📄 Abstract
The Indian financial market offers a diverse spectrum of investment instruments, yet retail investors frequently lack evidence-based frameworks to evaluate their comparative risk–return profiles. This study presents a systematic analysis of six investment categories — Fixed Deposits (FDs), Equity Mutual Funds, Debt Mutual Funds, Hybrid Mutual Funds, Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs), and direct Equity (Nifty 50) — over the five-year period 2020–2025 in India. Secondary data were sourced from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), National Stock Exchange (NSE), Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Moneycontrol, Value Research Online, and SEBI Annual Reports. Analyses include descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, one-way ANOVA, and independent samples t-tests. The overall ANOVA did not reach significance (F = 1.432, p = 0.251), primarily due to heterogeneous variance across instruments, particularly the extreme return volatility of direct equity (SD = 29.51%). Planned pairwise t-tests, however, reveal that Equity Mutual Funds (t = 2.539, p = 0.034), SIPs (t = 4.241, p = 0.003), and Hybrid Mutual Funds (t = 2.585, p = 0.032) each delivered significantly higher returns than Fixed Deposits. Systematic Investment Plans emerged as the most favourable risk-adjusted vehicle (Coefficient of Variation: 31.86%), demonstrating the efficacy of rupee-cost averaging. Direct equity (Nifty 50) was not statistically superior to Fixed Deposits due to extreme variance (SD = 29.51%), underscoring the risk inherent in lump-sum equity exposure. Welch’s ANOVA is recommended for the final analysis with actual data to address variance heterogeneity. The findings offer evidence-based guidance for retail investors, financial advisors, and Indian policymakers.
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📚 How to Cite:
Veera Kiran S, Dr. Divya Thankom Varghese , COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF INVESTMENT OPTIONS IN INDIA: A RISK–RETURN PERSPECTIVE ON FIXED DEPOSITS, MUTUAL FUNDS, SIPs, AND EQUITY STOCKS (2020–2025) , Volume 14 , Issue 7, July 2026, EPRA International Journal of Economic and Business Review(JEBR) , Pages: 98 - 105 , DOI: https://doi.org/10.36713/epra28803