E-Gold Vs Gold ETFs? Which is a better Gold Investment option? Which avenue has a higher yield? These are some of the common questions often asked by an investor wanting to invest in these non-physical form of gold. Well, both the forms are unique in trading with each having its own benefits in essential parameters like returns, taxation, holding period, etc. Therefore, we will see how both- Gold ETFs and E-Gold differ from each other and which form makes a better gold investment option!
E-Gold is a unique gold investment product launched by the National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL). This product enables investors to Buy Gold in an electronic form on the NSE’s trading platform and the gold bought by you will reflect in your Demat account.
E-Gold is one such investment that allows investors to buy gold in a smaller denomination, such as 1gm, 2gm, 3gm, etc. The gold units that you would buy here will be credited to your Demat account in T+2 days. Similarly, for instance, if you have sold today, the same will debited from your Demat account in 2 days (from the date of sale).
E-gold is less expensive compared to gold ETFs as the latter is exposed to various charges like asset management fees, security service fees, etc. To know the current value of your investment in gold ETFs, you have to track the NAV of that fund but in the case of e-gold, the value is that of the prevailing gold price.
Gold ETFs has become one of the most popular modes of gold investments. Gold ETFs are also the Underlying of open-ended Gold Mutual Funds that help you to invest your money in gold. The underlying gold purity is 99.5%. Gold ETFs are also known as paper gold. These are listed and traded on major stock exchanges and investors are assigned units where each unit usually represents one gram of gold.
In gold ETFs, investors can trade in their existing Demat account. Gold ETFs offers investors a secure way to access the gold Market. They also provide the benefit of liquidity as it can be traded at any time during the trading period.
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Gold ETFs can be traded only between 9:00 am to 3:30 pm on weekdays. Whereas, e-gold can be traded from 10:00 am to 11:30 pm on weekdays.
Both the forms can be converted into physical gold, but the minimum quantity for each varies. The minimum quantity for e-gold is 8 grams, while, in gold-ETF, one can convert only when it exceeds a certain size of 500gm to 1Kg.
Efficient form and is able to trace gold prices more closely than gold ETFs. However, e-gold loses out to gold ETFs when it comes to taxation.
But, now, when you know the key difference between these two forms, invest in an avenue that offers secure investment with better returns!
Parameters | Gold ETFs | E-Gold |
---|---|---|
Separate Demat Account | No | Yes |
Holdings | Owned by AMCs | Yes |
Conversion to Physical Gold | Minimum 0.5-1 kg | Investors directly hold gold units in demat account |
Short Term Capital Gains | Less than 1 year- 20% tax on returns | Less than 3 years- 20% tax on returns |
Long Term Capital Gains | After 1 year- 10% tax returns | After 3 years- 10% tax on returns |
Recurring Expenses | 0.40% | 1% |
Returns | Highest at it's the most cost-effective | Slightly lower than gold ETF |
Pricing | Linked to International Gold Price | Linked to Indian Gold Price |
Convert to Jewelry | Not available | Available with selected Jewellers |
Some of the best underlying Gold ETFs to Invest are as follows:
The investment objective of the Scheme will be to generate returns that correspond closely to the returns generated by IDBI Gold Exchange Traded Fund (IDBI GOLD ETF). Below is the key information for IDBI Gold Fund Returns up to 1 year are on An Open ended Fund of Funds Scheme with the investment objective to provide returns that tracks returns provided by Birla Sun Life Gold ETF (BSL Gold ETF). Research Highlights for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund Below is the key information for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund Returns up to 1 year are on To seek capital appreciation by investing in units of HDFC Gold Exchange Traded Fund (HGETF). Research Highlights for HDFC Gold Fund Below is the key information for HDFC Gold Fund Returns up to 1 year are on To provide returns that closely corresponds to returns provided by Invesco India Gold Exchange Traded Fund. Research Highlights for Invesco India Gold Fund Below is the key information for Invesco India Gold Fund Returns up to 1 year are on The scheme seeks to provide returns that closely correspond to returns provided by SBI - ETF Gold (Previously known as SBI GETS). Research Highlights for SBI Gold Fund Below is the key information for SBI Gold Fund Returns up to 1 year are on 1. IDBI Gold Fund
IDBI Gold Fund
Growth Launch Date 14 Aug 12 NAV (03 Oct 25) ₹30.8532 ↓ -0.49 (-1.57 %) Net Assets (Cr) ₹254 on 31 Aug 25 Category Gold - Gold AMC IDBI Asset Management Limited Rating Risk Moderately High Expense Ratio 0.64 Sharpe Ratio 2.38 Information Ratio 0 Alpha Ratio 0 Min Investment 5,000 Min SIP Investment 500 Exit Load 0-12 Months (1%),12 Months and above(NIL) Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 30 Sep 20 ₹10,000 30 Sep 21 ₹9,217 30 Sep 22 ₹10,058 30 Sep 23 ₹11,430 30 Sep 24 ₹14,833 30 Sep 25 ₹22,097 Returns for IDBI Gold Fund
absolute basis
& more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
basis. as on 3 Oct 25 Duration Returns 1 Month 11.3% 3 Month 21.2% 6 Month 29.2% 1 Year 53.2% 3 Year 31.1% 5 Year 17.6% 10 Year 15 Year Since launch 9% Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis
Year Returns 2024 18.7% 2023 14.8% 2022 12% 2021 -4% 2020 24.2% 2019 21.6% 2018 5.8% 2017 1.4% 2016 8.3% 2015 -8.7% Fund Manager information for IDBI Gold Fund
Name Since Tenure Sumit Bhatnagar 1 Jun 24 1.25 Yr. Data below for IDBI Gold Fund as on 31 Aug 25
Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 2.08% Other 97.92% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity LIC MF Gold ETF
- | -99% ₹251 Cr 270,044
↑ 31,450 Treps
CBLO/Reverse Repo | -2% ₹4 Cr Net Receivables / (Payables)
CBLO | -0% -₹1 Cr 2. Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund
Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund
Growth Launch Date 20 Mar 12 NAV (03 Oct 25) ₹34.1246 ↓ -0.39 (-1.14 %) Net Assets (Cr) ₹725 on 31 Aug 25 Category Gold - Gold AMC Birla Sun Life Asset Management Co Ltd Rating ☆☆☆ Risk Moderately High Expense Ratio 0.51 Sharpe Ratio 2.66 Information Ratio 0 Alpha Ratio 0 Min Investment 100 Min SIP Investment 100 Exit Load 0-365 Days (1%),365 Days and above(NIL) Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 30 Sep 20 ₹10,000 30 Sep 21 ₹8,974 30 Sep 22 ₹9,669 30 Sep 23 ₹11,048 30 Sep 24 ₹14,179 30 Sep 25 ₹21,356 Returns for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund
absolute basis
& more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
basis. as on 3 Oct 25 Duration Returns 1 Month 10.5% 3 Month 20.2% 6 Month 28.2% 1 Year 52.4% 3 Year 30.5% 5 Year 16.9% 10 Year 15 Year Since launch 9.5% Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis
Year Returns 2024 18.7% 2023 14.5% 2022 12.3% 2021 -5% 2020 26% 2019 21.3% 2018 6.8% 2017 1.6% 2016 11.5% 2015 -7.2% Fund Manager information for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund
Name Since Tenure Priya Sridhar 31 Dec 24 0.67 Yr. Data below for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund as on 31 Aug 25
Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 1.51% Other 98.49% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity Aditya BSL Gold ETF
- | -100% ₹724 Cr 79,896,220
↑ 3,972,596 Clearing Corporation Of India Limited
CBLO/Reverse Repo | -0% ₹2 Cr Net Receivables / (Payables)
Net Current Assets | -0% -₹1 Cr 3. HDFC Gold Fund
HDFC Gold Fund
Growth Launch Date 24 Oct 11 NAV (03 Oct 25) ₹34.9916 ↓ -0.22 (-0.62 %) Net Assets (Cr) ₹4,915 on 31 Aug 25 Category Gold - Gold AMC HDFC Asset Management Company Limited Rating ☆ Risk Moderately High Expense Ratio 0.49 Sharpe Ratio 2.55 Information Ratio 0 Alpha Ratio 0 Min Investment 5,000 Min SIP Investment 300 Exit Load 0-6 Months (2%),6-12 Months (1%),12 Months and above(NIL) Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 30 Sep 20 ₹10,000 30 Sep 21 ₹8,979 30 Sep 22 ₹9,716 30 Sep 23 ₹11,065 30 Sep 24 ₹14,244 30 Sep 25 ₹21,453 Returns for HDFC Gold Fund
absolute basis
& more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
basis. as on 3 Oct 25 Duration Returns 1 Month 10.4% 3 Month 19.8% 6 Month 27.5% 1 Year 52.2% 3 Year 30.6% 5 Year 16.8% 10 Year 15 Year Since launch 9.4% Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis
Year Returns 2024 18.9% 2023 14.1% 2022 12.7% 2021 -5.5% 2020 27.5% 2019 21.7% 2018 6.6% 2017 2.8% 2016 10.1% 2015 -7.3% Fund Manager information for HDFC Gold Fund
Name Since Tenure Arun Agarwal 15 Feb 23 2.54 Yr. Nandita Menezes 29 Mar 25 0.43 Yr. Data below for HDFC Gold Fund as on 31 Aug 25
Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 1.62% Other 98.38% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity HDFC Gold ETF
- | -100% ₹4,914 Cr 558,222,024
↑ 22,311,579 Treps - Tri-Party Repo
CBLO/Reverse Repo | -0% ₹14 Cr Net Current Assets
Net Current Assets | -0% -₹14 Cr 4. Invesco India Gold Fund
Invesco India Gold Fund
Growth Launch Date 5 Dec 11 NAV (01 Oct 25) ₹33.1717 ↑ 0.78 (2.42 %) Net Assets (Cr) ₹193 on 31 Aug 25 Category Gold - Gold AMC Invesco Asset Management (India) Private Ltd Rating ☆☆☆ Risk Moderately High Expense Ratio 0.37 Sharpe Ratio 2.51 Information Ratio 0 Alpha Ratio 0 Min Investment 5,000 Min SIP Investment 500 Exit Load 0-6 Months (2%),6-12 Months (1%),12 Months and above(NIL) Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 30 Sep 20 ₹10,000 30 Sep 21 ₹8,950 30 Sep 22 ₹9,781 30 Sep 23 ₹11,096 30 Sep 24 ₹14,294 30 Sep 25 ₹21,178 Returns for Invesco India Gold Fund
absolute basis
& more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
basis. as on 3 Oct 25 Duration Returns 1 Month 12.4% 3 Month 20.3% 6 Month 26.9% 1 Year 52.1% 3 Year 30.4% 5 Year 16.7% 10 Year 15 Year Since launch 9.1% Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis
Year Returns 2024 18.8% 2023 14.5% 2022 12.8% 2021 -5.5% 2020 27.2% 2019 21.4% 2018 6.6% 2017 1.3% 2016 21.6% 2015 -15.1% Fund Manager information for Invesco India Gold Fund
Name Since Tenure Krishna Cheemalapati 1 Mar 25 0.5 Yr. Data below for Invesco India Gold Fund as on 31 Aug 25
Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 5.97% Other 94.03% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity Invesco India Gold ETF
- | -96% ₹185 Cr 207,678
↑ 7,236 Triparty Repo
CBLO/Reverse Repo | -4% ₹8 Cr Net Receivables / (Payables)
CBLO | -0% ₹0 Cr 5. SBI Gold Fund
SBI Gold Fund
Growth Launch Date 12 Sep 11 NAV (03 Oct 25) ₹34.2266 ↓ -0.24 (-0.69 %) Net Assets (Cr) ₹5,221 on 31 Aug 25 Category Gold - Gold AMC SBI Funds Management Private Limited Rating ☆☆ Risk Moderately High Expense Ratio 0.3 Sharpe Ratio 2.58 Information Ratio 0 Alpha Ratio 0 Min Investment 5,000 Min SIP Investment 500 Exit Load 0-1 Years (1%),1 Years and above(NIL) Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.
Date Value 30 Sep 20 ₹10,000 30 Sep 21 ₹9,030 30 Sep 22 ₹9,763 30 Sep 23 ₹11,132 30 Sep 24 ₹14,369 30 Sep 25 ₹21,663 Returns for SBI Gold Fund
absolute basis
& more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate)
basis. as on 3 Oct 25 Duration Returns 1 Month 10.4% 3 Month 19.8% 6 Month 27.6% 1 Year 52% 3 Year 30.7% 5 Year 16.9% 10 Year 15 Year Since launch 9.1% Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis
Year Returns 2024 19.6% 2023 14.1% 2022 12.6% 2021 -5.7% 2020 27.4% 2019 22.8% 2018 6.4% 2017 3.5% 2016 10% 2015 -8.1% Fund Manager information for SBI Gold Fund
Name Since Tenure Raviprakash Sharma 12 Sep 11 13.98 Yr. Data below for SBI Gold Fund as on 31 Aug 25
Asset Allocation
Asset Class Value Cash 1.46% Other 98.54% Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio
Name Holding Value Quantity SBI Gold ETF
- | -100% ₹5,221 Cr 593,717,240
↑ 32,905,406 Treps
CBLO/Reverse Repo | -0% ₹23 Cr Net Receivable / Payable
CBLO | -0% -₹22 Cr
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Research Highlights for IDBI Gold Fund