Fixed Maturity Plans, as they are popularly known, are the equivalents of a fixed deposit in a bank, with a caveat. The maturity amount of a fixed deposit in a bank is ‘guaranteed’, but only ‘indicated’ in the FMP of a mutual fund. The regulator does not allow fund companies to guarantee returns, and hence the ‘indicated returns’ in FMP’s.

Classically, the fund house fixes a ‘target amount’ for a scheme, which it ties up informally with borrowers before the scheme opens. Since the fund house knows the interest rate that it will earn on its investments, it can provide ‘indicative returns’ to investors.

Fixed Maturity Plans are debt schemes, where the corpus is invested in fixed-income securities. The tenure can be of different maturities, from one month to three years. They are closed-ended in nature, which means that once the NFO (new fund offer) closes, the scheme cannot accept any further investment.

These Fixed Maturity Plans, NFOs are generally open for 2 to 3 days and are marketed to corporate’s and well-heeled, high net-worth individuals. Nevertheless, the minimum investment is usually Rs 5,000 and so a retail investor can comfortably invest too.

Fixed Maturity Plans usually invest in certificate of deposits (CDs), commercial papers (CPs), money market instruments, corporate bonds and sometimes even in bank fixed deposits.

Depending on the tenure of the FMP, the fund manager invests in a combination of the above-mentioned instruments of similar maturity. Say if the FMP is for a year, then the fund manager invests in paper maturing in one year.

The prevalent yield minus the expense ratio, which varies from 0.25 to 1 per cent, will be the indicative return which can be expected from the Fixed Maturity Plans.

The expense ratio is mentioned in the offer document. The yield can be indicated fairly accurately because these schemes are open only for a short while.

The fund received is for a pre-specified tenure and the exit load from this plan is high (usually 1 per cent to 3 per cent, depending on the time of redemption). So, the fund manager has the liberty to deploy most of the funds mobilized under the scheme.

The actual return can vary slightly, if at all, from the indicated return. Against that, a bank fixed deposit exactly prints the amount which is due to you on maturity on the Fixed Deposit receipt. However, Fixed Maturity Plans do earn better returns than fixed deposits of similar tenure.

The enchantment is in the tax treatment of a mutual fund FMP. FMPs are classified under the debt scheme category and enjoy certain tax benefits such as:

The results of all these are quite dramatic. For example of a 90-day FD yielding 8 per cent, compared with an FMP yielding 8 per cent for an individual investor in the highest tax bracket.

In fact, the dividend distribution tax is deducted on the gross yield. So the return from the dividend option can be 10-20 bps higher.

Except for the sake of simplicity, it is calculated here on net yield.  If the tenure of the FMP is more than a year, the growth option gives a higher yield because of the indexation benefit.

What is indexation benefit?

The finance minister has been generous enough to recognize that inflation erodes the real value of any investment. So every year, he comes out with an inflation index based on the prevailing rate of inflation.  The cost of investment is indexed by multiplying the index of the year of maturity and divided by the inflation index prevailing on the year of investment. If you have arrived at an indexed cost, then the long-term capital gain is taxed at 22.44 per cent and if you do not opt for the indexed cost, then the tax is 11.22 per cent.

How does this pan out:

Take an example of a 30-month FMP which, if launched now, will mature in September 2012. It will pass through three financial years – launch in 2008-2009 and maturing in 2010-2012. Thus, it can have a benefit of triple-cost indexation for the purpose of calculating post-tax yield. Look at the workings.

Note: Cost Inflation Index for FY 09-10 is 519. The assumption is that the CII for FY10-11 is 567 and for FY 11-12 are 592. Clearly, the post-tax return is superior for an FMP.

How does one know of these plans?

Like mentioned earlier, these schemes are not advertised heavily and the commission on them is low. But, the good news is that these plans are launched on a regular basis by mutual funds. You may have to badger your MF intermediary for information on them, but it is well worth the effort.