Pillar guide · 14 modules · 2 paths

Macro, tax, and regulation

The returns that show up on your statement are gross. What you actually keep is governed by three things you do not control: the macro regime, the tax regime, and the regulatory regime. Reading them well does not make you a market timer. It makes you compound efficiently instead of leaking returns to avoidable friction.

Macro and market regimes

Understanding the macro environment will not tell you which stock to buy tomorrow. It will tell you whether the current market setup favours momentum, quality, or defensive positioning. Path 7 builds the framework that systematic investors use to understand the backdrop without getting seduced into trying to time it.

Path 7 · Module 1

How to read the Indian economy: key indicators

GDP, IIP, PMI, credit growth, FX reserves. Which move markets and which do not.

Path 7 · Module 2

RBI monetary policy

Repo rate, CRR, SLR, OMO. Transmission to yields, equity, and currency.

Path 7 · Module 3

Inflation: types, measurement, investment impact

CPI, WPI, core inflation. Which assets protect against which kind.

Path 7 · Module 4

INR, FII flows, and global linkages

Why the dollar index matters to Indian equity. When FII selling becomes a buying signal.

Path 7 · Module 5

Government budget and fiscal policy

How the Union Budget moves markets. Capex cycles, subsidies, fiscal deficit.

Path 7 · Module 6

Corporate earnings cycle in India

Why aggregate earnings move in cycles. How to read the Nifty composite earnings revision.

Path 7 · Module 7

Credit cycle and the NBFC sector

Why banks and NBFCs trade in cycles. Leading indicators for financial stress.

Path 7 · Module 8

Macro regime investing

Four quadrants of growth and inflation. Which factor wins in which regime.

Tax and SEBI regulation

The July 2024 changes to capital gains tax reshaped after-tax returns for Indian investors. STCG went from 15 percent to 20 percent, LTCG from 10 percent to 12.5 percent, and the exemption threshold shifted. Every rebalance frequency and every strategy choice now has a different net-of-tax answer than it did 12 months ago.

Path 11 covers the new rules plus the SEBI regulatory framework every investor should understand. Tax loss harvesting for systematic investors is in Module 11.3, and tax efficient portfolio construction is in Module 11.6.

Path 11 · Module 1

Equity taxation after July 2024: the new rules

STCG 20 percent, LTCG 12.5 percent, ₹1.25L exemption. What changed and what it means.

Path 11 · Module 2

Tax treatment: MFs, ETFs, SGBs, bonds, F&O

Category by category, the applicable rate and holding period for each.

Path 11 · Module 3

Tax loss harvesting for systematic investors

Annual mechanics. Why it matters more with the new 20 percent STCG rate.

Path 11 · Module 4

SEBI regulatory framework: what every investor must know

Registration categories (IA, RA, PMS, AIF), investor grievance, rights.