In the wake of growing financialisation of savings, widespread trend of financial crimes may dent the credibility of equity market among investors, believes Saurabh Mukherjea, Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Marcellus Investment Managers.
"Those of us managing Portfolio Management Services or mutual funds are being impersonated. Large sums of money are being fraudulently collected in our names, and the culprits are disappearing with it. If this continues, it could severely damage the credibility of the listed markets," Mukherjea said at SEBI's SAMVAD Symposium.
Highlighting the grave risks arising from these financial crimes, which are currently operating on a significant scale, Mukherjea stated an even broader issue--"Indians want to invest, but the financial system isn’t providing enough accessible products, leading some to fall victim to scams."
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Taking the issue further, Mukherjea connected it with the problem of retirement planning for a significant portion of India's population. "With a population of 1.5 billion, straightforward math shows that to retire comfortably in India, the middle class needs a corpus of about Rs 10 crores. However, I doubt even 10 percent of the population nearing retirement in the next decade will achieve this target. This is a serious issue," he stated.
Noting the availability of multiple savings and investment options that Indians use for their retirement planning are often taxed, Mukhrejea called for the introduction of a unified retirement package which the government can exempt from taxation.
"What we need is a unified retirement package—a single product that consolidates mutual funds, insurance policies, and equities. It could transform physical wealth into financial wealth, improving liquidity and uplifting the financial ecosystem," he said.
Also noting the love Indian have for physical assets that are often low-return yielding, he suggested innovations that could these physical assets into democratised, tradable asset classes.
"By creating an ecosystem where real estate, gold, and other physical assets become liquid and accessible, we can integrate them into broader financial markets. Such innovations could drive liquidity, make investments more inclusive, and open opportunities in startups, private equity, and real estate," he added.
Concluding his arguments, Mukherjea said that addressing financial crime, encouraging financial investments over physical assets, and creating comprehensive retirement solutions can ensure better returns for savers and a stronger financial system in India in the years ahead.
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