shoppers Stop, LG, Samsung, Sony, Titan, Central, Ajio, Reliance Digital, Reliance Trends, Lifestyle among others.
The bank will use its ATM, branch network, partnerships with stores & websites and digital media campaigns to reach its customers.
“Our range of offers on credit cards is not just about coming back with a bang. It is about spurring India’s consumption story,” said Parag Rao, Group Head – Payments, Consumer Finance, Digital Banking, and IT, HDFC Bank. “We are encouraged to do this since about one-third of spends on credit, debit and prepaid cards in India happens on an HDFC Bank card.”
The bank said it has a cash back offer of Rs Rs 6,000 on iPhone 13. It is also offering upto 22.5% CashBack & No Cost EMI on electronics & consumer goods like washing machines and refrigerators.
The bank will offer personal loans starting at 10.25% with instant disbursal in customers account. Its car loans will start at 7.50% with Zero Foreclosure charges.
It is also giving options of funding of up to 100% on two-wheeler loans and 90% funding on tractor loans with zero processing fee.
“This has been one of the most challenging periods for people due to the pandemic. Festive Treats 3.0 is not just about spending for oneself but also about helping others, Festive purchases will benefit many others employed in small businesses and create a chain of recovery across the spectrum,” said Ravi Santhanam, CMO, Head -Corporate Communications, Liability Products & Managed Programs, HDFC Bank.
