Liquid Funds - A Complete Guide on Liquid Mutual Funds

What is Liquid Mutual Fund?

A liquid mutual fund invests the pooled money in money market instruments. These are issued by government, banks and private companies. The main aim of a liquid fund is to provide capital appreciation and superior returns with minimum risk. For this, they invest in instruments like:

Liquid mutual funds are linked to the market and experience daily fluctuations like equity mutual funds. But they are not as volatile as equity or debt funds. A unique aspect of liquid fund is that its Net Asset Value (NAV) is calculated for 365 days in a year. This is unlike equity or debt funds where NAV is calculated for working days only. While liquid fund’s NAV is calculated on weekends, you can redeem them on working days only.

Liquid mutual funds invest in the following instruments:

• Commercial Papers (CPs)

  : Private companies issue CPs to meet their temporary cash requirements. For example, Aditya Birla Sun Life (SL) Liquid Fund holds 3.05% of its assets in CP of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone.

  CPs are unsecured promissory note that mature between one day to 270 days. They are traded in the secondary market. They provide higher returns than treasury bills (T-Bills) but are risky since they are unsecured.

• Certificates of Deposit (CDs)

  : These are issued by banks and financial institutions. Their maturity period is between seven days to one year. They are secured in nature and safer than commercial papers. Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund invests 3.55% of the corpus in CD of Bank of Baroda.

• Treasury Bills (T-Bills)

  : These are issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on behalf of the government. The government raises funds to finance infrastructure development or meet its fiscal deficit.

  T-Bills have three types of maturities – 91 days, 182 days and 365 days.

  Liquid funds mostly invest in T-bills maturing within 91 days. Nippon India Liquid Fund invests 13.49% in RBI 91 Days T-bill. They are extremely safe and carry the sovereign guarantee. This means that they have zero default risk. Liquid funds which invest in only T-bills are the safest

• Sovereign Papers

  :Liquid funds also invest in sovereign papers. These are highly safe and liquid. This means they give short-term loans to the government. Sovereign papers can be issued by central, state or municipal corporations. Mirae Asset Cash Management Fund invests 1.24% in 7.94% Central government loan

• Zero Coupon Bonds

  : A bond’s interest rate is known as coupon. Zero coupon bonds carry zero interest rate but they are issued at a discount to their face value. So, the fund manager will purchase these bonds at a discount and redeem on face value. The difference is your profit. IDFC Cash Plus Fund invests 2.98% of its corpus in HDB Financial Services Zero Coupon Bond.

• Collateralised Borrowing & Lending Obligation (CBLO)

  : This is a money market instrument usually used by financial institutions to borrow and lend money for one day. They are exactly like call money but are secured in nature. Edelweiss Liquid Fund invests 28% of its corpus in CBLO.

How Does a Liquid Mutual Fund Work?

Investors are lenders in a liquid fund. They have surplus capital which they want to invest to earn additional returns.

Companies and government are the borrowers. Companies borrow money to meet their working capital requirements. Government can borrow money for infrastructural or economic development.

Your liquid fund manager is the vital link between the lenders and the borrowers. He collects money from lakhs of investors and gives short-term loans to the borrowers. So, when you invest in a liquid fund, you are basically giving a loan to companies or the government. This loan is for less than 365 days. In exchange, the borrowers promise to pay a fixed rate of interest.

On maturity, borrowers repay the principal amount and the lenders hand over the bond. The transaction is complete. This is how a liquid fund works.

Why Should You Invest in Liquid Funds – 10 Advantages of Liquid Mutual Funds

• Superior Liquidity

  : Liquid funds are ideal for building emergency fund as they are highly liquid. You can withdraw from liquid funds within one day. Redemptions in liquid funds are processed in T+1 Day. T stands for transaction day. So, if you redeem from a liquid fund on Monday, the funds will be deposited in your account on Tuesday. This is unlike equity funds, where you will get the redemption proceeds on Wednesday

  Liquid funds also provide instant redemptions up to Rs 50,000. Nippon India Liquid Fund provides a Debit card to investors. So, investors can swipe the card for emergencies 24/7 without any paperwork for redemption.

• Highest Degree of Safety

  : As per Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), liquid funds cannot invest in papers with maturity of more than 365 days. With such short-term maturity, default risk or interest rate risk is very less. So, the second biggest advantage of liquid fund is that they are very safe.

• Low Default Risk

  : Liquid mutual funds which invest mostly in T-Bills carry almost zero default risk. This is because these instruments are issued by the government of India. So, they carry the sovereign guarantee. This makes them safer than bank Fixed Deposits (FDs) where only deposits up to Rs 5 Lakhs is insured. So, liquid funds investing in T-bills only are safer than bank FDs.

• Exit Load

  : Fund houses charge a penalty if you redeem from the fund before a specific period of time. Equity mutual funds have exit load up to 1 year. But liquid funds have exit load of only 7 days. If you invest on 1st January, then you can redeem without any penalty on 8th January.

  Even if you want to redeem before 7 days, the exit load charges are comparatively lower than equity funds. Equity funds charge 1% of the current value. So, you pay an exit load of Rs 1,000 on Rs 1 lakh. But in case of liquid fund, exit load will be as follows:

  Redemption Within	Exit Load %	Exit Load Penalty on Rs 1 Lakh
  1 Day	0.0070%	Rs 7
  2 Days	0.0065%	Rs 6.5
  3 Days	0.0060%	Rs 6
  4 Days	0.0055%	Rs 5.5
  5 Days	0.0050%	Rs 5
  6 Days	0.0045%	Rs 4.5

  Even banks charge 1% as penalty if you break your deposit before the maturity date. Hence liquid funds provide superior liquidity.

• Professional Management

  : The world of debt securities is super complicated. Various borrowers float multiple instruments to raise funds. Selecting and investing in superior quality debt papers is difficult for retail investors. They also need to correctly predict interest rate movements. This is where the expertise of a fund manager helps. Together with an experienced research team, the fund manager is able to find genuinely good debt instruments for investment.

• Benefit of Indexation

  : This is the main reason why liquid funds are better than bank FDs. When you redeem from liquid funds after three years, you get the benefit of indexation. Here, your purchase price is adjusted for inflation. This leads to a chain reaction which reduces your overall tax payable.

  Let us see how indexation helps you save tax. Ram invests Rs 1 Lakh in Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund on 1st April 2014. He redeems it on 1st April 2020. The redemption value is Rs 1,54,378. Without indexation, Ram will pay a tax of Rs 16,313 (30% of Rs 54,378).

  But with indexation, his cost price of Rs 1 lakh is adjusted for inflation. So, the new cost price is Rs 1.25 Lakhs (1,00,000*(301/240). His taxable profit has reduced from Rs 54,378 to Rs 28,961. Even the tax payable reduced from Rs 16,313 to Rs 5,792.

  Particulars	Amount
  Investment Amount	Rs. 1,00,000
  Purchase Date	1st April 2014
  NAV	Rs. 205.85
  Units Acquired	485.79
  Date of Redemption	1st April 2020
  NAV	Rs. 317.79
  Redemption Amount	Rs. 1,54,378
  Long Term Capital Gains	Rs. 54,378
  Long Term Capital Tax Payable Without Indexation	Rs. 16,313
  CII 2014-15	240
  CII 2020-21	301
  Indexed (New) Purchase Price	Rs. 1,25,417
  New Long Term Capital Gains	Rs. 28,961
  Long Term Capital Gains Tax Payable (With Indexation)	Rs. 5,792

• Participation in Indian Money Market

  : The Indian money market is open for retail investors. But it is mostly dominated by banks and financial institutions. Hence, it is almost impossible for retail investors to singlehandedly participate or make money in the market. But with liquid mutual funds, retail investors can collectively invest in T-Bills and CDs. This helps them earn higher returns like banks and financial institutions.

• Higher Returns than Bank FD

  : Liquid funds generate superior post-tax returns than bank FDs. The average one-year FD return is 4% to 5%. Assuming a 30% tax bracket, your real return is between 2.80% and 3.50%.

  Whereas liquid mutual funds generate a real return of 4% to 4.8% (post indexation). Bank FDs also have a strict lock-in period. So, if you break your FD before the maturity date, you need to pay a penalty. This penalty can be as high as 1%. This reduces your overall returns. Whereas in liquid funds, you can redeem your money without any penalty after just seven days.

• Perfect for Buying on Dip

  : Investing a huge lumpsum in the market is not recommended. This is where liquid funds are perfect. You can invest the lumpsum amount in a liquid fund and then register Systematic Transfer Plan (STP) in your desired equity fund. This way you earn interest both liquid fund and equity fund. It is a win-win situation for investors.

• Affordability

  : You can start investing in liquid funds with as little as Rs 500 per month. This way, you get exposure to top government and private bonds with just Rs 500. This was not possible earlier.

Who Should Invest in Liquid Mutual Funds?

1. Investors who want to build an emergency fund should invest 50% of their corpus in liquid funds. This helps them earn superior returns than bank FDs with minimal risk.
2. Investors who want to invest a lumpsum amount in equity should first invest in liquid funds and then do a STP in equity funds. This helps them earn returns on both equity fund and liquid fund.
3. Investors who have surplus cash which they need in 3 to 6 months duration should invest in liquid funds. This will help generate returns on the corpus instead of letting it earn dust in a savings bank account.
4. Businessmen usually maintain current account with bank to keep their surplus cash. But bank doesn’t pay interest on current account. So, a better option is to invest in liquid funds. They can earn some interest and in case of emergency, the funds are available within a day.

8 Factors to Consider While Investing in Liquid Mutual Funds

• Diversified Portfolio

  : This is very important while investing in a liquid fund. Some funds are over diversified whereas others are under diversified.

  For example: Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund invests in 124 securities. Whereas IIFL Liquid Fund invests in only 5 securities. In comparison, the category average is 37 securities. So, IIFL Liquid fund is heavily under diversified. While Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund is a bit over diversified.

  Both over and under diversification can hurt your returns. Your aim should be to invest in a well-diversified liquid fund.

• Commercial Papers Vs Certificates of Deposits

  : Majority CPs are unsecured in nature i.e. they carry moderately high risk. So, if your liquid fund invests a big portion of its corpus in CPs, then it becomes risky

  For example: IDFC Cash Fund invests 44.13% of its corpus in unsecured CPs. While it invests only 7.10% in secured CDs. These CPs carry high credit rating. But that can change overnight.

  On the other hand, Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund invests only 25.78% in CPs. Hence, check the exposure to unsecured CPs before investing in liquid funds.

• Modified Duration

  : While minimum, even liquid funds face interest rate risk. Modified duration (MD) measures the sensitivity of underlying debt papers to interest rate changes. Higher the MD, the more sensitive your fund is. Hence always invest in liquid funds with modified duration lower than category average

  For example: The modified duration of LIC MF Liquid Fund is 0.07. This is much lower than the category average of 0.15.

• Yield to Maturity (YTM)

  : This is the future return that the fund will generate if the underlying securities are held till maturity. A higher YTM is ideal.

  For example: The YTM of Nippon India Liquid Fund is 3.36%. Whereas the YTM of Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund is 3.45%. This means investors earn higher returns in Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund. But YTM keeps changing as fund manager buys and sells the underlying papers.

• Average Credit Rating

  : Credit rating agencies provide credit rating to debt papers. AAA or A1+ means the papers are of highest credit quality. These carry very little risk. Whereas AA or BB signifies average quality papers.

  Earlier, liquid funds used to invest in A or BB rated papers to earn higher returns. But post the Franklin Templeton Debt Fund Wind-up, liquid fund managers strictly invest in AAA rated papers only.

  Before investing in liquid fund, ensure that majority of the papers are AAA or A1+ rated.

• Assets Under Management (AUM)

  : Liquidity is critical when investing in liquid funds. Hence you should only invest in liquid funds which have sufficient AUM to handle redemption pressure.

  For example: The AUM of IIFL liquid Fund is only Rs 14 crores. In comparison, the AUM of Axis Liquid Fund is Rs 25,040 crores. So, IIFL Liquid fund might not be able to handle major redemption pressure. Hence always invest in liquid fund with decent AUM.

• Expense Ratio

  : Liquid mutual funds are actively managed by a fund manager. For this, they charge a fee which is a part of the fund’s expense ratio. It is deduced from the fund’s NAV. So, higher the expense ratio, the lower your overall returns will be.

  For example: The expense ratio of SBI Liquid Fund is 0.26%. Whereas the expense ratio of HDFC liquid Fund is 0.20%. There’s a difference of 0.06%. While this seems small, imagine the compounding effect of this over 20 years! Hence, keep an eye on expense ratio while investing in liquid fund

• Average Maturity

  : This is the average maturity period of the underlying papers. Liquid Funds have lower average maturity than debt funds.

  For example: The average maturity of HDFC Liquid fund is 0.11 years. Whereas the average maturity of HDFC Corporate Bond Fund is 4.50 years.

  Investors should always invest in liquid funds with lower average maturity. This reduces their sensitivity to changing interest rates.

How are Liquid Mutual Funds Taxed?

The holding period of liquid funds is three years. Accordingly, there are two types of taxes in liquid funds:

If you redeem from a liquid fund within three years, you will have to pay a STCG tax. Your gains will be added to your total income and then taxed as per the applicable tax bracket. If you fall in the highest tax bracket, then you should avoid STCG tax. For investors in the 5% tax bracket, STCG is a better option than LTCG tax.

If you redeem after three years, you will qualify for LTCG tax. Here you will get the benefit of Indexation Post indexation, you will need to pay a LTCG tax of 20%.

The below case study will help you understand how liquid funds are taxed.

Ram and Shyam both invested Rs 1 lakh each in Axis Liquid Fund – Growth Option on 1st April 2017. The NAV of the fund was Rs 1,798.3695. They each got 55.61 units. Ram decided to sell his units after two years i.e. on 1st April 2019.

Ram’s Short-Term Capital Gains Tax

The sale NAV was Rs 2,065.5010. The redemption value was Rs 1,14,854. Since the holding period is less than three years, he has to pay short term capital gains tax at 30% (as Ram falls in highest tax slab).

The total tax payable by Ram was Rs 4,456.

Shyam’s Long Term Capital Gains Tax

On the other hand, Shyam stayed invested for three years and redeemed on 1st April 2020. He qualified for Indexation. Let us see how indexation works.

Every year the Income Tax Department declares the Cost Inflation Index (CII) for the financial year (FY). The CII of 2017-18 was 272. The CII of 2020-21 is 301.

Indexed Cost of Purchase = Purchase Price * (CII of year of sale / CII of year of purchase)

In the above case, indexed cost of purchase = Rs 1,00,000 * (301/272) = Rs 1,10,662

Redemption NAV was Rs 2,194.47. The total redemption value is Rs 1,22,025. The final tax payable is Rs 2,272.

Notice how Shyam made more profit than Ram. But still he paid less tax due to the power of indexation.

3 Most Important Things to Keep in Mind While Investing in Liquid Funds

• Investment Option – Growth Vs Dividend
• Investment Plan – Regular Vs Direct
• Liquid Fund Cut off Timing

Investment Options in Liquid Funds

There are two types of investment options in liquid funds:

• Growth Option
• Dividend Option

In Growth option, the returns generated by the fund is reinvested in the fund itself. So, investors do not receive any income. They make money via capital appreciation. This option is ideal for investors who do not need immediate income from liquid funds. Individuals who fall in the highest tax bracket should opt for growth option as every dividend income will be taxed at 30%.

In Dividend option, investors receive regular income in the form of dividends. This is subdivided as

• Dividend Reinvestment Option
• Dividend Payout Option.

In dividend reinvestment option, the received dividend is reinvested in the fund. Whereas in dividend payout option, the dividend is credited to investors bank account. This option is suitable for retirees and individuals who need regular income from their investment.

Frequency of dividend reinvestment or payout can be:

• Daily
• Weekly
• Fortnightly
• Monthly
• Quarterly
• Half-Yearly

Earlier, a 28% dividend distribution tax (DDT) was deducted before paying dividends. This was unfair to investors in lower tax brackets. But since 2020, dividend is now taxed as per individual tax bracket.

The NAV of both growth and dividend option is different. For example, as on 25th May 2021:

• The NAV of Axis Liquid Fund Growth option is Rs 2,283.1425.
• The NAV of Axis Liquid Fund Monthly Dividend option is Rs 1,003.5819.

After dividend is declared, the NAV of the fund falls by the same amount. So, the net effect between growth and dividend option remains the same.

Investment Plans in Liquid Mutual Fund

When you invest in liquid funds, you have two plans:

• Regular Plan
• Direct Plan

In regular plan, you invest as per the advice of a broker or advisor. The Asset Management Company (AMC) pays commission to the broker. This expense is passed onto investors in the form of higher expense ratio.

Investment in Direct plans is without the advice of a broker. This means that you have invested in the fund based on your own view and research. Here no commission is paid and hence expense ratio is lower. However, you are yourself responsible for monitoring the portfolio.

While the portfolio remains the same, the NAV and expense ratio of both regular and direct plans are different. For example:

• NAV of Axis Liquid Fund – Growth Option - Regular plan is Rs 2,283.1425. Its expense ratio is 0.25%.

• Whereas, NAV of Axis Liquid Fund – Growth Option – Dividend plan is Rs 2,295.5011. Its expense ratio is 0.18%.

Let us see how regular and direct plan works while investing in liquid mutual fund.

Both Seeta and Geeta invested Rs 1 lakh in Axis Liquid Fund - Growth option on 1st April 2016.

As you can see, the purchase NAV of regular plan is lower than direct plan. Hence, Seeta received more units than Geeta. But while selling, Geeta was more profitable since the sale NAV of direct plan is higher than regular plan. So, while you get less units in direct plans, your sell value is more.

Liquid Mutual Fund Cut off Timings

Cut off time is the time post which you will receive NAV of the next working day instead of the same day.

For purchase, liquid fund cut off time is 1.30 pm. For redemption and switch, the cut off time is 3 pm.

• If purchase request is received before 1.30 pm, previous day’s NAV is applicable.

• If purchase request is received after 1.30 pm, next day’s NAV is applicable.

• If redemption request is received before 3 pm, same day’s NAV is applicable.

• If redemption request is received after 3 pm, next day’s NAV is applicable.

Liquid Mutual Fund Returns

5 Best Liquid Mutual Funds in India for 2021

RankMF is India’s best mutual fund advisory platform. Based on 20 million parameters, they have shortlisted the five best mutual funds in India in 2021.

Let us take a closer look at each of these five best liquid mutual funds in India for 2021.

1. Aditya Birla Sun Life Liquid Fund

   : Launched in 2004, Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund is the best liquid fund in India. Its return in the last one year is 3.28%. It is a popular fund with an AUM of Rs 30,938 crores. Its expense ratio is 0.33%. The fund has invested in 124 securities. It has a decent YTM of 3.45%. Even the average maturity of papers is 0.09 years. This makes them least sensitive to interest rate changes.

   The composition of the fund is as follows:

   

   The fund’s exposure to unsecured commercial papers is a bit high. But its compensated as it holds 47% of its corpus in cash. The fund holds 73.78% of its corpus in A1+ papers and only 1.38% in AA rated papers. The fund scores high on safety index.

   It has beaten its peers and the overall liquid fund category across one, three and five years.

   

   The value of Rs 1 Lakh invested in the fund five years back is Rs 1,13,456. That’s an absolute return of 34.56%. You can start a Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) in the fund with just Rs 500.

2. Mirae Asset Cash Management Fund

   : Even though the fund was launched in 2009, it has a relatively small AUM of Rs 4,045 crores only. It has generated a return of 3.29% in the last one year. Its expense ratio is 0.25%. The fund holds 47 debt instruments. Its YTM is 3.49%. Its modified duration is 0.11 years. This is slightly higher than Aditya Birla SL Liquid Fund.

   The portfolio composition of Mirae Asset Cash Management Fund is as follows:

   

   The fund holds only 19% in T-bills while almost 30% is held in unsecured debt papers. The fund is moderately risky.

   It has beaten its benchmark in the long-term. The value of Rs 1 Lakh invested five years back is Rs 1,13,395. That’s an absolute return of 33.95%.

   Here’s the performance of Mirae Asset Cash Management Fund since inception.

   

3. IDBI Liquid Fund

   : This is the third best liquid mutual fund in India. It was launched in 2010. It has a small AUM of Rs 1,209 crores. But it has generated highest returns of 3.48% in the last one year. Its YTM is 3.42%. Its average maturity and modified duration of 0.14 years is slightly on the higher side.

   The portfolio of IDBI Liquid Fund:

   

   The fund has almost half of its portfolio in commercial papers. This increases its risk profile. But the fund has managed to outperform even the top liquid fund in one-year period.

   

   An investment of Rs 1 Lakh five years back is worth Rs 1,13,475. The fund has generated an absolute return of 34.76%.

4. Mahindra Manulife Liquid Fund

   : This is the fourth best liquid mutual fund in India. It has given 3.34% returns in the last one year. It was launched in 2016 and has an AUM of Rs 1,639 crores. Its YTM is an impressive 3.42%. Its modified duration of 0.08 is way lower than category benchmark of 0.15.

   The fund’s portfolio is as follows:

   

   The exposure to treasury bills is lower than category average. Still the fund has managed to generate decent returns. An investment of Rs 1 Lakh in 2016 will be worth Rs 1,12,576 today. It has generated an absolute return of 25.76% in last four years.

   

5. Edelweiss Liquid Fund

   : This is the fifth best liquid mutual fund in India. It was launched in 2007 and has an AUM of 1,138 crores. The fund has given a one-year return of 3.13%. Its YTM is 3.45% which is better than other best liquid funds.
   

   The portfolio composition of the fund is as follows:

   

   The value of Rs 1 Lakh invested in the fund five years back is Rs 1,13,353. It has generated an absolute return of 33.53%.

   At this point you should also know the 4 Worst Liquid Mutual Funds in India in 2021. If you are invested in any of these funds, then it is time to review your portfolio using RankMF’s SmartSwitch feature.

4 Worst Performing Liquid Mutual Funds in India

How to Invest in Best Liquid Mutual Funds?

Now that you know which are the best liquid mutual funds in India, follow this 3-step approach and start investing in them today!

• Step 1: Open a FREE RankMF account.
• Step 2: Complete your Know your customer (KYC) requirements.
• Step 3: Select and invest in the best liquid fund.

That’s it! It’s as simple as this.

So, don’t let your hard-earned money gather dust in savings account. Instead invest in the best liquid mutual funds with RankMF – India’s best mutual fund research and investment platform. Open a FREE RankMF today!

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