Bonds & NCDs in Shillong — what's actually different here
Bond investing in Shillong is concentrated in two profiles: senior citizens looking for predictable coupon income above bank-FD rates, and the 40+ professional cohort building a fixed-income leg of a balanced portfolio. The framework that made listed-bond access cleaner — SEBI's OBPP regulation, November 2022 — is what we route Shillong leads through while our own OBPP registration is in flight.
What we recommend most often: AAA-rated 3-to-5-year corporate NCDs from issuers like REC, NTPC, NHAI, Bajaj Finance, held to maturity with semi-annual coupon. Current YTM in the 7.8–8.5% range is 75–125 bps above comparable bank-FD rates for the same tenor. For senior-citizen Shillong investors who exceed the Rs 50,000 Section 80TTB deduction limit on bank-FD interest, the post-tax yield gap narrows further in favour of corporate bonds.
On RBI Retail Direct: any Indian retail investor — from Shillong included — can open a Retail Direct Gilt account online and buy G-Secs, SDLs, T-Bills, and Sovereign Gold Bonds directly from the RBI. Zero distributor commission, zero platform fee. This is genuinely the cleanest first-bond exposure for a Shillong investor who wants sovereign-credit-quality paper with no intermediary. We do not run RDG; we point you to it.
On taxation: bond coupon income is taxed at slab rate; capital gains on listed bonds held over 12 months are taxed at 12.5% post-Budget 2024 (was 10%). For a senior-citizen Shillong investor in the 20% slab, the post-tax yield on a 5-year AAA-rated 8% YTM NCD is meaningfully better than the same investor's equivalent bank FD post-Section 80TTB.
Why we list this as a lead-only product: SEBI's November 2022 OBPP framework requires anyone transacting in listed bonds to be a registered OBPP with debt-segment stockbroker membership and RFQ-platform routing. PSS Ventures is not yet an OBPP; OBPP registration is a meaningful Phase 2 capital and compliance decision. Until then, we shortlist + route to an OBPP partner.
Local case study
A Shillong 62-year-old retiree builds a Rs 12 lakh AAA NCD ladder
A 62-year-old recently-retired Shillong professional came in with Rs 12 lakh from a maturing PPF, wanting coupon income outside the equity bucket. We shortlisted three AAA-rated corporate NCDs (3, 4 and 5-year tenors, YTM ~8%), explained the issuer-credit profiles, and routed to an OBPP partner for execution. We also opened an RBI Retail Direct account in parallel for Rs 3 lakh into 5-year SDLs at sovereign credit risk — small, but the cleanest possible fixed-income exposure.
Names, age and amounts changed to protect privacy. Composite of real advisor conversations in Shillong.
FAQs from Shillong investors
Can I buy listed bonds from Shillong?⌃
Yes — via a SEBI-registered OBPP. PSS Ventures is not yet an OBPP; we route Shillong leads to an OBPP partner for execution. RBI Retail Direct is also available from Shillong for G-Secs, SDLs, T-Bills, and SGBs with zero distributor commission.
What is RBI Retail Direct?⌃
RBI's Retail Direct portal lets any Indian retail investor open a Retail Direct Gilt account online and buy G-Secs, SDLs, T-Bills, and Sovereign Gold Bonds directly from the RBI — no distributor, no platform fee. Fully accessible from Shillong.
How are listed bond returns taxed for a Shillong investor?⌃
Coupon (interest) income is taxed at your slab rate. Capital gains on listed bonds held over 12 months are taxed at 12.5% (post-Budget 2024); short-term gains taxed at slab rate. TDS may apply on interest above thresholds. Section 80TTB does not apply to bond interest.
What's the minimum amount I should commit to a single bond?⌃
Face value minimums on the OBPP rails are typically Rs 10,000 per bond (some at Rs 1,000). A practical first allocation for a Rs 5 lakh ticket buys 1–2 different issuers; below that the diversification cost is high.
Should a Shillong retiree prefer bonds, bank FDs, or debt mutual funds?⌃
Usually a blend: bank FDs for the DICGC-insured core (up to Rs 5 lakh per bank), AAA corporate FDs or NCDs for incremental yield, short-duration debt mutual funds for the actively-managed slice. The mix shifts with portfolio size, tax slab, and income needs.
Compliance, in plain English
- Who we are: PSS Ventures Pvt Ltd — AMFI-registered Mutual Fund Distributor under ARN-356973. EUIN is quoted on every order slip.
- What we are not: a SEBI Investment Adviser. We do not charge you an advisory fee; we earn trail commission from the AMC on Regular-plan transactions.
- How Shillong is served: Our advisor meets investors in Shillong on weekdays. Transactions are online; the relationship is local.
- Risk disclosure: Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks. Read all scheme related documents carefully before investing.
- Grievance redressal: Compliance Officer at pssventures.india@gmail.com. Unresolved escalations: SEBI SCORES / SEBI ODR.
- Registered office: Guwahati, Assam. Open Mon–Sat, 10am–7pm IST. This is the address behind Shillong's structured data.
- Lead-only product: Bonds & NCDs transactions on this site are at the callback stage in MVP. Execution is via partner channels until the relevant licence (POSP / POP-SP / OBPP) is in place.