Buying gold jewellery or luxury bag as an investment? Radhika Gupta has a warning

Radhika Gupta, MD & CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund, says there is an important distinction to make: something can hold value without necessarily being a good financial investment. Gupta said she loves jewellery herself, but argued that women should distinguish between buying gold for.

Most people do not regularly liquidate their jewellery, she pointed out. Physical gold also comes with issues such as storage, security and making charges.

What Happened

Investors today have options such as gold funds, which allow them to participate in movements in gold prices without physically storing jewellery or gold. Gupta also sees gold as one part of a diversified portfolio rather than the entire portfolio.

• Speaking at the India Today Woman Summit 2026, Gupta separated what she called physical investments from financial investments, and urged investors to think about how easily an asset can actually be converted into money.

• In her “Indian thali” analogy, gold is one of the components alongside equity and debt.WHAT ABOUT A ₹5 LAKH HANDBAG?

• She cited the example of a report about Amitabh Bachchan buying a plot in 2001 and selling it in 2020 for twice the purchase price.

Key Details

Women may read stories about expensive Chanel or Hermes bags selling for more than their original prices in the secondary market and conclude that buying one could be an investment. Gupta's response is simple: enjoy the handbag, but don't build a financial.

• But value and financial utility are not the same thing.

• Her broader message is that gold jewellery, designer handbags, homes and investment properties can all have value.

• This is also why Gupta recommends keeping emergency money in safe and accessible investments, rather than locking it away purely to chase a higher return.

Why It Matters

A luxury bag becoming more valuable in the resale market may happen, but Gupta compared betting on that to “winning a jackpot”. She said buying a home in India is deeply emotional and that people should not feel that every financial decision.

• That, she said, gave her “dignity of money” — the ability to access her own money during a crisis without having to depend on a bank manager or wait for a policy to mature.

• Her mother-in-law told her that the best thing about mutual funds was that when she needed money, she could get it quickly.

What Reports Say

Coverage of the story so far points to:

• Continued reporting by India Today as more details emerge