Case for investing stronger than ever

Investing holds some of life's most precious lessons. How to invest teaches risk-reward management; where to invest coaches decision-making; realty and mutual funds cultivate patience; and when to invest/goal-based investing instils the value of timing.

This issue of Fortune India is designed to help you with any or all of those decisions. Conceptualised at that classic intersection of economy and markets, it will help you navigate through the macro-economic environment in 2022, setting the tone for vital investment decisions on the personal front.

While the balm of time - and stimulus - continue to heal the world economy, superior corporate earnings and the potential for growth are both firing up the equity market. India is no different. Besides equity, 2021 delivered unexpected returns for most asset classes. Having endured the pandemic, both personal and corporate balance sheets are leaner. Hence, the case for investing for the long-term remains stronger than ever. Our package on investing led by Avneet Kaur's lead piece takes you through the outlook on the most prominent asset classes: equities, debt, real estate, gold and precious metals. To aid your decision-making, there are Top 3 of the best performing mutual funds, insurance and pension funds.

How could any discussion on investing be complete without diving into one of the youngest, most volatile - yet sought after - asset classes: cryptos? Starting in 2013 with India's first crypto exchange Unocoin, a 24x7 crypto bazaar has flourished due to lack of regulatory oversight and Centre's indecisiveness. Indians have invested an estimated $1 billion till date, now worth $8 billion. Globally, 15,700 cryptocurrencies are already worth $2.37 trillion. Read V. Keshadev's report on cryptos that are delivering the best returns. Caution! Don't bet your shirt on it.

For best-in-class advice on wealth management, Fortune India invited a panel of the country's leading wealth managers - Ashish Gumashta, CEO, Julius Baer Wealth Advisors India; Atinkumar Saha, head, wealth management, Deutsche Bank; Rajesh Saluja, MD and CEO, ASK Wealth Advisors; Sandeep Das, head, private clients [India], Barclays; Yatin Shah, co-founder and joint CEO, IIFL Wealth & Asset Management.

Now to the macro.

Economy is on the mend, but the Covid damage is permanent. RBI has projected a GDP growth rate of 9.5% this fiscal, but India's GDP would be no bigger than it was in 2019 - a loss of two years. So how can finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman accelerate growth? A power-packed Pre-Budget panel recommends a roadmap: Jayant Sinha, Member of Parliament, chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance and former minister of state for finance and civil aviation; Subhash Chandra Garg, finance secretary from July 2017 to July 2019; Akhil Gupta, vice chairman, Bharti Enterprises; Rajeev Gowda, chairman, Research Department & national spokesperson, All India Congress Committee, and former member of Parliament; and Chetan Ahya, chief Asia economist, Morgan Stanley.

As governments around the world loosened purse strings with measures to stoke consumption-led growth against Covid-19, India opted for the contrarian supply-side measures. Joe C. Mathew and Ashutosh Kumar examine how it played out for the economy.

Happy investing in 2022!