Dhanteras 2025: Kotak Mahindra AMC launches Gold-Silver Passive FoF — How to invest in gold, silver this festive season

As investors gear up for Dhanteras 2025, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company (KMAMC) has launched a timely new offering — the Kotak Gold Silver Passive Fund of Fund (FoF) — designed to help investors participate in the rally of precious metals. The New Fund Offer (NFO) is open for subscription until October 20, giving investors a festive opportunity to diversify their portfolios through gold and silver exposure.

Kotak Mahindra AMC’s Gold Silver Passive FoF provides a simple, cost-effective route for investors to gain exposure to both gold and silver through underlying investments in the Kotak Gold ETF and Kotak Silver ETF. The fund dynamically allocates between the two metals based on quantitative models developed in-house, allowing for disciplined exposure and automated rebalancing without the need for manual intervention.

“Gold and silver have always been integral to Indian households — both culturally and financially,” said a Kotak AMC spokesperson. “With this fund, investors can take advantage of both metals’ unique return drivers in a single product, backed by professional management and transparency.”

Dhanteras gold, silver buying

Gold and silver have historically acted as hedges against inflation and currency fluctuations, while also offering low correlation with equities. Gold typically performs well during periods of economic uncertainty, central bank easing, or geopolitical stress, while silver benefits from industrial demand in sectors like solar energy, electric vehicles, and electronics.

A 50:50 allocation to gold and silver has often provided diversification benefits and, in certain years, has outperformed the Nifty 500 TRI, making the metals a valuable addition to long-term portfolios. The Kotak Gold Silver Passive FoF leverages this balanced approach to help investors capture potential upside while reducing overall volatility.

The allocation within the fund is periodically adjusted to reflect changing market conditions and price trends, ensuring investors benefit from systematic rebalancing.

Silver ETFs

In 2025, silver prices have surged from $28.92 per ounce in January to over $46 per ounce by late September — a gain of nearly 61%. Leading Silver ETFs in India have posted year-to-date returns above 83% and one-year returns exceeding 55%, outperforming several equity and debt categories.

Over the past three months, HDFC Silver ETF FoF – Direct Plan has delivered the highest return at 38.19%, leading the silver ETF segment. In the six-month period, Nippon India Silver ETF FoF – Direct Plan emerged as the top performer with 59.75% returns. Over one year, Axis Silver FoF – Direct Plan outperformed peers, posting 59.63% growth, while for the three-year horizon, Aditya Birla Sun Life Silver ETF led with 34% returns. The performance underscores the growing investor interest in silver as a portfolio diversifier amid global economic uncertainty and rising precious metal demand. 

|   Timeframe   |         Best Performing ETF               |  Return (%) |
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|   3 Months    |  HDFC Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan        |    38.19    |
|   6 Months    |  Nippon India Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan|    59.75    |
|   1 Year      |  Axis Silver FoF - Direct Plan            |    59.63    |
|   3 Years     |  Aditya Birla Sun Life Silver ETF         |    34.00    |

Gold ETFs

Gold ETFs offer a major edge over physical gold due to their low cost of ownership. While jewellery purchases incur making charges of 8–10%, Gold ETFs carry an expense ratio of just about 0.8%, plus minimal Demat and tracking costs. Over time, this cost gap compounds into significantly higher net returns

Over the past year, Edelweiss Gold and Silver ETF FoF – Direct Plan has dominated returns across short- and medium-term periods. It led the pack with 29.70% in 3 months, 44.63% in 6 months, 56.76% in 1 year, and 32.20% over 3 years, outperforming most peers. For longer horizons, LIC MF Gold ETF FoF – Direct Plan topped the 5-year chart with 18.31% returns, showcasing consistent performance. The strong returns reflect gold’s resilience amid inflation concerns, global uncertainty, and central bank buying, making Gold ETFs a preferred investment avenue for stability and portfolio diversification.

| Timeframe |            Best Performing ETF                 | Return (%) |
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| 3 Months  | Edelweiss Gold and Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan|   29.70    |
| 6 Months  | Edelweiss Gold and Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan|   44.63    |
| 1 Year    | Edelweiss Gold and Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan|   56.76    |
| 3 Years   | Edelweiss Gold and Silver ETF FoF - Direct Plan|   32.20    |
| 5 Years   | LIC MF Gold ETF FoF - Direct Plan              |   18.31    |

Bottom Line

With the festive season coinciding with strong performance in precious metals, Kotak’s Gold Silver Passive FoF offers investors an opportunity to participate in the dual strength of gold’s stability and silver’s momentum. For those looking to combine tradition with smart investing this Dhanteras, a diversified exposure through ETFs could well be the most glittering gift of all.