At just 15, Bengaluru student Sinchana Santosh has already developed a strong interest in personal finance and investing. The Class X student of Swargarani School in RR Nagar reportedly manages an investment portfolio worth around Rs 13.9 lakh, with her parents supervising her financial decisions.
What began with saving money in a childhood piggy bank has evolved into an interest in investing, financial education and teaching other young people about money.
Sinchana’s larger goal is now to reach 1 million students across India with financial literacy, using games and experiential learning to make financial concepts easier for children to understand.
From a Piggy Bank to a Financial Portfolio
Sinchana told Moneycontrol that her interest in money started when she was young. She began putting money into a piggy bank and had accumulated around Rs 10,000 by the time she was 12.
She recalled feeling proud as her savings gradually increased and said the experience taught her an early lesson about the importance of consistent saving.
“For me, Rs 10,000 felt like a huge amount at that age. I remember feeling proud every time I added money to my piggy bank and watched it grow slowly,” she said.
According to Sinchana, the experience helped her understand that even small amounts can become meaningful when saved regularly.
Her parents, Santosh Kumar and Keerthi Raykar, also encouraged her to understand money rather than simply spend it.
When Sinchana wanted to buy a telescope as a child, her father asked her to contribute towards the purchase. She approached relatives and raised Rs 10,000 herself, while her parents contributed another Rs 2,000.
She considers that experience the beginning of what she describes as her “money journey”.
How Sinchana Learned About Investing
Sinchana’s parents introduced her to basic financial concepts and encouraged her to understand investing before managing money herself.
She also used YouTube extensively to expand her knowledge of personal finance and investments. Among the creators and channels she has followed are Ankur Warikoo, Dave Ramsey, Power of Money, Mint Wealth and Sonia Shenoy.
In a YouTube video, Sinchana described the platform as an important learning resource and said she used weekends and holidays to study financial concepts.
Alongside online learning, she pursued formal financial education. She currently holds two NISM certifications and one SEBI certification, according to the report.
Her certification journey also included a setback. Sinchana initially missed passing one NISM examination by a single mark before taking the test again and clearing it.
Sinchana Santosh’s Rs 13.9 Lakh Portfolio
Sinchana began investing more seriously this year after her parents moved money from certain insurance policies that, according to the family, were not delivering satisfactory returns.
She now manages the portfolio herself under her parents’ supervision.
Her investments are spread across equities and mutual funds, with exposure to both Indian and international markets, according to the report.
Sinchana has also set a seven-year investment horizon, with a specific objective behind it: funding her master’s education.
The portfolio figure is therefore tied to a longer-term personal goal rather than short-term trading, based on her account.
What Is Sinchana’s GDP Investing Approach?
To simplify how she evaluates mutual funds, Sinchana has developed a framework she calls GDP — Growth, Direct and Passive.
“GDP mantra helps me to identify the right type of fund to invest in. It’s a simpler way to remember,” she said.
The framework reflects three preferences she has described:
- Growth: She prefers growth-oriented funds because she does not currently need the invested money for immediate expenses.
- Direct: She favours direct mutual fund plans, which generally do not involve distributor commissions.
- Passive: She is interested in passive funds that track benchmark indexes.
Her approach reflects her own stated investment strategy and should not be treated as a recommendation for other investors, particularly young people.
From a History Card Game to Financial Education
Sinchana’s interest in learning through games began before her focus on financial literacy.
At 14, she created ITIHASA – The Royal Game, a history-based card game designed around the NCERT syllabus. She subsequently donated 170 game sets to 36 government high schools in Bengaluru and trained school principals to use the game as a learning tool.
She is now applying the same concept to financial education.
Her latest project is a strategy-based financial card game designed to introduce students to topics including budgeting, banking, interest, inflation, investing, risk, insurance, credit, debt and fraud awareness.
Sinchana Wants to Teach Financial Literacy to 1 Million Students
Sinchana’s ambitions extend beyond managing her own portfolio.
She wants to make financial literacy more accessible to young people across India and hopes to eventually reach 1 million students through experiential learning.
Her focus is on making concepts that can often appear complicated more engaging through games and interactive learning rather than relying only on conventional classroom instruction.
In the YouTube video, Sinchana also spoke about encouraging young people to experiment, learn new things and share knowledge with others.
At 15, her journey combines saving, financial education, investing and entrepreneurship, while her longer-term goal is to help other students develop a stronger understanding of money.
