Devi wanted a lock-in to protect her savings from daily needs—something I had initially dismissed as a drawback. But she was right: discipline often matters more than flexibility, especially for long-term goals. Low-income households, as research shows, actively create barriers to prevent premature spending. Even wealthier investors face the same struggle of staying committed to long-term plans. Financial products like insurance tried to enforce this discipline, but often at high costs and poor returns. Solution-oriented mutual funds offered a better balance—goal focus, reasonable lock-ins, and market-linked returns. Regulatory attempts to remove such options risk pushing investors toward inferior alternatives. In ...