International Journal of Management, IT & Engineering Vol.9 Issue 12, December 2019, ISSN: 2249-0558 Impact Factor: 7.119 Journal Homepage: http://www.ijmra.us , Email: editorijmie@gmail.com Double-Blind Peer Reviewed Refereed Open Access International Journal - Included in the International Serial Directories Indexed & Listed at: Ulrich's Periodicals Directory ©, U.S.A., Open J-Gate as well as in Cabell‟s Directories of Publishing Opportunities, U.S.A 1 International journal of Management, IT and Engineering http://www.ijmra.us , Email: editorijmie@gmail.com A STUDY ON INVESTOR PREFERENCE TOWARDS EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (GOLD) OVER PHYSICAL GOLD. Noonu Mary Jose, M.Phil. Scholar Amrita ViswaVidyapeedam ABSTRACT Gold has always been considered as a safe haven for investors in India. Culture of the country has also contributed a lot to this scenario. With the change in time the form of gold investment has taken various forms. The study attempts to study the preference of investors towards Exchange Traded Fund (gold) and the various aspects of diverting gold investment into this electronic form. Keywords: Exchange Traded Fund (Gold), investment, preference INTRODUCTION “It is not how much money you make, but how much money you keep, how hard it work s for you and how many generations you keep it for” – Robert Kiyosaki The income that a person receives may be used for purchasing goods and services that he currently requires or it may be saved for future needs. In other words, income received can be spent for current consumption and future consumption. Savings are generated when a person abstains from present consumption for a future benefit. The person saving a part of his income tries to find a temporary repository for his savings, until they are required to finance his future expenditure. This result in investment Savings kept as cash are barren and do not earn anything. Hence savings are invested in assets depending on their risk and return characteristics. The objective of the investor is to minimize the risk involved in investment and maximize the return from the investment. Investments can either be Financial Investments, which are in the form of certificates and documents or Non-Financial Investments, which are in physical form. In India gold has always held importance as a good investment alternative since the days of our ancestors. But the recent trends of robbery, murders and greed for the yellow metal with the difficulty of storage and safety of physical gold had made gold a risky investment. In addition fraudulent and non-uniform practices followed by jewellers and difficulty in establishing the purity of gold contributed to the popularity and desirability of „ETF (gold).