Paphos People

Heard on BBC News that any funds in Off Shore banks in the Channel Islands will not be covered by the Governments guarantees . Those in the Isle of Man may get limited compensation if/when the banks go bust . Those who invested in Icesave off shore in Guernsey have lost the lot. Where is the safest place to invest savings?

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I intend to live forever -- so far so good.

i gues at this momnet in time it would be better to buy premium bonds (max. GBP30K)..... you may not get the interest others offer but it removes the risk element during these turbulent times, and one has the chance to win GBP1M.

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Daz

Investing in Government-backed investments has apparently become more popular - e.g. National Savings and short-dated Gilts. I spoke to a stockbroker yesterday and he said that short-dated Gilts are in much demand. Yields are not high (under 4%), but people looking for safety are prepared to sacrifice yield.

Kevin

There are literally thousands of different places to invest your savings but a good place would be a 'life assurance product' which combines capital growth on the sum invested AND life assurance.

Because it is not in a 'bank account' there isnt the £30k or £50k ceiling on protection for your money, instead ther is 'Government Backed Investor Protection' which offers much more piece of mind & much better security.

People think that Premium Bonds are the safest place but in real terms the return is so low that when you factor in inflation you actually lose money by investing in them

If you want to know more - ask me!

the bank we used in IOM went bust and we received 100% of our monies. Not sure if that is going to change but we still use IOM banks, however we always keep less than 30 grand in each.

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And the Oscar goes to........

Take a look at the Irish off shore banks.
Anglo Irish are still offering the best returns on instant access accounts.
The Irish Gov. guarantee 100% of invested funds.
You may also like to look at Wrapper Bonds. Although the returns are not that great at present it is a way of avoiding ALL tax including defence tax.

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Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want....

Offshore investments, savings plans, retirement plans etc are actually my companies primary activity.

We are totally independant so we are not tied to anyone fund provider.

There are literally thousands of investment oppertunities out there so how do you know which one is actually right for you?

If you really want to know I can come & see you.

If you like what I can do for you then that is great!

If you dont like it the worst that would have happened is that we have had a chat & a cup of tea!

There is nothing to lose with a conversation......

Hi,

Geoff is absolutley right in what he has posted. Unfortunately do you family commitments he is in the short term at least no longer in cyprus.

As a colleague of Geoff if you have any questions and woul like any independant advice then please get in touch and I will see if I can help you in any way.


I look forwards to hearing from you. I can come and visit you at work or home, or alternatively you can come to see me at our new offices which open in Paphos next week.

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Loving life in Peyia!!!

My name is Gerry Bartholomew. I work for Fraser Mackinlay and have done for the last two years. As a company we are financial advisers and deal with ALL types of money matters, including where your money would be the safest at the moment.


Gerry.

I think a note should be issued stating PP is not responsible for any investments made via site referral. Stocks and shares and all investments (including property) can rise as well as fall. Guarantees, where the word is used normally come with conditions that should be investigated or put in the open clearly.

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Straight talking, no Gimmicks.

Live your dreams.

Of course Tanny,

It is important that people realise that investments rise as well as fall, but to be honest I have never called on a client that does not know that before I explain everything to them, lets face it if they only rose then 100% of the population would invest.
You are quite right, PP are not responsible for any of the investments advertised and that is why I never specify particular investments, unlike some others.
With regard to the previous IFA's, Geoff Rutland and Craig & Jayne, they are no longer on the island, I used to know all three of them and worked for the same company devere, however due to company practice I moved to Fraser Mackinlay who have a far greater choice of financial products.
If you ever need any advice or help, please do not hesitate to contact me.

I have great faith in the Mark Twain paradox:
" The only advice I can give you, is never take anyones advice "

On another note how come all these financial advisors are still working?
Why haven't they retired if they are such good investors?

Nice one,does make you wonder? I think the Cypriot way is ok by me.Keep under mattress until currency change and then buy nice new BMW or very posh Twin Cab!

Hi Gerry here,
You know, I really dont understand why you all sound so bitter? The information posted is designed to help people, if you are not interested, simply ignore it?
Financial advisers are there to assist you in financial matters, those of us that are qualified go through years of training to be able to assist people and fortunately the vast majority of clients appreciate that fact. Please dont try and tar all of us with the same brush, people are happpy and never say anything all the time you are making them money, but if the markets react badly as they have recently, out come these types of comments.
As for why havent we all retired, dont believe the hype that we all make hundreds of thousands of pounds and that "if we know whats going to happen in the markets, why arent we on a beach somewhere...." The facts are with investments of most type they rise and fall and NOBODY can second guess the markets, (including Warren Buffet who made a big mistake when he said that the pound would be at 1.25 against the Euro by the end of 2010). The only difference is that we concentrate on the markets and have had training to study what is happening and how to invest into the best opportunities for clients. Like I said in a previous post, if you want advice, just ask. If you feel that you can do a better job, then why arent you a financial adviser? If you would like a list of my satisfied clients, ask me.
Cheers, Gerry.

Unfortunately Gerry there are firms who's training is to give a new employee (who may just previosuly have been a ticket tout on paphos harbour / a policeman / a postman) a 6 week training course in certain financial products.
They then cold call anyone in the Cyprus Yellow pages and tell them all sorts of things to get them to invest.
Regulation / expected qualifications on the island are not as great as the UK. These advisers (who often have on their business card 'consultant' rather than 'financial consultant / advsier / planner') then leave the island after 6 months and leave the poor old client in a mess having fleeced them for ridiculous amounts of initial commission which has come off their initial investment.

Consequently the clients (and their friends who have listened) have a very poor picture of the way things operate in Cyprus.
All reputable firms can do is treat their clients with honesty, openess, transparency on charging and operate in an ethcial manner. Do things correctly and opinions can be changed.

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Anything posted on this forum is for discussion purposes only. It should not be considered financial advice. Different people have different needs and what is right for one person may be different for another.

I believe you have to be registered here in some way in order to be able to give financial advice. I have this opinion because a few years ago a certain well known Paphos based financial advisor was the subject of announcements placed in the Cyprus mail, by the relevant government department, stating the person could therefore only give offshore investment advice. This seems to me to be evidence that the authorities take their responsibilities seriously.

Bottom line..........check advisor's status before taking advice.

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Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former. - Albert Einstein