In a low interest world, it is hard to beat inflation with only fixed income products. Whether you stick to the tried-and-tested real estate, debt, equity, gold, or add REITS and global investments, diversification is key to building a retirement portfolio
Sumeet Sinha, director, global sales operations at Aruba Networks (seen with his family), retains the elements his father used to invest in, but has amped up the equity portion in his portfolio
Image: Hemant Mishra for Forbes India
Until 10 years ago, when Sumeet Sinha’s father retired, about 90 percent of his savings were in fixed deposits and other fixed income products. It is not that he was not a savvy investor—since the early 90s he had been participating in initial public offerings, and would check annual reports and balance sheets and pick up stocks, but the equity portion was not more than 10 percent.
Ten years later, 40-year-old Sinha’s portfolio also comprises similar elements, but the investment style and ratio is vastly different. “He would not invest 50 percent of his savings in equity, he was doing it in a much smaller ratio, with me that ratio is a lot bigger,” says Sinha, director, global sales operations at Aruba Networks, who started investing when he was about 26, and invests both through Systematic Investment Plans (SIP) and lump sums.
(This story appears in the 09 April, 2021 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)