Edelweiss Mutual Fund’s Radhika Gupta highlights the importance of liquidity and practicality in distinguishing true investments from emotionally valuable possessions like jewellery, luxury goods, and property, advocating for a focus on cash-ready assets over aspirational ones.
Radhika Gupta has drawn a sharp line between assets that may be desirable to own and those that genuinely strengthen a financial plan, arguing that gold jewellery, luxury handbags and even a primary home are often mistaken for investments.
Speaking at the India Today Woman Summit 2026, the Edelweiss Mutual Fund managing director and chief executive said the key test is not whether something can become more valuable, but whether it can be turned into cash quickly and reliably when needed. That, she suggested, is what separates a financial asset from an expensive possession.
Gupta said she personally likes jewellery, but investors should treat ornamental gold differently from portfolio gold. Jewellery often carries making charges, storage concerns and emotional value that make it difficult to sell. For those seeking exposure to gold as part of a wider portfolio, she pointed to financial products such as gold funds rather than physical ornaments.
Her comments also extended to luxury goods. While some handbags from brands such as Chanel and Hermès can fetch strong prices in secondary markets, Gupta warned against assuming that every costly purchase will deliver outsized returns. She compared that expectation to betting on a jackpot rather than building a financial strategy.
On property, Gupta acknowledged that buying a home in India is often an emotional decision as much as a financial one. A house can offer comfort and security, she said, but that does not automatically make it an investment in the strict sense. A person may appear wealthy on paper because of real estate holdings, yet still lack ready access to cash in an emergency.
That distinction matters, particularly for second properties bought purely for returns. As Business Today noted, Gupta said investors should judge real estate against other financial assets by looking not only at price appreciation, but also at the time taken to complete a project, find tenants, or sell when cash is needed. She also cautioned that doubling in value over many years is not necessarily impressive if other investments could have done better over the same period.
Her broader message was one of liquidity, diversification and practicality. An asset may be beautiful, prestigious or emotionally satisfying, but Gupta argued that the ability to access money quickly remains one of the most important features of a true investment. In her framing, that is the difference between owning something valuable and holding something useful for financial planning.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
