I believe debt funds can play an important role in an investment portfolio. I just don’t know what and how. That’s where I reached out to Akhil Mittal, Senior Fund Manager – Fixed Income with Tata Mutual Fund. He is the expert and he was kind enough to share his views and help me learn more about debt funds.
Just to let you know, Akhil manages the following debt fund schemes at Tata MF.
- Tata Dynamic Bond Fund
- Tata Short Term Bond Fund
- Tata Income Fund
- Tata Income plus Fund
- Tata Gilt Securities Fund
- Tata Gilt Short Maturity Fund
- Tata Gilt Mod Term Fund
- Tata Floater Fund
He also manages debt portion of some hybrid funds (Tata Balanced Fund, Tata Young Citizens Fund, Tata Regular Savings Equity Fund, Tata Retirement Saving Fund – Moderate & Conservative Options, Tata MIP Plus Fund, Tata Young Citizens Fund and a few FMP’s for Tata Mutual Fund.
Here we go.
VK: Hi Akhil, this is going to be unlike any other conversation that you might have had before.
You are a debt fund manager, the specialist. I come to you as a layman to understand debt funds and how can I use them best. I have questions, which I want to ask you and get clarity about investing in debt funds. Can I?
AM: Sure, please go ahead.
VK: OK. Here’s the first and the obvious one. What role can a debt fund play in my portfolio, any investor’s portfolio?