A mutual fund is a pooled common fund which has some pre-specified investing patterns, thus providing the same returns to all participants in the pool. A mutual fund will be managed by a fund manager, who generally sets the rules and who is responsible for the operation and paperwork associated with it.

In this section, we describe the basics of mutual funds, with detailed descriptions of all the types of mutual funds and the regulations and benefits associated with each type. We also take a look at mutual fund strategies and comparisons between mutual funds and other similar investment vehicles.