Fintech startup Sqrrl aims to help young Indians save and invest who don’t want to go through traditional channels of investment. It’s an app that allows millennials to solve all their investment-related confusion and the returns they can expect out of those investments.
It offers a user-friendly layout and shows information about Tax Saving, SIP, Mutual funds, Goal-based investments, and customised portfolios (their latest invention). The app and website have a pretty vibrant layout, which makes the user experience very intuitive. All you need to do is set up your account, add your bank details, perform your KYC and you are good to go to start with income tax saving, or doing a SIP or saving for an experience.
The easy to understand interface helps you quickly figure out what you need to do. The platform helps you figure out how much you’ll need to save each month to reach a particular amount in a specific time frame. Put simply, Sqrrl is tailor-made for the younger generation who want to save, but do not understand traditional channels of investment. It automates savings to make it hassle-free for users.
Unlike conventional channels that show a barrage of options, Sqrrl’s customised portfolios and a DIY approach make it easy to begin investments.
The app also offers some very interesting products such as, Sqrrl Away – investing small amounts of money every month which goes into liquid funds, that churns out more interest than a savings bank account. Next up, we have the Bring Your Own Plans (BYOP) – a goal-oriented savings product. So, for instance, if a user wants to save for a vacation or a new Smart TV in the future, it helps them do by tucking money in mutual funds. Another product Sqrrl offers is called Axe Tax, which guides customers in tax saving instruments.
Sqrrl Away
Sqrrl Away is like a virtual piggy bank where you can invest small amounts of money, easily, into various funds. The company claims, Sqrrl Away can generate approx. 6-7% returns on your savings (Kindly understand that the mutual fund returns depend on the market conditions.)
With Sqrrl Away, you can start investing with as low as Rs. 100. You can make arrangements for the weekly payments or keep on adding money as you have it with you. That’s not all. If you like, you can withdraw your money anytime, there is no lock-in period with Sqrrl Away.
BYOP (Bring Your Own Plans)
BYOP or Bring Your Own Plans is one such product of the company that can get you the things you’ve always dreamt of but couldn’t realise as you were never able to save enough for it. The smart calculator of Sqrrl will tell you how much money will you need to invest, on a monthly basis, to have the required sum, to fulfill your goals.
Axe Tax
Axe Tax is basically a tool that helps you save Income Tax, by helping you invest in various schemes, to avail the benefits of tax exemptions. The government of India allows Rs. 1,50,000 of tax rebate yearly and by putting your money in Axe Tax, it’ll help you in claiming the full rebate. Basically, it’s guiding you to the total amount you need to invest to claim the full Income tax benefits.
Apart from this, Sqrrl also offers a lot of other investment options in Gold Funds, SIP, lump sum, etc.
Well, that’s all about the features & products this app offers. Now, let’s see how to use them quickly. To get started with the app, you have to download it from the Google Play store for Android and Apple App Store for iPhone/iPad.
The first thing you will notice as soon as you open the app is that it’s tailor-made for Indian users, you’ll see the app offering you nine different languages (including few regional languages such as Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi etc.) to choose from. (Getting investment and finance tips in your regional language, that’s sweet!)
Select your preferred language first and in the next few steps, follow the standard instructions to set up your account by providing details like your phone number, email ID, Bank, and KYC details.
Once the setup is done, you are ready to make your first investment using the app. The best thing about the whole setup process is the UI of the app – pretty clean and to the point. You will not feel stuck just for once while performing the one-time setup process. There are no technical or complex jargons and the entire onboarding experience came off as very sleek.
Apart from this, the Sqrrl guys are there all the time to help you out with the app. With a variety of user support options like in-app chat, email, and phone support, you can always count on their team to help you out with your problems.
In case you’re wondering whether you can trust Sqrrl? The app is registered as an Investment Advisor with SEBI (Securities & Exchange Board of India) which is the capital market regulator in India and AMFI (Association of Mutual Funds in India). Sqrrl also facilitates your investments to be moved from your banks account directly to the Mutual Fund schemes, which is also regulated by SEBI. Besides, every transaction gets confirmation, and an account statement is available.
Although there’s no dearth of Mutual Funds app, in the market, today, I’m yet to come across something which packs saving and investing in one place. Moreover, banking on your spending habits (Sqrrl Away), I’d say, is pretty innovative on the company’s part.
App Download Links: Google Play | Apple App Store
Information Source: Sqrrl.in
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