The Economic Times

HDFC Bank introduced two new savings accounts for specific customer groups. The Special Senior Citizen Savings Account offers security and doorstep banking services. Women can avail the SavingsMax Account with lifestyle and health benefits.

PhonePe Mutual Funds onboarded over 500,000 unique investors into its Daily SIP product. Nearly seventy-seven percent of these customers came from tier-two and tier-three cities. Daily SIP transactions increased nearly five-fold between January and June 2026. Younger investors aged eighteen to twenty-nine formed fifty-eight percent of the investor base. This feature allows small, regular contributions, aligning with daily cash flows.

Taxpayers who filed their income tax returns by the July 31 deadline are now awaiting refunds. The Income Tax Department processes refunds after successful e-verification of the filed returns.

Surrender and withdrawal benefits paid by life insurers have increased significantly. These benefits now exceed maturity benefits paid by the life insurance sector. Policy surrenders are influenced by various factors, including product suitability and affordability. The insurance regulator monitors these trends and takes necessary supervisory measures. IRDAI has established a framework to safeguard policyholders' interests and ensure fair surrender benefits.

Franklin Templeton India has launched its new open-ended short term debt fund. The Franklin India Short Term Fund will open for subscription on August 5. This new fund aims to invest in high-quality debt instruments and government securities. It will maintain a portfolio Macaulay duration between one and three years. The fund seeks to provide investors with income potential and prudent risk management.

Eight international equity mutual funds posted double-digit losses in July, led by Nippon India Taiwan Equity Fund. Experts attribute the decline to a correction in global technology and AI stocks.

Service centres cannot evade responsibility for accidents during vehicle pick-up and drop-off. A signed waiver does not absolve them of negligence or deficient service. Insurance companies may still cover claims, then recover costs from the negligent party. Dealers face direct liability, while manufacturers' responsibility is less automatic. Damage within service centre premises shifts significant legal burden to the centre.

Portfolio reviews every six to 12 months are generally sufficient for long-term investors, according to Prableen Bajpai of FinFix Research and Analytics. She advises rebalancing only when asset allocation deviates meaningfully, financial goals approach, or major life events warrant a review.

Rising inflation and increased credit demand are pushing banks towards higher fixed deposit rates. Banks are also facing competition from small savings schemes and government securities. Deposit growth has slowed while credit demand has climbed significantly in recent months. This widening gap may compel banks to attract more deposits through better rates. Banks may revise fixed deposit rates after any Reserve Bank of India policy changes.

Baroda BNP Paribas Aqua Fund of Fund is once again open to fresh subscriptions after a brief pause. Following regulatory nods, the fund aims to efficiently handle overseas investment limits. Investors should avoid market timing; instead, utilizing SIPs or STPs for cost averaging is encouraged. For those seeking global exposure, consider alternatives like GIFT City products or global ETFs.

Gold price today: Gold prices remained steady on Monday, August 3, 2026, across major Indian jewelry brands. The India Bullion and Jewellers Association provided indicative rates for various gold purities. These rates may fluctuate based on location and taxes.

HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank have raised FCNR(B) deposit rates by twenty-five basis points. This increase applies to select US dollar FCNR(B) deposit tenures, effective August 2026. The government will bear hedging costs on three to five-year FCNR(B) deposits until September 2026.

Are housing societies allowed to impose user charges for facilities like gyms or swimming pools separately from maintenance? Know what the law says. The law says the Apartment Owners Association cannot impose arbitrary, retrospective or discriminatory charges that effectively deny equal access to common amenities.

New Reserve Bank of India rules will change bank deposit interest rate disclosures starting October 2026. Banks will gain flexibility in setting interest rates for bulk deposits of three crore rupees and above. These institutions must now publish bulk deposit rates on their websites daily by ten AM.

Benchmark indices like Sensex and Nifty 50 showed negative returns over two years. However, select midcap, smallcap, and multicap funds delivered double-digit gains. These funds benefited from active stock selection and exposure to different market segments. Experts advise a balanced approach, combining index and actively managed funds. Investors should focus on asset allocation and gradual investments through SIPs.

Kids years apart can mean juggling childcare and college costs at the same time, often delaying retirement.

Every SSE listing goes through months of due diligence, financial and social audits.

Order books, exports and government spending driving the sector, but valuations are no longer cheap.

REIT mutual funds just fixed the tax drag that kept sharp investors on the sidelines, along with illiquidity and concentration risk.

A guide to the objective, strategy, risk band and red flags that separate a good SIF from a risky bet.

Some carmakers sell vehicles without a spare wheel, offering just a puncture repair kit instead. Nobody proposes a register of the salesmen who sold these cars because we know the choice was made above their level. The agent sitting across from an insurance buyer is in the same position, as hes not the author of the incentive he answers to but merely its executor.

Gifting and charity, in cash and kind, during ones lifetime offers the scope for creating shared experiences of celebration, travel, entertainment and eating out together, for both generations. The caveat, of course, is the inability and perhaps unwillingness of seniors to make spending decisions.

Heres our TrendMap, your quick guide to the performance of different investment segments. No single segment always leads. In this edition, we present a 10-year equity performance tracker, ranking annual returns across market-cap segments. Investors risk appetite has turned more selective in 2026 so far. By Sameer Bhardwaj.

Oil prices saw volatility last week but are set for significant monthly gains. Escalating United States-Iran tensions and Houthi attacks are impacting global energy markets. Saudi Arabia is forming an alliance to protect Red Sea navigation from militant blockades. Concerns also persist regarding supply disruptions in the Black Sea region. Energy markets are reacting to geopolitical events and drawing down United States stockpiles.

Bala eyed a Rs.1,500 online shopping cart with a tech organiser and gel pens. But with a Rs.2,500 monthly allowance, he realised buying both meant giving up his Friday pizza. He kept only the gel pens, saved Rs.1,000, and learned that budgeting is about making smart choices. Good money management starts with knowing where your money goes.

Builder's hired firm wanted to pay 56 tenants additional Rs 8 crore to vacate land; Tax Dept sent notice citing this payment as contingent liability; ITAT Mumbai cancels tax notice and rejects tax dept's contention. Know the full details of what happened in this case.

With over a decade of experience in equity research, portfolio management and fund management, Union Mutual Fund's fund manager shares his career journey, investment philosophy and the principles that guide his approach to creating long-term wealth for investors.

Edelweiss Mutual Fund is launching India's first REITs-oriented index fund, the Edelweiss Nifty REITs & Realty Index Fund, offering investors diversified exposure to listed REITs and real estate companies through a single passive fund. The NFO opens on August 5 and closes on August 19, with the fund aiming to provide tax-efficient access to the listed real estate ecosystem.

Seven mutual fund NFOs from Kotak, Motilal Oswal, AlphaGrep, JioBlackRock, Edelweiss and Franklin India will open for subscription this week. The offers span index funds, ETFs, a fund of funds and a short-duration debt scheme, with minimum investments ranging from Rs 10 to Rs 5,000.

Equity mutual funds delivered gains up to six percent in the last week of July. Top performers included technology and transportation sector funds which saw significant returns. SBI Technology Opp Fund and Aditya Birla SL Digital India Fund led the gains. ICICI Pru Transportation and Logistics Fund also performed well during this period. Several other tech and logistics funds also registered positive returns.

Lady got tax notice after selling land for Rs 92 lakh and reporting Rs 22.94 lakh LTCG in ITR; Know how Section 55A(a) helped her win case in Gujarat HC after 9 years fight. Read the article to know the details.

Builder delayed villa's construction by 4 years, thus tax dept denied Section 54F tax exemption to homebuyer; Telangana HC says homebuyer can't be penalised for builder's fault and gives him 54F tax exemption. Know how homebuyer won Section 54F tax exemption case in Telangana High Court.

Homebuyers lost access to his parking spot after neighbour parked his 2nd car there; Maharashtra co-op appellate court dismissed homebuyers' plea on this ground. The court held that a parking allotment made by a housing society to the original owner does not automatically pass to the 2nd purchaser of the flat. Know more.

For theft of mangalsutra, State Bank of India (SBI) passbook and cash in Rajdhani 3AC coach, North Railways ordered to pay Rs 80,000 compensation to husband and wife duo; Know why. This article has the details.

The top four small-cap mutual funds have delivered over 20% CAGR since their inception. Here's a detailed look at their AUM, inception dates, and performance. (Source: MF Screener)

Here is a look at the latest 22k gold rates at leading jewellery brands and 14k, 18k, 20k, 22k and 24k indicative retail selling gold prices and the 999-purity silver rate at the Indian Bullion and Jewellers Association's (IBJA) today.

Disciplined investing and compounding accelerate wealth growth towards a Rs 1 crore corpus. The 8-4-3 rule demonstrates how initial investments grow significantly over time. Higher investment returns and frequent compounding periods reduce the time needed to reach financial goals. Starting early and investing consistently maximizes the benefits of compounding for wealth accumulation. Time is a crucial advantage, allowing investments to multiply substantially with regular contributions.

Returns from mutual fund schemes over the past year varied sharply across categories, highlighting the importance of choosing the right fund. Here's a look at the top-performing schemes in each category compared with their benchmark and category average, based on an ET Bureau report.

When investors think about financial mistakes, they often measure them in rupee terms. One common misstep is temporarily pausing SIP investments and restarting them later. Here's how interrupting your SIP contributions can derail your long-term financial goals, according to ET Wealth.

Retiring debt-free is an ideal goal, but not always achievable or necessary. Experts suggest focusing on EMI affordability rather than complete debt elimination. High-interest unsecured loans pose the greatest risk to retirement finances. Strategic debt management and income generation can support manageable EMIs. Planning finances across life stages helps avoid retirement debt burdens.

Select banks offer senior citizens fixed deposit interest rates up to 8.3 percent. Jana Small Finance Bank provides this highest rate for a three-year term. TDS is deducted if FD interest exceeds Rs 1 lakh annually for senior citizens. Senior citizens can submit Form 15H to avoid TDS if their tax liability is zero. This form helps banks avoid deducting tax when income falls below taxable limits.

Taxpayers missing the July 31, 2026 income tax return deadline have options. A belated ITR can be filed until December 31, 2026, with a late fee. Alternatively, a condonation of delay application can be submitted for acceptance. Filing after the due date incurs interest on unpaid taxes and potential loss of benefits. This process may also lead to delayed refunds and increased compliance scrutiny.

GIFT City offers NRIs and OCIs a dollar-denominated investment ecosystem. This financial hub provides access to global and Indian investment products. Investors can avoid rupee conversion and navigate repatriation rules easily. Various investment options like mutual funds and fixed deposits are available. Read the article to look at the investment options, tax benefits, and the process to get started.

All scheduled and non-scheduled banks observe holidays on the second and fourth Saturdays. Banks remain open on the first, third, and fifth Saturdays unless a holiday is specified.

The July 31, 2026, income tax return filing deadline remains unchanged for many taxpayers. Those who missed this date must now file a belated return and pay a late fee. Taxpayers with business income and those requiring a tax audit have different filing deadlines. The due date for business income without audit is August 31, 2026. Taxpayers needing a tax audit must file by October 31, 2026.