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06Oct2021

Millennials Need an IFA

Today, investing is far easier than it has ever been. Anyone can register for an account on one of hundreds of online investment platforms, click a few buttons and voila! Investing! However, if you read the disclaimer on any of these platforms, it is clearly stated that between 70% and 90% of investors lose money while trading on the platform. Of course, everyone knows there is risk to any investment – but millennials are taking up investing and are willing to risk more because they feel they have plenty of time to earn their money back if it all goes wrong. So how does a financial advisor fit into such a world? Well, quite simply, with a larger number of young people wanting to invest their money, and hoping for good returns, there is a constantly growing number of potential clients. Young investors with real investment goals need someone to guide them and help them make sure their money grows rather than deserts them. Take Less Risk! There are a few options which may be attractive to these young millennials, while also offering attractive income to the financial advisor. A ten-year investment into property, for example, can offer high returns to the client and to financial advisors, with the client owning a property at the age of 30. This property can then be rented out for further income over many years to come. Or how about investment products that provide a lot less risk to these millennials’ money? Stocks and cryptocurrency investments are popular among young people, but what about products with much less risk for slightly lower reward? Structured products, bonds, multi-asset funds – there are many different ways to sell young people on your services – all it costs them is their faith in you (and a small fee for your services). They spend less time researching individual stocks and more time doing what makes them happy. According to Clutch, in America alone, 88% of millennials are investing their money but only 55% are confident in their money management skills. That’s at least 33% of millennials in one country who are just waiting for the correct financial advisor to come along and manage the money for them. NEBA has products to offer clients in pretty much every country, so if you are ever unsure what’s on offer for millenial clients, get in touch! An IFA / Client relationship with young people is a perfect solution for long term financial security. You could work together for 30, 40, or even 50 years. Many of the older generation have made their money and can afford the larger lump sums today, but if you are looking for your own long-term growth, invest in the long-term clients. by Joshua Jameson-Rickardwww.nebafinancialsolutions.com
  • 6 Oct, 2021
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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30Apr2020

Left deVere Group Recently?? This is what you should know….

NEBA Financial Solutions have worked with IFAs all over the world for many years in a number of different ways. Unsurprisingly, many many of them started at deVere. For all that might be said about deVere, we at NEBA have a lot of respect for deVere and what they have accomplished even though they are not our client. Regardless of how anyone personally feels about deVere, nobody can deny the success they have had. The vast majority of IFAs we interact who are most successful started at this company. It has proven time and time again to be a great training ground for success. However, when IFAs leave to set up on their own or join another firm for better commission (as there is a lot better on offer out there), many simple mistakes are made by more than a few IFAs. So why write this? No, we are not trying to convince you to go back, although many IFAs do return to deVere. There is so much more money to be made. The reason is simple: DON’T MAKE STUPID CHOICES!! When you leave quite often there is nobody restricting your investment decisions and a world of options is opened up to you. It’s about putting your clients first. Here are some tips to help you keep your clients happy and avoid death threats: Choose the right company to work with Higher commission rates should not be the only thing that attracts you to a company. Did you know that most IFAs who leave deVere end up earning less money than they did before? Having higher commission rates without the right work ethic is a recipe for disaster. Keep up the good habits you have formed. The company you work with should also be regulated somewhere. If not, the amount and type of business you can do would be restricted e.g. SIPPs etc…. NEBA work with IFA companies all over the world and can advise you what is a good deal and who is trustworthy in your area to work with. For those branching out on their own (starting their own company) choosing the right Network is essential. Networks basically provide TOB with all the Platforms you need for a small cut of the reveune. Often TOBs can’t be obtained without regulation or a history of business making it difficult for new companies starting up. For a list of Networks we recommend, email john@nebafinancialsolutions.com. There are pros and cons to each. A Network is only suitable for those who can operate their own office as you are essentially on your own, just tapping into someone else’s TOB with Platforms. Some have joining applications of $2500+, a monthly charge + up to 20% of commission. Others just take 15-20% of commission. This can be a highly rewarding move for the more experienced IFA, but damaging if you are not quite ready to branch out on your own. 2. Structured Products Ex-deVere IFAs seem to ask for the same type of structured Notes. Does S&P 500, FTSE 100 & Eurostoxx sound familiar? These are often described as the “Major Indexes”. Did you know that this combination of Indexes in a Structured Note lowers the return for the client and doesn’t lower volatility to make it safer? There are many other “Safe” Indexes to use which will produce just as much (if not more) safety and a higher return. “Can’t be” I hear you say! Well, unless you are a Structured Note specialist and know how they are priced, you should listen up! It has more to do with the correlation between the underlying assets than the assets themselves. How Structured Notes are priced is a whole separate article, so I will leave it here. NEBA are happy to support you by giving rationale behind any Index used to help you explain to your clients. Just because it is what you sold in the past, it doesn’t mean that it is still best today! 2. Other Bad Investment Choices There are literally hundreds of companies out there. They also have sales men and women telling IFAs stories about “their investments” and “how good they are”. They make everything sound so wonderful to build your confidence in what their selling. I am surprised how many IFAs fall for these tricks. As a sales person yourself, shouldn’t you be able to recognise when you are being sold to? Look into any investment you promote to your clients. If it sounds too good to be true, it often is regardless of the justification given to why it is not too good to be true. Sad to say that some IFAs simply don’t care about the risks choosing to ignore tham and are attracted to the ridiculously high commission on offer. Hopefully if you are reading this, you are not one of them. Here are some thoughts and examples of investments to avoid: Car Park or other property investments – Guaranteed return + Guaranteed buy back after 5 years. The T&C’s state that the guaranteed buy back is conditional on them having a buyer. WHAT??? That is like me saying I guarantee to sell your car in a week……. “as long as I have a buyer”. NEBA advised people to avoid these years ago. https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-7217241/Park-sold-airport-car-park-spaces-investment-goes-bust.html Any Fund or Loan Note that pays stupid commission to you, high return to the client, high commission to the distributor and the investment itself needs to make money. Mmmmm….. I am sure that all these people can be paid and the client will still get his money right?? Some Loan Notes are fine otherwise they wouldn’t exist. However, many that are promoted to IFAs have a great sounding story e.g. High Guaranteed return, 100% Capital Protected, high commission. Not so useful when the Capital Protection is worthless! https://beatthebanks.co.uk/unregulated-pensions-investments/dolphin-trust/ Might be worth reading https://nebablog.com/2018/08/13/100-capital-protection-myth-or-real/ These are just a few of the hundreds of examples ex-deVere IFAs have invested into. In summary, leaving deVere can be the best move you have ever
  • 30 Apr, 2020
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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01Apr2020

Panic Selling…. Don’t be STUPID!!

Is the World Ending? Should I Sell? During times of high volatility, it can be very tempting to want to pull out of your stock market investment. But according to a recent study by Bank of America this might be the worst thing you can do. Nobody can fully predict the markets which is why so many Fund managers experienced losses. “What if they fall further??” some people say. Even though nobody can predict major events like COVID 19, the can manage event risk after they have happened. In English, this means that although the Stock Markets may still fall, your Fund Manager will already have adapted his strategy to mitigate “event risk”. The the risk of further drop is still there, but any drop should be a fraction of the markets. Panic selling not only locks in losses but also puts investors at risk for missing the market’s best days. For you often find that the best days in the stock market come right on the back of the worst days. Your Fund manager uses techniques to take advantage of upside movement. Take last month as an example (March 2020). The indexes posted sizeable losses on many days but also enjoyed its two largest daily point gains on record. The impact of missing those large up days is extremely significant. According to the Bank of America study, if an investor missed the 10 best days of each decade since 1930 their total returns would be just 91% verses 14,962% if they just stayed invested the whole time. Think about it. Missing just the single best day each year lowers returns from 14,962% down to 91%. The only way you can make sure you catch those big up days is to stay invested even though you want to sell out. Experts advise investors to avoid the impulse to time the market, which can be difficult even for professional traders. According to an Axis Mutual Fund study spanning a period of 16 years from 2003 to 2019, equity funds delivered a compound annual growth rate of 18.8% but investors in these funds only returned 12.5%? Why is that? It is because investors try and time the market and mostly get it wrong. The study also found large fund inflows happened after a period of good returns, not before it. We see this all the time. Investors try to time the market but only end up making things worse. They would be better to ride it out. We know it is tough watching your investments fall but it will be tougher if you miss the recovery. We will close with a comment from Warren Buffett which he wrote in his most recent letter to shareholders. “Anything can happen to stock prices tomorrow. Occasionally, there will be major drops in the market, perhaps of 50% magnitude or even greater. But the combination of The American Tailwind … and the compounding wonders described by Mr. [Edgar Lawrence] Smith, will make equities the much better long-term choice for the individual who does not use borrowed money and who can control his or her emotions.” What Buffett is ultimately saying is “keep calm, and invest for the long term.” If your adviser has allowed you to sell out your investments without staging a serious protest, FIND A NEW ADVISER!! The same goes for people who have money sitting in cash right now. If your adviser has not strongly encouraged you to get it invested now, FIND A NEW ADVISER!! There is absolutely no point in sticking with an adviser or an advisory compay that knows less than you! www.nebawealth.com, www.nebafinancialsolutions.com Warning: This strategy is not for people who have invested in a few stocks. “Panic Selling…. Don’t be STUPID!!” was written for people invested in Mutual Funds and/or those with a diverse portfolio of stocks. If in doubt, speak to a qualified professional. Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds
  • 1 Apr, 2020
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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06Mar2020

How UCITS Funds Protect Investors

One of the cornerstones of the European Union’s UCITS (Undertaking in Collective Investments in Transferable Securities) directives governing investment funds is the concept of investor protection. Built up by a series of laws that have come into effect between 1988 and July 2011, the UCITS regime aims to provide individuals with a secure environment for fund investing. It sets out universal rules on how these funds should be structured, managed and governed, and how their assets should be safeguarded. Funds that meet these criteria can be sold freely to the public in any EU country, provided that they meet the standard UCITS notification requirements. Arguably the UCITS standards of investor protection are the most important factor in their development over two decades into a trusted brand not just in Europe but worldwide. Therefore, it’s worth taking a closer look at various important aspects of investor protection contained in the UCITS framework: Eligible assets Diversification Liquidity Valuation Risk management and compliance Oversight and safekeeping Fund information Eligible assets UCITS funds are subject to rules on what kind of assets they are allowed to invest in (eligible assets), which you will find in the investment policy section of a fund’s prospectus. Generally, they must invest in transferable securities or in other liquid financial assets – for example, money-market instruments, bonds, shares and any other instruments offering the right to acquire these securities through subscription or exchange, as well as other funds and bank deposits. Under certain conditions they may also use financial derivative instruments, such as futures, options or swaps based on an eligible UCITS asset or an approved financial index – either for investment or hedging purposes (to reduce the risk of the portfolio). Since the UCITS directive defines eligible assets in general terms, European regulators have issued additional guidelines to ensure there is a common understanding of what kind of assets may be acquired by a UCITS fund. Diversification Diversification is a vital means of reducing risk for investors of all kinds, from the biggest pension schemes to individuals putting their savings into funds. Different types of fund give investors access to asset classes and strategies whose performance may vary according to the market and economic conditions. The vast range of UCITS funds on the market offers investors diversification in terms of the assets in which funds invest, the economic or business sectors they cover, and the countries or regions where investments are located. Since UCITS funds are designed to be suitable to the retail investors, their rules build in certain levels of diversification with the aim of reducing their vulnerability to the performance of a small number of assets. In general, the more different assets a fund holds, the less the risk to investors of losing a substantial portion of their portfolio if one particular asset falls in value. Liquidity One of the most important characteristics of UCITS is the ease of buying or selling a fund’s shares or units. This means that investors wishing to sell their holdings in a fund, whether because they believe the value may fall or for any other reason, can do so without delay. As a general rule, investors may buy or sell UCITS shares or units at least twice a month, subject to limited exceptions, but in fact the vast majority of UCITS funds offer daily liquidity. The sale or purchase price is determined by the Net Asset Value per share or NAV. NAV is equal to the net assets of the fund divided by the number of shares or units held by investors. In most cases sales and purchases are subject to fees and commission charges. Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that are UCITS, which are themselves listed and traded on public markets, may enable investors to buy and sell shares at any time those markets are open. However, their ability to trade and the price offered will depend on the availability of other buyers or sellers. Valuation For investors to have confidence in a UCITS fund, they must be able to trust the valuations it uses for individual assets and for the NAV. Investors buy shares or units in a UCITS without knowing the exact price, which is only established after the deal has been placed. As a rule, the latest official market closing prices must be used to value publicly-traded securities, otherwise a ‘fair market value’ must be provided. This is designed to offer protection against late trading, market timing and other practices that can affect the value of a fund. There are also prescribed rules for valuing certain assets such as short-term commercial debt and OTC derivative instruments (short for over the counter) that are not listed or traded on public exchanges. The management company of a UCITS fund must put in place valuation procedures for derivatives that are appropriate to their level of complexity, and details of the process must be disclosed to investors. The manager may appoint an outside firm to carry out such valuations. If it does so in-house, the process must be independent of the portfolio management to avoid conflicts of interest. Risk management All investments involve at least some risk. What is important is that a UCITS fund adheres to the level of risk it has told investors it will take. Managers must have procedures to measure the risk of a fund’s investments at all times, and the risk management function must be independent of the portfolio management activity, to minimise the possibility of conflicts of interest. The manager may hire an outside firm to provide risk monitoring and measurement if necessary. The risk management procedure for a UCITS fund must be appropriate, fulfil specific requirements, be described in detail, and approved by the CSSF. Oversight and safekeeping There is broad range of supervision, checks and balances at different levels to ensure that the interests of investors are protected. First, management and investment companies of UCITS are responsible for the oversight of the fund’s activities and the safeguarding of investors’ interests. They must have
  • 6 Mar, 2020
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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  • diversification, Eligible Assets, Funds, Liquidity,
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05Mar2020

Best Advice When You Make Mistakes With Money According to a Financial Planner

Let’s take a quick quiz. Count how many times you answer “yes” to the following questions: Have you ever… Overdrafted your checking account? Forgotten to pay a bill? Spent more than you earned? Acted on bad financial advice? Chosen to spend your money instead of save it? Ignored a financial problem instead of dealing with it? Procrastinated on an important task in your financial life until it was too late Now, add up the total. Is your score “1” or higher? Congratulations! You’re perfectly normal. Everyone makes mistakes with their money. The first thing you need to do when you make a money mistake is to understand that it’s not the end of the word, and you are not alone. Even financial professionals, money experts, and so called “gurus” of personal finance advice can make financial mistakes. Once you recognize that it happens to everyone, there are a few other steps you should take that can help you better deal with money mishaps. 1. Don’t beat yourself up Before you can move forward, you need to let go. What’s done is done — there is no use in beating yourself up over it. And the longer you wait to address the mistake or ask for help in fixing an error, the worse your situation will get. However, “don’t beat yourself up” doesn’t mean you should forget about the mistake — or blame someone else for it. 2. Take responsibility This is often the hardest part of dealing with a money mistake: acknowledging that you messed up. It can be easier to let go when you feel it is not your fault, but instead of pointing fingers, take ownership of the mistake. Let’s pretend for a moment you overdrafted your checking account or went into debt because someone hit your car and you didn’t have enough cash to cover the repair bill. Surely the other driver is at fault for your predicament, right? No. It might have been the other driver’s fault for causing the accident, but that driver did not force you to overdraw your checking account. You were the cause of the overdraft because you didn’t have an emergency fund available for these kinds of situations. Could you have predicted someone slamming into your car and the subsequent repair bill? No, but life is unpredictable and sometimes things go wrong. You can plan ahead, even if you don’t know what specifically might not go your way, and set aside some cash to use if an unexpected or emergency expense comes up that you can’t otherwise afford. In this instance, taking responsibility would mean saying, “I made a mistake. I didn’t have an emergency fund. But now I’m going to take action to build one.” You might find that taking responsibility actually leaves you feeling more empowered. Once you take responsibility, life is no longer something that just happens to you. Life becomes something in which you have power and agency, and then you’re more well-positioned not only to avoid future mistakes but also to be financially successful by making better choices. Which brings us to step number three: 3. Commit to making better choices If you made a mistake, acknowledged it, and took responsibility for yourself, the next step is to commit to learning from what happened and preventing yourself from making that same mistake again. It’s never too late to get back on track, or to start making progress toward the kind of financial success you want. Again, there’s no point in ruminating on the past. The only thing that matters is your commitment to taking the right steps, right now. 4. Turn your commitment into action As James Clear writes in his new book, Atomic Habits, “people think they lack motivation when what they really lack is clarity. It is not always obvious when and where to take action.” This is the main challenge you face now, as you prepare to move on from your money mistake and make better financial choices in the future. You might be very motivated to succeed — but without the clarity to know what to do, how to do it, or what to focus on, you may continue to make mistakes despite your best intentions. You need the following in place if you expect to start doing better with your money, and continue building good habits into the future: A way to track money coming in and money going out of your accounts each month (in other words, your cash flow). A method to prioritize both your needs and your financial goals. A system to get and stay organized as you work toward what you want. A guide who can help you check your blind spots and filter through all the information that’s out there so you only follow the best advice for you. An accountability partner to ensure you continue taking action (even when you don’t want to or lose motivation). Hiring a financial planner can you accomplish these things. But you don’t necessarily need to hire an expert to help you (although depending on the complexity of your financial situation, you should consider it). You can check these boxes by using apps and tools. You can read personal finance books and follow podcasts from experts in the field. You can join communities where you can share tips and get accountability from others who, like you, are committed to achieving success. The most important thing is that you take the first step — and that you take it now. Everyone makes money mistakes, but few people go through this process of learning from them and improving because of them. Be one of those few, and you’ll also be on your way to being one of the few who enjoys true financial success. Source: NEBA Wealth Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds
  • 5 Mar, 2020
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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05Mar2020

Why is my Structured Note value down when the Assets are up?

Well, unlike Funds, any costs associated with setting up and clients buying into a Structured Note does need to come into consideration. These costs are normally factored into the first 6 months or so. This is unlike many Funds that have an exit penalty spread between 5 and 7 years. So this is only a factor early on in a Structured Note. So why then does the product not track for example, the underlying assets or at least the worst performing asset? Think about this from the Banks point of view for a minute: “What effect does someone selling have on us??” I have covered initial setup costs so not more needs to be said. However, I would like to point out that if you had spent a lot of money setting up an investment (Structured Product) and someone sold the next week, why should the Bank take a hit on this? Is that really fair? It would be like buying a new car, driving 10k then handing it back to the dealer expecting a full refund. Other factors to consider is the Banks balance sheet. A few years ago Commerzbank (a German Bank) had their investment rating downgraded. They launched an aggressive campaign to bring new assets to the Bank. A lot of this money was raised via Structured Notes. Their grade was improved after some time and they are happily A Grade again. If large amounts of people were to sell their investments at the same time, the Bank could once again have their credit rating looked at. So during chaotic global crisis (like COVID-19), the Banks can lower the value of a Structured Note to deter mass selling. Those that panic and still choose to sell essentially make the Bank a little more money. Money that is needed to keep their book of business in good standing with Moody’s and Fitch. Does the movement of assets have any sway on the pricing? Of course they do! But normally just on the downside. If the assets slide, the value of the Note will also slide. If the Assets are massively up e.g. 15% each above the start, unfortunately the value of the Note will not go higher than the value of the next Coupon payment i.e. if the next Coupon is 2% next month, the Note will unlikely be valued at more than 101% regardless of asset performance. In the case of an almost certain Autocall, the Bank may try to tempt you to sell by putting the value at 101.5% as this would save them having to pay out an extra 0.5% when the product Autocalls. At the end of the day, the Bank owns the product and can sell for what they like. However, if they didn’t give a fair enough value on the secondary market, I am pretty sure that people would be less likely to use these investments. The moral of the story is that if you need to sell early, you can. You will most likely get back slightly less than if you held the investment to term. The great thing about Structured Notes is that if you hold the product, the Bank have to honour the Terms at maturity. So don’t panic sell!! Just like a Fund or Stock, if you sell when Markets are down, you’ll get back less than you bought for. Unlike Funds or Stocks, if you hold a Structured Note when markets are down, then you still have 100% of your money unless the value has dropped below the Barrier. e.g. Example 1: You buy into the S&P 500 Index and it drops 15%. Direct investment you’d have lost 15%. With a Structured Note, you’d have lost nothing. Example 2: You buy into the S&P 500 Index and it drops 45%. Direct investment you’d have lost 45%. With a Structured Note, you’d have lost 45%. This is exactly the same but you’d at least be protected for a good chunk of the downside in a Structured Note, and a Fund would have to recover completely. A Note only has to get above the barrier to return 100%. These are general rules for the Value of a Structured Note. There will often be glitches and mistakes in pricing which is just normal human error. See a video here on how NEBA took advantage of one such Glitch with the potential to earn clients over 300% in 4 years: https://www.nebafinancialsolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Whiteboard-Animation_nebalex_New_Recovery_Video-revised-B-1.mp4 NEBA are happy to help put a balanced portfolio together to fit the clients attitude to investing. Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds 
  • 5 Mar, 2020
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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13Nov2019

Why does NEBA have a Wealth Management Division?

Written by John Beverley – Managing Director NEBA Group This is a question that comes up with our IFA clients every so often. Most have known about it for years. What I will try to do over a few short paragraphs is explain why we created the office, its function and how it might help you. Back in 2014 NEBA created a Labuan based Malaysian office. It was originally intended to get TOB with Banks in Malaysia so NEBA could offer Structured Notes to Malaysian IFAs in their local currency as Banks outside Malaysia wouldn’t touch investments in MYR. By the time everything was set up (took until early 2017) this opportunity had long since passed. As you are all more than aware, regulation all over the world has been getting tighter and tighter. This has had a massive effect on the IFAs who support NEBA’s investments as they could no longer look after many of their clients. I took the decision in 2018 to open a Wealth Management division of NEBA and allow IFAs in unregulated Countries, to piggy back on our licence here. This has allowed our clients (you as IFAs) to continue to do business as normal and manage your existing clients (like a Network relationship). The IFAs affected were mainly based around: parts of Africa, parts of Asia, South and Central America. It took several months to work out the kinks of this division of NEBA as Wealth Management was not our main focus nor did we have any TOB in place with platforms. A new admin team were hired, trained and finally in 2019, NEBA had a fully functioning Wealth Management division supporting our IFA clients who struggle to operate where they are. Thank you for those of you who were patient as we set this up and also helped us in the process. NEBA can now offer TOB to IFAs with most Life Companies, Platforms, SIPP Providers, Trust Companies, Insurance and more. I would welcome anyone who does not have licencing, or is setting up their own office in a country where there is no real form of regulation, to get in touch with our team. We’d be more than happy to support you setting up (so long as you continue to use our investments of course!). What we do: NEBA Pay amazing rates on new business (Platform, Funds, Insurance etc..) NEBA Pay on everything (including Trail and Renewals) NEBA Set you up on each Platform to manage your clients NEBA Set up your client accounts on NavGlobal (CRM and asset tracking software) NEBA Provide and online commission report for you to track every penny of commission so you can see what comes from and goes where NEBA Provide guidance and how to guides NEBA Provide Lead Generation for your office (*subject to conditions) NEBA Provide you with licencing coverage to manage your clients regulated activities NEBA Provide our name and a history clients can trust NEBA Provide Model Portfolios You all know how to get in touch with us. We are here to support you! We look forward to continuing to work with you, whether it is to continue to assist your investment choices via our Singapore office, or to work with NEBA Wealth Management licenced via Labuan. NEBA Financial Solutions Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds
  • 13 Nov, 2019
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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24Oct2019

Do I like 95% Capital Protected Structured Products??

Don’t we have a duty of care to our clients?? Questions surrounding Capital Protected investments get sent our way every month without fail. The answer to this particular one is: “No I do not?” The reason is quite simple. The amount of potential return is impacted too much for protection, which in most cases, cannot justify the cost. I will attempt to break down my concerns one at a time. Miselling Have you ever read the book “Story Selling for Financial Advisors”? If not, I recommend it. It teaches the power of adding stories to your selling pitch. The problem is that IFAs are sometimes sucked into the story themselves by some handsome salesman/woman who plays on their emotions with a good story behind a product and flog the junk on the back of that story to their clients. Then when everything goes not as hoped, they scream and shout and accuse the provider of misselling. As sales people ourselves, you’d think that we’d be immune to such stories and be able to fact check the information to see if it backed up the story. What is most likely to happen? What are the risks? Too often we only hear the “best case scenario” and act like American Rupublians or Democrats and are blinded to anything except the side of the story we want to hear. You’ll be shown a Fact Sheet with infomation showing a potential to double your money. But will the FTSE actually go up 100% in the next 5-6 years???? It is often said that the FTSE goes everywhere and nowhere. Low Return If the return is based on the performance of the FTSE, you’d have to be pretty confident that the FTSE would be going up. Otherwise you’d be better keeping your clients money in cash for 5 years. The Graph below shows the last 5 years FTSE perfomance. If the 95% capital protected products out this month (Oct 2019) had started 5 years ago, this would be less than 2%pa to the client. Automatic Loss From the start the client is on the back foot with a 5% loss to make up even if the underlying asset breaks even. Does the client know that he loses 5% the second he invests? Do you? However, 95% Capital Protection sounds a lot better than “5% Loss which hopefully you’ll get back if the investment works”. Unless you are sure the FTSE will go up 25%+ I think there are far better and safer products. Real Capital Protection Capital Protection is only as good as it describes in the detail. So be sure to check the full details and what it is you actually get rather than listening to a story selling sales person. https://nebablog.com/2018/08/13/100-capital-protection-myth-or-real/ But there are Capital Protected Investments out there with Merit. Read the detail on our 90% Capital Protected Investment. Clients get back 100% not 90% and we are introducing a longer 5 year term version shortly. https://nebablog.com/2019/05/16/what-clients-want-but-why-dont-ifas-buy-this/ So what do I think is better?? Something like this has probably more protection even though it has a protection barrier. If the last 30 years are anything to go by, this would have returned 100% of the Capital and at least some coupons if you’d started this product at any point in the past 30 years. Most of the time you would also have received 100% of the return too (depending on when you invested in the past 30 years). More likely to have a higher return too! NEBA are happy to help put a balanced portfolio together to fit the clients attitude to investing. Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds  Share this:
  • 24 Oct, 2019
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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17Jul2019

Can I afford not to have Insurance?

The real purpose of health insurance is not to save your life (just as the purpose of auto insurance is not to reduce your chances of an auto accident). Health insurance–like auto, homeowners and other forms of property insurance–is designed to protect you from financial risk. One obvious risk faced by those who go without health insurance is bankruptcy risk. At that point, medical bills have not only gotten difficult to pay, they are impossible to pay. The family has to start over financially. There’s lots of scary statistics about medical bankruptcies. Many health insurance providers may make wild claims of how much you can risk by not having health coverage in order to get you to buy a policy. Truthfully, there are serious health and monetary risks that come with having no health insurance. When you live without insurance, even the most basic care, such as a flu shot or prescription medicine, can take a financial toll on you and your family. In fact, an annual checkup alone can prove to be too costly for most Americans. This means that you run the risk of missing preventive care and are more likely to suffer negative health outcomes. Living without health insurance is living with the burden of being unable to provide basic health care to you and your loved ones. Why take the risk? I would bet that every expat Financial Adviser who has been in the industry for more than 5 years would have a client or two who has had to sell an investment policy early due to unexpected medical bills for themselves or a loved one. So why do Advisers not spend enough focus on this aspect of financial planning for their clients? You can’t view health insurance as a potential waste of money. It is the insurance you would hope that you would ever have to use. But when you need it, you are so glad it was there. Speak to a qualified adviser now about the Financial Risks you might be taking and see how you can protect your money and your loved ones. by John Beverley www.nebawealth.com Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds
  • 17 Jul, 2019
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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16May2019

What clients want, but why don’t IFAs buy this??

This type of investment has investors all around the world drooling from the moment they first read about it. Those who use IFAs might ask “why does my Adviser not recommend this to me??”. The answer is quite sad. It only pays 1% commission to the IFA! Thank heavens that not all IFAs only care about the commission, otherwise a product like this would never get off the ground. They see a safe investment, high fixed returns, short term (with and option to roll next year) amonst other things. Smart IFAs would use this as part of a Portfolio to add stability during market turmoil. Smart IFAs would use this in their presentation to prospective clients to gain trust, new clients and referrals. Smart IFAs know that if every investment chosen in the Portfolio pays a high commission, the risks to the clients money sky rocket! Smart IFAs put the long term wealfare of their clients above short term moneytary gains for themselves. Smart IFAs would use a product like this to build his client bank and have a long term relationship with their clients. If you have been an IFA for more than 5 years and still looking for the next sale or rebalancing investments into high commission paying products to pay for your rent………… are you really a smart IFA? NEBA are happy to help put a balanced portfolio together to fit the clients attitude to investing. Visit www.nebafinancialsolutions.com to see our Structured Products and UCITS Funds 
  • 16 May, 2019
  • NEBA Financial Solutions
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