A mutual fund is a financial instrument that collects money from several investors like you, and invests it in various investment options like shares, bonds, etc.

Depending on where your money is invested, mutual funds can be classified into three types: Equity, Debt and Hybrid.

An equity fund is a mutual fund that invests principally in stocks.

Debt Mutual Funds mainly invest in a mix of debt or fixed income securities such as Treasury Bills, Government Securities, Corporate Bonds, Money Market instruments and other debt securities of different time horizons.

A hybrid fund is a category of mutual fund that is characterized by portfolio that is made up of a mix of stocks and bonds, which can vary proportionally over time or remain fixed.

Hybrid fund is a mutual fund that invests in both, shares and bonds.

In a mutual fund a professional manager chooses investments that match the fund's goals for risk and return. Through mutual fund an investor holds a variety of investments which can make it easier for him to diversify his investments in different shares and other instruments.

Some of the major benefits on investing in a mutual fund are: - Diversification - Professional management - Convenience - Liquidity - Variety of schemes and types - Tax benefits

NFO stands for a New Fund Offer. When a new fund is launched for investors, it is known as a NFO. A NFO could also be the launch of additional units of a close-ended fund

Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) is an investment vehicle offered by mutual funds to investors, allowing them to invest small amounts periodically instead of lump sums. The frequency of investment is usually weekly, monthly or quarterly.

Investing in SIP offers two major benefits: - You can start investing with a small amount - You can average out your investment, as SIP involves buying units at different points of time and at different NAV levels

NAV stands for Net Asset Value of a mutual fund. This is basically the price of one unit of a mutual fund.

Liquid funds are mutual funds that offer high liquidity. This means, the units of these funds can be sold immediately, and the invested amount can be redeemed quickly

You can buy units of close-ended mutual funds only when a mutual fund company launches the fund. Once you buy them, you have to hold your investment for a fixed tenure

An open-ended fund or scheme is one that is available for subscription and repurchase on a continuous basis. These schemes do not have a fixed maturity period. Investors can conveniently buy and sell units at Net Asset Value (NAV) related prices which are declared on a daily basis.

Under a Systematic Withdrawal Plan (SWP), an investor redeems a fixed number of mutual fund units at regular intervals.