With markets recording new peak almost every day, there is a great deal of caution among retail investors. Some are worried about an imminent fall while there are many who believe that strong liquidity in markets may arrest any fall. For those who are worried, investment in balanced schemes are a good option. Balanced schemes provide reasonably good exposure to equities and debt. Among balanced schemes, SBI Balanced Fund has given encouraging performance in the past three-year and five-year periods in comparison with its peers and benchmark index.

SBI Magnum Balanced Fund scheme has given 14.7% and 19.2% returns in the past three-year and five-year period, respectively, while its peers have given 14% and 16.6% returns in the same period. On the equity side, the scheme has healthy exposure to large cap and mid-cap companies . On the debt side, the scheme has good exposure to government and AAA-rated securities. Long-term investors can consider investing in the scheme with a time horizon of least three years.