If it isn't double-digit, it's nothing.
How I invest, what it has actually returned, and how to read those numbers honestly.
I'm Anshul: data scientist, investor, dad of two and road-tripper. I treat my own money like a data problem and share what's worked, and what hasn't. I'm not a SEBI-registered adviser. More about me →
Before returns, there's your income
I started in 2016 on an ordinary entry-level salary in Gurgaon, like most people reading this. Returns compound your savings, but your income decides how much there is to compound. Looking back, these are the four things that made the difference for me. None of them needed luck or a rich start.
First job at an analytics firm in Gurgaon, learning the craft of working with data.
Took the leap for a master's at UCD Smurfit in Dublin, then worked at Microsoft and Deloitte there. In hindsight, that investment in my skills did more for me than any fund.
Came back to India and changed roles when the learning slowed down. Each move was a chance to take on a bigger problem.
Moved into leading data and AI teams. And every time my pay went up, I raised my investments before my lifestyle caught up.
📚 Learn what's scarce
Skills your industry is short of get paid well. Tenure alone rarely does.
🔁 Don't wait for appraisals
Bigger roles and bigger problems moved me forward more than annual increments did.
📈 Invest the raise
When income rises, raise your SIP first. See how much difference it makes in the step-up SIP calculator.
Three alternatives, three honest numbers
Equity is my engine. These are the boosters I use to push the whole portfolio past 10%. Realised means the money is back in my bank; On paper means it's an estimate until I exit.
My dashboard says ₹4.68 crore. I never had ₹4.68 crore.
Invoice discounting, in one breath
A small business has supplied goods to a big company, but the big company will only pay in 2–3 months. The business needs cash today. So I pay it most of that bill now, and when the big company pays, I get my money back plus a little extra. That's it.
Here's what ₹1 lakh does
Could you do this too?
Yes. You don't need crores. The percentage is the same whether you start with ₹50,000 or ₹50 lakh; only the rupee profit changes. Try your own amount:
Uses my 12.8% from past deals. It isn't a promise: deals can be delayed or default, and the interest is taxed.
See the full breakdown: where ₹4.68 crore comes from, the risks and the maths
So where does ₹4.68 crore come from?
Every time money comes back, I put it into the next deal. The platform adds up every one of those rounds. It's like a shopkeeper's yearly sales: a ₹100 note that goes round the till ten times shows up as ₹1,000 of sales, but it's still one ₹100 note. The ₹4.68 crore is my sales, not my savings.
What the numbers don't show
- These are only repaid deals. Deals still running, or delayed, aren't in this summary. A realised IRR is the result of the deals that completed.
- It's before tax. Interest is taxed at your slab. At 30%, 12.8% becomes roughly . Holding through an HUF or a lower-slab family member can legitimately reduce that; try the HUF tax calculator.
- Idle days cost money. Days when cash waits for the next deal earn nothing, so the portfolio return is a little below the deal IRR. See it in the reinvestment calculator.
- The risk is real. Invoice discounting is mostly unsecured. I spread money across many small deals, and it's one part of a wider portfolio, not all of it.
The full maths behind 12.8%
How much capital was actually working?
Depends on how long these deals span. Slide to see the estimate.
The yearly return stays the same whatever the period: it depends on the gain per deal and how fast money comes back, not on how big the turnover looks.
See the full breakdown: step by step, the chart and the lock-ins still running
Where the interest went: the one closed lock-in
Still running On paper
The platform counts loans that haven't been repaid yet at full value, so these numbers can still fall as defaults show up.
See the full breakdown: each property, why the % is magnified, and what could still change
Why my money moves faster than the property
Under-construction homes are bought on a construction-linked plan: roughly 30% is paid at booking and the rest as the building goes up. So my money controls a slice of property about three times its size. Every 1% the price moves becomes roughly 3% on my money, in both directions.
What could still change this
- It isn't sold yet. The gain is real only when the SPV (the company that owns the flats for all of us) sells. Until then it's an estimate.
- The developer's latest price isn't a resale price. Selling an under-construction flat second-hand often fetches less than the developer's current rate.
- More instalments may be due. If the next construction payment (typically ~20%) is made before exit, more money goes in and the % return on it falls.
- Costs come off the top: the platform's performance fee, selling costs and capital gains tax.
- Leverage cuts both ways. A 10% fall in price would be roughly a 30% loss on my money. Delays stretch the holding period and lower the yearly return.
- It's illiquid. I can't sell my slice whenever I like; I'm planning to hold for the expected term.
What you could do this week
You don't need my numbers to start. Four small steps, about an hour in all, and you'll know more about your money than most people ever do.
My asset allocation
How I got here
Snapshots from my portfolio
Past returns are not an indicator of future returns. These are my personal results, shared for education. They are not investment advice, and every investment mentioned carries risk, including the loss of capital.