Module 2
Routes to Global Investing
There are several distinct ways an Indian can actually invest abroad, and they differ far more than they first appear. This module walks through each route, US ETFs, UCITS ETFs, GIFT City funds, and international mutual funds and then compares them across the dimensions that matter, so you can find the one that genuinely fits who you are.
Chapters
Chapter 1
US ETFs
We start the routes with the one most people actually use. When an Indian investor pictures "buying an ETF abroad," they are almost always picturing a US ETF.
Chapter 2
UCITS ETFs
If US ETFs are the deepest, cheapest, most liquid funds in the world, why would anyone deliberately choose a different route? This is where UCITS ETFs come in.
Chapter 3
GIFT City FoFs
The two routes so far, US ETFs and UCITS, share one feature: your money leaves India to reach a foreign market. GIFT City lets you invest globally through a place that is physically in India but legally treated as offshore.
Chapter 4
International Mutual Funds
An international mutual fund is bought in rupees, from an Indian fund house, through the same platform you already use for domestic funds. It is the onshore option, the one where you never actually go offshore at all.
Chapter 5
Investor Profiles
You have now seen all the routes. What you have not yet seen is a clear way to match them to yourself. The right one depends entirely on who you are as an investor.
Chapter 6
Comparing Routes - 1
This first comparison chapter covers the two things that matter most at the very beginning of the journey: how easy each route is to start, and how little you can begin with.
Chapter 7
Comparing Routes - 2
The last chapter looked at getting in. This chapter looks at what you can actually access once you are in, and what your costs will be for buying them.
Chapter 8
Comparing Routes - 3
This final comparison is about taking money out. Getting into a global investment is only useful if you can get out of it, and back to rupees you can spend, whenever you need to.
Chapter 9
Decision Matrix
This is where everything comes together. You have met the routes, met the profiles, and compared the routes on every dimension that matters. This chapter turns all of that into a single view: find the profile closest to you, follow the row, and start where it points.
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