The smart money women

With the economy looking up again, financial consultants are rejigging their avatar to demystify smart investments, using easy Reels, videos and a smile that says however tricky it sounds, 'you got this'

It was at a dinner-table party during the Coronavirus-induced lockdown with her ‘well settled’ and accomplished girlfriends that Sayali Rai realised that most women were not in control of their own finances. “There was a lawyer, surgeon, head of an advertising agency—and in every case, their finances were handled by either their fathers, husbands or father-in-laws. That didn’t go down well with me,” says Rai. In response, she got in touch with her childhood friend, Niyati Thaker, and started FinCocktail in August 2020. While Rai has a BSc in finance from the Stern School of Business in New York, and an MBA in finance from Babson College and has also worked with Citibank as an investment banker, Thaker is a graduate of Kingston University in London and has completed her three levels of CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and London, and was previously employed with ASK Wealth Advisors. So, when they give you advice on how to embrace your personal finance, you take it seriously. “The aim is to make finance less complicated. We are focused on both content creation and education. The end goal is to make the person capable of making their own financial decisions. This is imperative, as right now, India is primed for investment,” says Rai. 

The last few months have experienced an economic turnaround. Despite  the COVID-19 scare, stock markets have been on an upward trend, after a major slump last year. On September 24, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex touched 60,000 points—a new high and yet another exhilarating moment for the Indian stock markets. In May, India’s $2.9 trillion stock market has been buoyed in part by resilient demand from international investors, who’ve purchased a net $34.9 billion of shares over the past year. Indian companies have taken advantage of this rise and raised about $4 billion via public offerings since the start of the year, on track for the busiest first-half since 2017, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Sunil Khaitan, India head of global capital markets at Bank of America, was quoted as saying that he expects Indian IPO volumes to more than double in 2021 from the previous year. 

Anushka Rathod

It is then clear—if you have any kind of money coming in—be it a modest salary or a hefty paycheck, you should be investing. And thanks to portals like FinCocktail, it’s a less daunting task. Rai and Thaker’s popular videos include ‘gold myths busted’, ‘is my mutual fund doing well’ and ‘which mutual fund is right for you—debt or equity’, and have around 1,37,000 followers on Instagram. “Investing is literally the only way that you can diversify what you have, or grow your wealth. Now is the best time to start. Start by educating yourself a bit, so you know what you need to go with. Before direct stock trading, go with SIPs (Systematic Investment Plan), or mutual funds. A small investment every month is perfectly fine to start with,” says Thaker. The two 30-year-olds, who are based out of Mumbai, have just launched a YouTube channel, and want to eventually create a legitimate education initiative around financial literacy. 

For Surat-resident Anushka Rathod, who used to work with a mutual funds company, making Reels on finance started when the MBA course she was pursuing halted due to the lockdown. She is not in the midst of completing the Chartered Finance Analyst levels and making content for Instagram on ‘pay zero tax on stock gains’, and ‘IPO means paisa banega?’, and has 2,78,000 followers. She started taking it seriously after the first stock market crash, when people started panicking. “I thought that was a good time as the market had corrected itself, so I wanted to help people understand that. I also had time on my hands, so I started following many companies, and businesses. I love tracking their strategy—and those define stocks in many ways. I began by making videos on prominent companies like Reliance,” says the 23-year-old. She realised that there were a bunch of people who wanted this information, and didn’t know who to ask—they needed tips on investing, and going to the good old family CA just didn’t cut it anymore. “I focus on mutual fund related content, tax saving and insurance. These areas throw up the maximum questions and comments. A lot of people have experienced FOMO (fear of missing out), because they have seen their friends double their savings, so now everyone wants in!”

Ankita Narsey

FinCocktail and Rathod aren’t alone. CA Rachna Ranade, who works out of Pune, has 3.08 million subscribers, and makes videos on subjects like “5 things to consider before buying a bond”, and Swati Kumari, who runs B Wealthy, which has 4,18,000 followers,  makes videos likes “simple ways to become rich” and “best options for short-term investments”.  

There are also platforms like Miss Piggy Banks, that offers explainers and brings together financial experts to advise users. Ankita Narsey, .. who has an MBA degree in finance and is a mutual funds expert, is the financial advisor for the portal. She believes that traditionally women don’t take an active interest in finances while growing up, but the past year has changed that.  “It’s never too late to start, provided you have your goals in mind. 

The stock market boom has got people interested, but when someone says that this is the only reason they are investing, I question them on the purpose of investing—it’s not just about investing for a boom, but to invest for the future. It’s as easy as concentrating on monthly savings, SIPs, and investing in an equity mutual fund.” 

All the ladies have one thing in common—they want the aam junta to take control of their money, and everyone should know that it’s easy to do so. As Rai says, “Financial health is a lot like physical health. The more you work out, the better it gets, and the more you see it paying off, the more committed you become. So, start now.”

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