The Best Is 10 Years Away: Edelweiss MF CIO-Equities Trideep Bhattacharya On Why SIPs Are Better Than Timing The Market

In the first six months of 2026, the benchmark Nifty has delivered negative returns of more than 8 per cent. The negative returns, coupled with news related to geopolitical instability in West Asia, along with tariff-related tensions in 2025, have bogged down investor sentiment in recent quarters.

The gloom has been intensified by narratives questioning the efficiency of systematic investment plans (SIPs) as a way of generating wealth. However, Trideep Bhattacharya, CIO-Equities, Edelweiss Mutual Fund, believes the wealth creation window for India is not over; in fact, its absolute peak is still a decade away.

In an exclusive interview with Outlook Money, Bhattacharya dismissed the growing scepticism on social media around SIPs and highlighted their importance for the retail investor.

The Myth of Market Timing

Bhattacharya noted that while timing the market perfectly can theoretically outperform an SIP, doing so consistently is nearly impossible. He added that despite this, many market participants believe they can beat the system by guessing the exact peaks and troughs.

"If you know how to time markets, then you can time the markets better than an SIP. But then, how many people can time the markets?" Bhattacharya said.

He added that as investors gain experience, they eventually realise that consistency is far more important than prediction. Drawing upon his own experience, he pointed out that even professionals struggle to beat systematic investing over long periods. Thus, he added that SIPs remain the next best option for retail investors.

"Having done close to 30 years of investing in the markets, I can't do it (timing the market). Hence, I would humbly submit that the next best option is still the best way to go, which is in an SIP, especially for retail investors," Bhattacharya said.

Nonlinear Nature of Equities

Addressing investors who have patiently invested over the last few years only to see flat returns, he stressed the non-linear nature of equities. He noted that investors often expect steady linear returns, but markets do not operate that way. Equity performance often stays stagnant for extended durations before making rapid upward movements.

"Usually, what happens is the return gets bunched up, and it comes in one go. But you have to survive till that point in time to get those returns," Bhattacharya said.

Earnings Triggers Over FII Noise

Bhattacharya also dismissed narratives suggesting that Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) are avoiding India strictly because domestic retail SIPs have inflated valuations of Indian equities. Bhattacharya said that institutional capital is objective and follows corporate earnings trajectories as global funds prioritise fundamental corporate health over local sentiment or retail activity.

"Institutions or institutional investors are followers of earnings. If they see superior earnings outcomes, if they see earnings upgrades, they would return," Bhattacharya said.

He noted that other regional markets like Korea have seen allocations grow due to earnings upgrades, whereas India has experienced a flattish phase. Domestic observers often overreact to the everyday movements of offshore funds instead of focusing on corporate performance metrics.

"We are a little more sort of emotional about FIIs, whereas they are quite objective about earnings," Bhattacharya said.

Why India's Golden Era Is a Decade Away

Bhattacharya projected that the absolute best phase of market growth will arrive for investors after nearly 10 years. Bhattacharya pointed to the long-term horizon and said that structural development takes time and cannot be rushed by short-term trends.

He compared India's trajectory to the historical timelines of other regional markets like Taiwan, Japan, and Korea transitioning into developed spaces, which took their economies 30 to 50 years. He added that the historical lifecycle of emerging economies shows that structural frameworks require foundational work before the growth truly accelerates. He urged investors to stay patient as these structural shifts convert into wealth creation opportunities over the span of decades.

"The seeds have been planted since 2014. We are 10 years in, we'll probably take 5 to 10 years more, and then you will start to see the benefit starting to flow through," Bhattacharya said.

Bhattacharya underscored that wealth creation requires staying committed to systematic investment rather than attempting to time entries and exits to make profits. He also mentioned that market returns do not follow in a linear manner, the defining strategy for any mutual fund investor is simply surviving flat phases by remaining invested.