'99% are gamblers': Fund manager shreds India’s 30% return fantasy in post

A top fund manager just torched the dreams of India’s young investors and his brutal truth bomb is now going viral. For anyone betting on 30% annual returns, Sunil Singhania has a reality check: “If you find someone who can do that, I’ll hire them immediately.”

Finfluencer Sharan Hegde’s recent LinkedIn post spotlights a conversation with Sunil Singhania, the man who ran Reliance Growth Fund with a 23% CAGR across 30 years. Hegde had invested ₹1 crore with Singhania. 

Two years later, it grew to ₹1.4 crore—a solid 18.9% CAGR. But when Hegde asked about getting 30% returns every year, the reply was blunt.

Then came three takeaways that every Indian chasing quick riches needs to hear.

1. The 5% that separates average from wealthy
Singhania’s fund beat the benchmark by just 5%—25% vs 20%. But that small edge? It turns a ₹50,000 monthly SIP into ₹75 lakh extra over 20 years. “That’s the gap between retiring comfortably—and retiring rich,” he said.

2. “99 out of 100 youngsters aren’t investors. They’re gamblers.”
Option trades. Weekly wins. Target-chasing. Singhania sees it for what it is: roulette with a login. “Even flipping a coin gets you 50% right. That’s not skill. That’s luck.” He warns: chasing 25–30% every year is a fantasy, not a strategy.

3. India is about to explode with wealth—but only for the patient
It took India 67 years to hit its first ₹1 trillion in GDP. The next ₹4 trillion? Expected in just 7–8 years. That means the wealth created in the last 77 years could repeat in under a decade. But Singhania warns: “Only boring, long-term investors will catch this wave—not thrill-seeking traders.”

His advice? Stick to the basics. One Canadian firm he visited had a motto he lives by: “Boring makes wealth.”

Hegde’s punchline: “If something looks too interesting, beware.”