With the RBI keeping the repo rate unchanged at 5.25% and the benchmark 10-year G-Sec yield hovering around 6.75%, investors still have an opportunity to lock in attractive fixed-income yields, even though the biggest gains from the recent rate-cut cycle may be behind us.For investors with a three-year horizon, the focus now shifts from chasing capital gains to earning steady carry while managing credit, liquidity and reinvestment risks.So, how should an investor deploy ₹1 crore in bonds today?
Vineet Agarwal, Co-founder, Jiraaf, suggests a diversified and staggered approach, with G-Secs and SDLs forming the safety core, AAA corporate bonds adding yield, selective credit opportunities providing incremental returns, and T-bills or money-market instruments offering liquidity.He also recommends laddering maturities across one, two and three years rather than putting the entire corpus into a single maturity.In an interaction with Kshitij Anand of ETMarkets, Agarwal explains how investors can construct a ₹1 crore fixed-income portfolio, whether they should lock in yields now or wait for higher rates, and why selective credit exposure could enhance returns without taking excessive risk.
Edited Excerpts –Q) What is your take on the MPC policy meeting outcome?
