SOME MORE ON SIP, STP AND BULK PURCHASE

SOME MORE ON SIP, STP AND BULK PURCHASE

Two year ago I had written an article in Marineinsight.com laying out the comparative advantages of STP Vis-a -vis SIP. I had tried to explain why STP works better for the Marine Professional rather than SIP. The Mutual Fund industry has gone so much overboard in repeating the word SIP that people have come to think of SIP as a product rather than a method of investing in Mutual investing.

However, as long as methodical investing goes Mutual Funds are unparalleled in any country including Philippines, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Hong Kong and even Russia, the only limiting factor being their political conditions. As long as a Marine Professional is investing regularly after selecting the right fund, he can actually fine tune his strategy to get the best out of assets.

I will again attempt to unravel, demystify  and simplify the above three methods.

Bulk Investing: is simple .When you buy for a appreciably large amount like $1000 and above one time thinking that the market conditions are correct in your perspective, it is called bulk investing. This may happen once in a while or irregular intervals.

SIP or Systematic Investment Plan: is an automated system when  an amount determined by you is automatically transferred from your bank account to the Fund that you have selected to invest. In this paperwork is done through the fund house who sends the information for conformation to your bank and the process can take upto one month to start. This more often than not takes place once a month.

STP or Systematic  Transfer Plan: is another method where a fixed sum is shifted or transferred from one fund (you can call it source fund or S-Fund) to another ( call it Destination or D-fund).For our purpose of primary investing this takes place mostly from a debt fund to an equity fund. STP cab any frequency Monthly, weekly and even daily.

Now let me point out a few points regarding inherent advantages of STP:

1.       For Seafarers, the main issue is the irregular availability of funds. Even for the six months of work due to the uncertainty of joining and signing off, he remains uncertain in investing.

Hence allocating funds to SIP becomes difficult because one has to make a large outlay in the NRE account. Instead   s(he) gets inclined to make lump sum investments.

2.       With STP he is secure in the knowledge that if the liquid fund runs out he need not worry as there is no liability. Additionally the funds in the Debt fund which is the S-Fund are for his use whenever S(he) wants.

3.       Cancellation of STP takes 3 minutes online whereas SIP cancellation can take more than 2 months.

4.       With STP, apart from the equity funds even the debt fund ( which is your source fund) is earning and appreciating. If you check immediate past 2 year performance equity and debt funds have performed similarly. This may be an aberration but a fact nonetheless.

5.       With SIP one's money in NRE savings of fixed is almost lying idle and depleting with inflation.

6.       With our kind of salaries the amount that one needs to invest per month , for productive gains, one has to invest a large amount per month.

If you put that in 1 SIP per fund, from my point of view it is as good as bulk purchase.

7.       Now consider a single SIP off₹50,000 split into 5 STPs per week. And you have truly diversified your risk. Plus the amount that was in the debt funds in between these 5 STP dates also continues to appreciate at a higher rate than in a bank account.

Last week's fall of 5% and the NAVs at which the last 2 STPs were booked will prove my point.

8.       With the weekly STPs , one is more in touch with reality and any fall in the market  like the last week's, it will give you opportunity to  put in extra lump sum to extract more out of the situation by switching about 5 to 10% into your equity funds.

9.       A single monthly SIP would have deprived you of the situational opportunity.

10.   Last but not the least when you are on board switching from one fund to another will take much less time than making fresh purchase from your bank account.

A lot of advisors do not go into sufficient depth and explain to the investor that a falling market provides you with an opportunity like a time machine- to go back into time and invest at a level which was much into the past. Hence a person who is earning and earning like the Marine Professional does, can actually go back into time and invest at a level which was when he did not have that money.

SIP is a good strategy for a modest salaried investor who never has a large chunk of money except when he gets a bonus. It’s effect on wealth generation for a seafarer reduces when coupled with the money lying idle in the bank account.

 I cannot but repeat and repeat, that try and automate your method of investing by utilizing the tools. Mutual Funds provide with immense flexibility and convenience. You just have to use the tools to form a long ranging plan and portfolio and then keep investing and increasing that investment amount as you progress through to the Captain or Chief Engineer’s rank. The first step is the most important to take , since I  have found that people drag their feet over selecting their first fund  for years together losing out on opportunity every day.

WHAT AM I DOING IN THIS OVERHEATED MARKET

WHAT AM I DOING IN THIS MARKET

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Today the Nifty touched 10000 mark and promptly came down; The Sensex too has had a brush with the 32000 mark twice before it decided to stay above it for some time. Everyday different companies are touching their 52 week highs; even the duds which you never knew existed are being called chartbusters. It’s a mercy that such thing never happens in music industry.

Those of you who like to follow Economy and Finance through TV channels and various media forms may have heard that the market is in the “Over-heated” range. Knowledgeable people are becoming cautious; some are booking their profits and taking the money off the table.

Every morning, I am being asked the same thing- What Are You Doing in the current market situation ?

The question specially pertains to me as, I am held responsible for initiating over 500 collegues and friends , directly and indirectly planning their Financial future and Independence, over the past 25 years.

The answer however that I give does not satisfy many of the colleagues and they feel that I am hiding something and not giving some kind of a mantra.

What Are You Doing in the current market situation?- They ask!

Nothing –I reply! Absolutely nothing!

As most of my known people are aware – mine is a very unique and not a very enviable or “followable “- position.

I am about to be a 53 male- about to complete 3 years into retirement. I have no salary, income, pension, insurance, Ulip –Nothing. I just have a very primitive version of a health plan and a critical illness plan which would expire in another 10 years. So am I expected to, be doing in the current market situation?

Some people suggest that you could book your profit and wait for a lower level to re-invest.

Some suggest to entirely sell my mutual fund holding as this is the maximum that the market will ever get to.

Some knowledgeable people even suggest going into day trading of shares.

I would be very frank with you; I have always been a passive investor. There was a time when I claimed to be very knowledgeable about different stocks and I dabbled in them on a daily basis. However very soon good sense prevailed and I thought that this was not what I was trained for. My core competence lies somewhere else and I must concentrate on my profession.

 (I always hated professionals discussing stocks instead of their core knowledge. Discussing the Economy in a healthy way is fine, but talking about stock prices from the point of view of the frugal knowledge that they claim to posses, is pathetic).

From there on I started shifting my focus entirely onto Mutual Funds. I understood the dynamics of MF management quite early, and was reasonably happy that the Fund Manager was able to give a double digit- tax free return even in those days of double digit inflation. The engineer’s sense taught me that if I could “confidently” mobilize all my savings in this route- I could have a winner at my hands.

Such was my faith in the market that during the onslaught of 2008- I exposed myself completely into equity funds. My confidence of course came from the fact that I was working and earning.

So I can safely say – that even at that time I was doing nothing and even today I am doing nothing. That time I had the savings from the salary so I was mechanically investing with scant regard to the market situation. Even today I am staying invested with scant regard to the market situation. Yes I need some money for my sustenance, travel bug and other social activities that I am attached with. For that I redeem from my holdings a decent sum that can last me for about 4-6 months. Yes due to the run-up in the market the equity allocation had climbed up by 8-9% which I had shifted back to Debt- Gilt and Liquid schemes, bringing back the allocation to 80:20.

Some analysts may call a 80:20 allocation as too aggressive, but I don’t agree with that. Given my relatively premature retirement age and my spouse being even younger- I need my savings to at least last till the grave.

It is important to realise the fundamentals. We should not invest in shares of different companies or Mutual Funds based on the news that you hear. We should invest on our perception of our country and the faith in our Economy. Not even our perception of the government.

If we have decided to settle in this country, bought homes, property and other fixed assets ; we have done so with a eye fixed on the future of our country( Otherwise why are all our neighbors trying to make a beeline for US and UK?). Having decided (objectively and not just emotionally) to stay in our own country - now it should be the automatic next step to be a partner in its progress and gain out of it. Of course the automatic next step can be by keeping this money in bank deposits where you are taxed on the Interest Income or other Government mandated schemes (most which you are disallowed as NRIs). Another rational and objective choice can be to invest in Equity based instruments like Mutual Funds and actively see how you are performing vis-s-vis the progress of the country.

So don’t check on the Sensex every day. Behave like RIP Van Winkle. As long as you are working and earning – just keep investing the way you have learned. Follow laws of the land by paying taxes where and when required and keeping your documents updated. Don’t try to live in the India of 1990 and expect to have facilities like US in 2017. Today the world is truly getting unified. Most of the rules/laws will become universal in all countries. The FATCA/CRS form is just the beginning.

 

ABOUT MAKING AND MANUFACTURING

ABOUT MAKING AND MANUFACTURING

Ever since the first machine was designed or invented somewhere around 1760, the drudgery of manual labour was reduced greatly. Not only in the industrial sector, part of the developments spilled over into the agricultural or Farm sector as well.
India was largely touched by the Industrial revolution quite late and through the colonial domination.
Though it's been over 250 years , we still considered manual labour superior to that of machine and agriculture superior to factories.Gandhi, Shastri and host of other socialist leaders gave slogans in that direction.
There had been few dissenters like the Great Engineer Vishveshvariah who had clearly trashed Gandhi's policy of Khadi and Gramodyog .
Slow to follow up , we did however shed the agricultural based priorities to catch onto the fruits of industrialization - but not without heading into large scale urban migration .
Now again when we should be moving ahead, we are once again caught in that manufacturing quagmire.We simply don't manufacture enough. It is a general notion that we still mostly export spices and gems and Jewellery, which was effectively the Indian export a millennia ago.
Time and again there are calls of boycotting the Chinese products for various reasons , but not a reason that we manufacture  those items more efficiently or cheaper.
No one bothers to check the fact that most of a exports ad valorem are Petroleum by-products.
No-one bothers to check that most of the products arising out of a Chinese factory are those with minimal tech and profit margins. As for India , so it is for rest of the world, the technology and hence the demands and hence the priority keeps changing.
Let me put it better by way of an example. In 1969 when Apollo was sent to moon the computing that was used in the process was using 128MB. Now 48 years down the line , the cheapest of mobile phone uses 100 times of that.
It may be a popular step to compete with the "assembly line countries" and start manufacturing Laptops,mobile phones and even cameras. But if you can do better than that should you take a regressive step.
Better Than That: What is better than manufacturing the latest expensive gadgets which are popular all over the world?
I will like to answer that question in a different way.
Which is the most expensive Indian company in terms of value or Market Capitalisation ?
Right!  It's TCS or Tata Consultancy Service. And what does it make?
What does Apple make for that matter. Or Microsoft ?
Contrary to popular notion, even for Apple- a constant stream comes from it's software platforms like i-tunes.
Value Chain addition: In the complex economy of today, it is very difficult to say that an entire product is made in any one country. (In fact that was also a premise on  which GST in India was based - when the talks started, but that is a different matter). The metals for a products may be procured from another country annd the unfinished metal for it from yet another one. The plastics may be manufactured in a 2nd country but the resins may come from a 3rd one. The design of the chip maybe done in Hyderbad but the chip is made in Guangzou. The software for it maybe made in California by Green Card holder engineers working for Infosys. So now whose product is it?
This is where the Value Chain addition kicks in. This is also why today we cannot clamour about Swadeshi or Pardesi. The companies have joint holdings and cross holdings across companies and countries. The workers come from one country and work in the third but remit their earnings to the first, which maybe their own motherland, fatherland or simply a tax haven.
Read the following article which is actually written 5 years ago when Apple was still strong on the back of it's products
https://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2011/12/24/china-makes-almost-nothing-out-of-apples-ipads-and-i/#5579f0a960b4

So now we can safely address another question,which is a question in sync with the times! What is it to make and what is it to manufacture. While answering this we may have to junk the classical GUNS V/S BUTTER MODEL which was (and maybe is) taught in schools and colleges.
It is good to come to some form of conclusion in the Socretarean way!

Let's start from the first mechanised product- Textile.
Is the cloth made at the power loom or at the designing table or the design software?
Is the cloth considered made when the garment is made out of it or when the yarn was manufactured out of petrochemicals?
In classical economics a product was considered produced once it reached the market or was even part of the inventory. However it maybe , in today's environment- every part of the process may be claimed by a different company or country.Hence it also obvious that the amount of value added to the product is the real clincher. It is this value added that may- I repeat -May decide a country's export.

For stand alone exports anything from an idea (not Idea) to concept to a drawing can be good enough to earn something.
With this new concept of Value chain addition the classical patriotism theory will also take a beating which has been around since last 250 years.
Just to sum up, even Chanakya had propounded in his ":Arthashastra" to manufacture what was efficient for the state and the society and import what was not economically efficient to grow or manufacture.
So don't jump if I tell you that most of the Chana and Moong which you eat , come from Canada, Australia and Mozambique.

GST- MAGNA CARTA 2.0 OR DEMON 2.0

                                GST- MAGNA CARTA 2.0 OR DEMON 2.0 OR NEW INDIA 2.0

Magna Carta was a document signed in 1215 by King john of England , by way of which he signed away most of his powers and agreed to abide by law. 

So how can we compare the GST regime , which is coming into force from tomorrow, with such an archaic document?
This is rather funny and in good humour that I am trying to compare the two. Because the GST bill has been prepared by the Central excise and Customs department , who are writing away their far reaching powers and agreeing to abide by the new Code.
For more than 11 long years , the officers of the Excise, Vat, Service Tax and other miscellaneous departments have toiled through the archaic laws of the country to simplify and align them for the ease of doing business.
 GST has an immensely far reaching consequences for both the Manufacturer and The Service provider (M&SP) and the Consumer.
For the (M&SP) , it claims to not only reduce the number of taxes that they have to pay , but also the duplicity of taxes that they had to encounter. The business owners are rightly concerned about the number of online forms (called RETURNS) that they will have to fill.

For the consumer or the customer it promises to give him the right product for the intended price; which means that the GST which he will pay will go to the Government. This is unlike the situation now where the Service tax or the Vat is charged to the customer but not deposited with the government.
GST also promises the states of the fair share of their taxes depending on the economic activity that takes place in the respective state. This means that, a state which produces a car will get the proportionate amount of tax , unlike the loss of excise at present , where the tax actually went to the state of sale.

But this everyone knows or have read plenty of times.
What I am looking is entirely a different scenario.
What I see is a unique opportunity in a direction which can be called THE GREAT LEVELLER.
From the midnight of  1st july 2017, all the professionals and experts dealing with Central or State Excise, VAT, Service Tax and other knowledge base- will be challenged to learn and practice something absolutely new.
I agree , the ready-made softwares will make their jobs much easier; but same will apply to any other person who has basic intelligence but did not have any knowledge about all those taxes so far.
In my opinion we are knocking at the doors of an opportunity for all those young Indians who are out of college with miscellaneous degrees and no jobs for various reasons.
Here will be an opportunity for them to start afresh and quickly get their hands on the new tax code or GST code and find a way forward for them.
From 1st July there will be a plethora of Institutes which will teach GST through various softwares. But for once, there will be an opportunity at the end of those short courses.
For once a 20 year old intelligent youngster will have the same knowledge as a 50 year old Tax specialist; at least in theory.
The online procedures aim to seal corruption , which will be good for the new professionals- as no longer the older generation of tax professionals have any physical office to settle the tax matters of their clients. It will be all cut and dry.
There is also a small ... very small window that I see for the unskilled sales force at different small businesses or shops. So far they were paid pittance for their efforts of 8-10 hours. However now that there will be about 3 online return forms to be filled every month - there will be an opportunity for them to train themselves in rudiments of Computers. With this extra qualification, they will be able to double up as the " GST Return Preparers" and be more useful to their employer. In fact 8-10 small businessmen can pool in to share such a GSTRP .
With this hopeful and optimistic view , I call upon all those youngsters who are unemployed or underemployed to put their mind and effort in correct places and benefit out of this opportunity.

Magna Carta, meaning ‘The Great Charter’, is one of the most famous documents in the world. Originally issued by King John of England (r.1199-1216) as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law.

Magna Carta, meaning ‘The Great Charter’, is one of the most famous documents in the world. Originally issued by King John of England (r.1199-1216) as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law.

Magna Carta, meaning ‘The Great Charter’, is one of the most famous documents in the world. Originally issued by King John of England (r.1199-1216) as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law.

Case of a Mutual Fund Advisor/Distributor

                                       Case of  a Mutual Fund Advisor/Distributor (A/D)

Like all financial products, Mutual Funds too have an intermediary who connects an investor to the Asset Management Company by way of different schemes.
Right from the advent of Private Mutual Funds in the early 90's they helped in selection of  funds (which was not a big task those days, as the number of funds were a lot less), filling up the form(s) and doing the leg work. Even though the distributors were not too familiar or educated in Financial Planning , they did a reasonably good job for the money that they were being provided by the AMC as incentive.
The hey days were those of 2.25% entry load and almost 2% exit load, so the distributors were a happy lot with trailing commission of the investments flowing in as long as the investment was there.
This model of commission was in line with that of the LIC agents - whose commissions were intact "zindagi ke saath bhi zindagi ke baad bhi."
Then in the August of 2007, a benevolent SEBI chairman scrapped the Entry load and the MF schemes suddenly became cheaper. Further on the exit load became less and the further squeeze on the commissions.
However the trailing format of the commissions still stays on even though it has come down drastically to about 0.6% for equity and to about 0.12% for debt funds.
But what does TRAILING mean?
It means that if you made a modest investment of Rs.1.0 lac in the year 2000 and it has grown to Rs. 10 lac today- then your distributor will get the appropriate commission for each and every year till date  on not only the original investment but any successive purchases that you had made. This was a price for keeping you invested and I fully support it because most of the investors need that guidance and motivation from the distributor.
1.But what is their relevance today?
2.Do we need them with the Direct Schemes that the  MF companies have launched parallel to each "normal" retail scheme?
3. How safe are these distributors with regards to trusting our money with them?
4.What service are they really providing us with in these times of net transactions?
5. Finally! Can I have a mid way between the Normal Retail Plan and Direct Plan, so that I can pay what is the relevant remuneration for the service?

I feel that I am somewhat qualified to answer this question for two reasons:
1. I had always invested through a MF advisor/distributor for the entire period of my earning and investing life.
2. Though I spread awareness about investment and personal planning , I am not beneficially or gainfully connected with any person or entity who has a business interest in Mutual Funds or any element of Personal Financial Planning.

The Mutual Fund  Distributor: is still very relevant today , especially for a new investor and especially for the Seafarers, but only if he is a certified ADVISOR or a DISTRIBUTOR by the SEBI. He should also have a AMFI certification and his "own" ARN NO. Some distributors act as "sub brokers" to the main distributor on some commission sharing basis. These should be avoided as they are not qualified or experienced enough to guide an investor.
I feel that when one starts investing by way of Mutual Fund , one needs to learn a lot of nitty gritty which otherwise he may learn at his own cost...and what is more... an enormous opportunity cost.
It simply isn't easy to select a good fund with LOOOONG term view. A good advisor/distributor can help you with that.
There are over 1800 mutual Fund schemes to select from 48 AMCs. For a direct and that too a first time investor this can be a mammoth and a daunting task.
Hence starting off with a  A/D is a good and certainly recommended idea. Yes there comes a time after 3-4 years , in which if you have taken active interest and your portfolio has satisfactorily progressed- then you may consider going Direct.
However, my experience with fellow investors is that once they start getting good returns from their MF investments and good advice from the A/D , they prefer to stick with him , as the feel that a small timely advice has saved them lacs and even a crore at times.
A question you may ask here- How do you know if my distributor of Advisor is genuine or not; or if he is acting in my interest.
Answer: Check your portfolio. If your A/D has ever enticed you to invest in a Closed ended Fund, NFO at the peak of a bull run (because such funds never come in the down turn times). Further on if your share in such funds is actually quite high... then you have all the reason of knowing that the scheme was sold to you for his 4% upfront commission and even attractive trails.
{However you can also kick yourself for not reading my e-book available for free from marineinsight.com :)}.
Answering the Third question is much easier. A Mutual Fund scheme is a contract between you and the MF AMC. The A/D is just a conduit to have connected you to the right scheme or not. He will fill your forms, get your KYC done and kick-start your investment. If you have issued a cheque from your designated account in favor of the MF scheme- even a fly cannot hurt your investments- you are 100% safe.
Mutual Funds are so heavily regulated and hence safe that  even you will not be able to invest from an account which is not connected with that particular Portfolio.

Fourth Question is about their service which they (A/D) provide outside of what we can get on the net.
As you have seen quite often on the net, the amount of information is mind boggling. If Financial Management is not your profession , chances are that you will never get the info which is relevant to you.
An A/D helps you with the precise info and services that you may need.
There is also an element of hidden knowledge. The A/D keep meeting with the Fund Managers of most of the AMCs at various seminars arranged for them for their education enhancement. At these seminars the Fund Managers and even the CIOs/MDs of the AMC discuss long term views of their funds. In addition the A/D gets personal messages and alerts in case government changes or is about to change a policy. This information can be made available to you in good time to benefit.
The final question being if you can find a mid way between going for Retail Plan and paying commission or losing out by going for direct plans.
Yes there can be a mid way- Ask your distributor to go for a Direct plan and set up a commission model with him. Since he gets only 0.60% as trailing commission (that is if your investments continue for the entire year), you can set up a different model which can be beneficial to you and him. I am sure with the great ingenuity that the Indians are blessed with, you will be able to find a good middle road.

I do not think any more queries would remain after this article.
In case you have then post a query here or send me an email on kaushik.the.idiot@gmail.com .

 

Circle is About To Complete

Because of my penchant for Economics and Finance , very often amongst my friends and known circle I am mistaken to be a materialistic and money minded person.
Whereas nothing can be farther from truth. And this I can say with absolute certainty because I have been in touch with my self for most part of my life. I have never wandered very far away from my inner self and have always striven to complete that circle of life which involves everyone and everything.
The name of this blog "holistic" , is an indication of my journey to try to complete the circle of my life by connecting various dots representing divergent aspects of human life...The Noble Eight Fold Path.
For me  money simply represents a fulfillment of today's needs and a modest security of future. Beyond this I always believed in putting this money to some use towards those people who were not only needy but also deserving. Otherwise who doesn't need money today.
However this charity part , I was able to realize quite late in life since I never had time or maybe  the direction.
Vipassna meditation helped me take this into different walks of life.
In my objective of guiding my colleagues was a necessary urge to help them plan a definitive life and retirement. Also a hidden desire was that once most of them had been put on that path I would introduce them to the virtue of charity and paying it forward.
Then I came across this association for Seafarers in Dehradun called DSWA. It was formed by a set of very young officers and they had succeeded where efforts by our seniors and ourselves had failed.
The acronym DSWA stands predictably for Dehradun Seafarers Welfare Association.
However what the association has been working for past 2.5 years is for the welfare of the society; giving back part of their very hard earned money to those whom they don't even know.
This was a compassion that I wished to impart to my younger colleagues, but it was already there.
Bright young people spending their quality time in orphanages, even celebrating their birthdays with those who don't even know their own birthdays.
Recently a Trust working with affected children and ladies ran out of money and gave a SOS call.
The members of DSWA immediately responded and in a span of 48 hours collected a sum which is a dream of most of NGOs.
The entire feeling of seeing humanity in the hearts of those who are so away from humans for most part of their lives, is so very touching.Probably the physical distance away from family makes them so sensitive.
There is huge personal satisfaction for me too, in knowing that my objective is almost over and THE CIRCLE IS ABOUT TO COMPLETE.

With Gratitude and Compassion to all my Colleagues

With Gratitude and Compassion to all my Colleagues at Sea

Exactly 30 years and a few weeks ago I had entered the hallowed portals of Shipping.
I was overawed by the traditions and beliefs that were passed down to us and were repeated at the cost of insanity and lack of logic...but we accepted.
As through a lot of mindless beliefs and traditions I also saw through the apparent lack of social security for the average sailor, despite being what looked like uniformed services and the discipline attached.
The Indian companies did have a defined system of Retiral benefits, but such was not the case with the Foreign entities. It was a "Soldier of Fortune" or hire and fire concept there- more of firing of course.
At the outset I understood that I had to find my own way out or "Retirement Nirvana" for myself, could not depend upon the shore management of the big and rich companies , however many slogans of loyalty they shouted.
Through a constant reading of books (mainly) by A.N.Shanbhag and International Retirement funds, I tried to find some easy and consistent way.
Even before my promotion to Chief Engineer , I had got almost 75 Officers and crew to open their PPF accounts which guaranteed 12% interest p.a. tax free.
Coinciding with my promotion in 1995 , the Indian Mutual Fund industry which was shackled by UTI till then- was opened up to private players.
Next 3,4 years were spent simply finding out how, where, which to invest in.
Till then. the desire  and drive was also not so great as the NRNR deposits gave almost 18% which compounded to 20% for a 3 year period.
By 2002 I was finished with the discovery and my basic tenets of investing were in place. Most of these tenets were of psychological nature.
I had understood that What was good for me is quite different from WHAT I WANT.
As I was investing myself , I was also introducing my colleagues to the Mutual Funds- who were not very keen on my theme.
However by 2005 I decided that I will help at least 500 of my colleagues to not just invest but plan their future in a systematic way .
The journey was very slow and painful. But I was patient for a change.
In 2014 I myself said goodbye to my beloved Sea and hence to a steady income stream. By then I had barely helped 175 people, to form their portfolio.
In 2015 I published my first e- book with the help of marineinsight.com titled- "Financial Planning for Seafarers".
The book was priced very cheap ( at about Rs.150 or $2.25) , still not people were able to buy because of payment platform issues. So the publisher consented to my request to make it free.
Today I'm happily told by a lot of colleagues returning from sea- that the book was there on all the Desktops and Laptops of the ship. Nothing could make me happier- in a world where everyone talks of piracy .

Then Dehradun Seafarer Welfare association (DSWA) roped me in and we had 2 seminars within a span of 5 months.These were attended by over 175 officers and their wives.
From here the movement of Seafarer's Financial Planning took a whole new turn.
Everyone was enthusiastic and livid. Even the young cadets were talking in terms of Equity exposure and STPs. My target figure of helping 500 Seafarers has long been crossed.
Now something even more phenomenal is happening.
Each one of these young officers have turned advisors to their ship-mates.
Captains have their new role cut out- as a financial guardian.
A young Captain who teaches part time in a college- says that he regularly teaches youngsters about finance during his regular classes.
I get about 5-6 calls a day and equal no. of emails asking me to help them fine tune their portfolios.
Last 2 years have been very important in the life of Mutual Funds when the retail small investor has helped the industry surge ahead of other Financial entities like LIC and other Insurance companies.
Somewhere in all this the seafarers also have their contribution. They do not even know that they are directly helping the country and helping themselves in return.
I am very happy for whatever is happening around me now.
No Sailor will be cheated by LIC and other insurance companies into buying expensive ULIPS.
Everyone will be adequately covered by Term Plans and Health Insurances.
All these gentlemen will slowly build wealth with aim and option to retire early.
And wherever I am then, I will always be thankful to them for having their faith in me and helping me to help them.
I hope and wish them success in their lives...
... their lives which are tough because of the nature of duty
... their lives which are tough because of being away from their loved ones
...their lives which are tough because of missing the birth, the marriages and the deaths of their loved ones
... their lives which are threatened by all the entropy and disorder in the world
... their lives where time is not counted in hours and minutes but in the number of stamped pages on their CDC.
May God bless my Sailors and their families.