Whether they invested through SIPs or put in a lump sum amount, risk-averse individ uals have earned the highest returns. These are investors who stayed away from stocks and divided their NPS corpus between G class gilt funds and C class corporate debt funds. On average, gilt funds have given 9.75% annualised returns while corporate debt funds have churned out more than 11% in the past five years. As a result, the average return for ultra-safe investors in the past five years is in double digits. Even in the short term, ultrasafe investors have been the biggest gainers among NPS investors.

Will the good times continue? The gilt funds of NPS are holding long-term bonds with an average maturity of over 19 years and a modified duration of about 9 years.These funds have done well because interest rate cuts have pushed down bond yields. But experts say this trend will not stay forever. NPS is a long-term investment and the bonds are predominantly held to maturity. Over a longer period, the portfolios will deliver returns similar to the yield-to-maturity of the bonds in the portfolios. The average yield-to-maturity of the bonds is roughly 8%, which is higher than the PPF rate but lower than what the EPF offers.

The average yield-to-maturity of corporate debt funds is higher at 8.25%, and their average tenure is also shorter at 7 years. Ultra-safe investors should consider a higher allocation to these funds.