Rajeev Thakkar on Investing During Bear Markets, Cash Strategy, PPFAS Strategy | Money Mindset

In this insightful episode of Money Mindset, we sit down with Rajeev Thakkar, Chief Investment Officer at PPFAS Mutual Fund, one of India's most respected voices in value investing. Rajeev shares his perspectives on navigating today's volatile market conditions, the rationale behind significant cash holdings at PPFAS, and his investment philosophy that ensures profitability even during bear markets.

This podcast was recorded on 26th March , 2025

🔑 Key Topics Discussed:

Market Outlook: Rajeev Thakkar’s detailed perspective on current market dynamics and where he believes markets are headed next.

Cash Reserves Strategy: Why PPFAS Mutual Fund maintains high cash positions and how this approach helps in uncertain times.

Making Money in Bear Markets: Rajeev breaks down strategies to consistently generate returns even when markets trend downward.

Quick Commerce Analysis: Insightful thoughts on the future of quick commerce companies and their viability as investments.

Identifying Investment Themes: A comprehensive guide on spotting emerging investment themes and evaluating their potential.

Rajeev’s Investment Approach: An exclusive look into Rajeev Thakkar’s personal investment process and criteria for stock selection.

Advice for Young Investors: Practical tips and timeless wisdom for young investors aiming for long-term success in investing.

Global Investment Opportunities: Rajeev’s worldview, preferred global markets, and sectors he's optimistic about.

🎯 About Rajeev Thakkar:
Rajeev Thakkar is the Chief Investment Officer at PPFAS Mutual Fund, known for his disciplined, value-oriented approach. With decades of experience, Rajeev is celebrated for his ability to simplify complex financial concepts and his consistent focus on long-term wealth creation.

About the Money Mindset Podcast
Hosted by Sonia Shenoy, Money Mindset is a podcast that brings together top investors, business leaders, and financial experts to decode wealth-building strategies, investment philosophies, and money management tips. Whether you're an aspiring investor, a finance professional, or someone looking to gain insights from market veterans, Money Mindset offers engaging, insightful, and practical conversations to help you make informed financial decisions.
🔔 Don’t forget to Like, Share, and Subscribe for more enriching conversations with industry leaders and trailblazers.
Chapters
0:00 Trailer
1:20 Introduction
9:06 Where are the markets going according to you?
13:58 Why PPFAS is sitting on so much cash?
21:20 how do you ensure you make money in bear markets?
29:30 Thoughts on Quick commerce companies?
35:40 How to identify themes?
47:34 How do Rajeev Thakkar invest?
1:00:20 Advice for young investors
1:06:10 What’s your worldview, where do you want to invest?
1:15:06 Q&A

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[soniashenoyofficial]

Thank you for being here. This interview is longer than usual because we wanted to understand Rajeev’s investment psychology in depth. All feedback always welcome ❤

[anujaagarwal]

Legendary Rajeev Thakkar ji. One of the few sane and credible voices amongst all the market chaos. Glad to be invested with him

[AmitGupta-okwq]

Rajeev Thakkar sir is a legend. No provocative, no biases. He believes in the India story, genuine returns through all thicks and thins of the last 2 decades. Salute to you

[TheCuriousCurator-Hindi]

All my money with him. Have to listen to him.

[RebeccaStallion]

I am trying to avoid making any new buys at this point in other not to get sucked into a bear market trap. It's tough making money in stocks when institutional investors are the driving force behind the selling.. although I read an article of people that grossed profits up to $150k during this crash, what are the best stocks to buy now or put on a watchlist?

[BobLeeHarissi]

Thanks for the perfect update. Your videos have been great!! I am one of your viewers and have been watching your videos lately. I would like to invest but I still can't seem to find the right investment to commit to. How do I properly invest in the market and what strategies do I employ to make significant gains and stable cashflow?

[brittanycarls-lyte]

I was at Redding and i overheard some friends saying the market isn't ripe enough, but Isn't this the best time to buy stocks? I’ve been sitting on over $445K equity from a home sale and I’m not sure where to go from here, do I keep waiting for another market opportunity?

[Gauravkr]

i dont know, there is extraordinarily calmness in Rajeev sir's talking

[samirsharma]

There couldn’t be a talk better than this. Rajeev has the kind of calm thinking based on sound reason that makes this a treasure. Praise to Sonia for being the perfect host. Need more like her.

[balajiachartamraparni]

Excellent… my lump sum investment in 2015 with ppfas now on swp sure to meet my needs in the long run. Respect to Rajeev ji🙏🙏

[nikhileshkulkarni]

A long video indded . But it is not only time worth spent to listen to it but also efforts worth taken to even write down the gems of wisdom scattered around in this video by Mr Thakkar while answering Sonia's questions. One positive aspect of these videos is that intelligent discussions will ultimately lead to the making of the next generation of intelligent investors. Keep up the good work .

[spiritualgupshup]

Sonia is killing this podcast with legendary guys from last few episodes. Pls don't spoil it now....superb

[MatteoGiovanni-mg]

The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dropped around 0.2% The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell around 0.1%, but i heard people are profiting and racking over $350k from all of this through some insider trade... any idea how i can profit from this as well?

[rishabh]

Rajeev thakkar is one of the most calm yet strategic leader ive seen in the industry

[Petrovantt]

SCHD is by far my largest holding with my share count approaching 8000. I don't expect more than 5% growth going forward. S&P's historic return is closer to 9%. If SCHD matches that return we can assume 4% yield + 5% growth = 9%. We have been in an unprecedented bull cycle since SCHD's inception (13 1/2 years). It's not going to continue like that. We have been spoiled.

[kalyanchakravarthy]

Wow! You made him sit for more than an hour 😅, first time I feel he spoke in detail both length and breadth on many topics. Thank you Sonia.

[MatthewZic]

If the market has taught me anything, it is that it usually recovers, but I can't seem to focus on the long run when key things like my retirement and reserve are wreaking havoc on inflation. I need a strong data trajectory and solution as soon as possible.

[rakeshthareja]

Thankyou for inviting Mr Rajeev and he is too humble despite of having such great knowledge.

[ArtforLaughs]

I just feel incredibly stupid for not selling my stocks a couple of months ago. Now i am down over $130k.

[rsriram]

Fantastic talk. Pleasure to have Rajeev ji on the show. Initially few questions from Sonia seems superficial but later parts are better nuanced. Great discussion overall