In an interview with Yogita Khatri of Myiris.com, Rishi Nathany, Director, Touchstone Wealth Planners says, ``Invest according to your risk profile and time horizon. Proper asset allocation is the key to investment success.``
> Can you please tell us about `Touchstone Wealth Planners`? What services do you offer? How did you step up in financial services industry?
We are a financial planning, wealth advisory and training company. Apart from this, we also have memberships of NSE, NSEL and MCX through our group entities.
Touchstone came into being in 2006. However, on a personal level, I come from a family which has been in stock broking for over a century. Hence there was a natural progression from pure broking to planning and advisory services.
> How do you reach out to your clients? How do you win the confidence of your clients? How do you ensure that your clients are not walking away to someone else?
We do not advertise in any way. We add new clients based on referrals from existing clients, with whom we develop a strong relationship of trust through our transparent and professional approach. We also get direct clients who approach us after having heard about us or read my articles in the media. Our philosophy in terms of client servicing and retention is that a client is for life and has to be treated accordingly. We rarely see a client leaving us due to this approach.
> What are the aspects that matter you when selecting funds for your clients? Your top 3 equity fund picks and debt fund picks with key attributes you like in them?
There are various factors to be considered while selecting a fund- The fund manager, his investment style and his expected continuity with the fund house, how long has the fund been in existence and its performance over the long term, various financial parameters including the fund`s sharpe ratio, etc. While we would not like to comment on specific funds, we normally do not suggest sectoral funds to our clients and prefer to stick to diversified equity funds as well as a fair measure of midcap funds, since our investment advisory for clients is with a long term perspective.
> How are you aligning your business to the new regulatory environment? What changes have you made / are you making in your business to sustain profit growth in the future?
The new regulatory environment has not adversely affected us much, since we were not very dependent on upfront income from mutual funds. The way forward is very clear- fee-based planning and advisory services.
> Are your clients nervous about markets? Are they looking at investing or redeeming? Are there any sectors or themes you are bullish on at this point in time?
Clients have been circumspect about the markets since the 2008 crash. However, we have to understand that long-term investors do not need to worry about short term market fluctuations. Overall, we are bullish on the India story and the consumption theme.
> On a broader perspective, what financial resolutions should people make in the New Year 2011, according to you?
The first resolution one must make is to plan for the financial future. The second is to implement it fully. The third is to keep the discipline to stick with the plan and the fourth is to regularly review it to make necessary adjustments to changes in one`s internal and external environment.
> How many fund houses do you deal with? In which fund house do you have the maximum AUM (in terms of percentage)? Tell us your favorite all-time MF schemes and fund managers.
We deal with most of the fund houses. We do not have any bias towards a particular fund house and AUM with any fund house would depend on the performance of their schemes and fund managers.
> What`s the one thing that you would change in the financial services industry, if you had the power to make that happen?
Advice driving products and not vice-versa and advisors being paid adequate fees for their advice.
> Going ahead, what are your plans? How do you plan to expand your business?
We do not have any big expansion plans, but would rather like to grow steadily year on year. Our focus is on our service quality, which will lead to more clients coming to us directly or through referrals.
> What three books related to personal finance would you recommend every person read and why?
Your bank passbook, expense note book and a business newspaper on a regular basis! Will help you know where you stand financially, save and invest wisely.
> Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?
Invest according to your risk profile and time horizon. Proper asset allocation is the key to investment success. Happy investing!
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