GIFT City Gold Fund: Is Your ₹500 SIP Worth It?

A new fund lets Indian investors buy institutional-grade physical gold through GIFT City's special financial zone. It uses India's own gold exchange — IIBX — to hold real gold bars, not paper gold or ETFs.

Here's what happened: A new Physical Gold Fund launched under GIFT City's IFSC framework, regulated by IFSCA — India's special financial zone regulator.. The fund buys LBMA-certified gold bars traded on IIBX, India's International Bullion Exchange, ensuring globally recognised quality standards.. Recent IFSCA regulatory changes opened the door for commodity-linked funds at GIFT City, making this one of the first such products for retail investors..

What you should do: Compare this fund's total expense ratio (TER) against existing Gold ETFs and Sovereign Gold Bonds before investing — costs matter a lot in gold.. Check whether your investment platform (Zerodha, Groww, etc.) supports GIFT City fund products, as distribution is still limited for retail investors.. If you already hold SGBs or Gold ETFs, calculate your total gold allocation — most financial planners cap gold at 10–15% of your portfolio..

Sovereign Gold Bonds still offer a 2.5% annual interest that no gold fund or ETF can match — if SGB windows are open, they remain the gold standard for most retail investors.