News and Views

As most readers of my blogs are our clients they will be aware that we operate a system of asset allocation, or diversification of risk, by investing our clients’ money across the 4 main asset classes of equities, bonds, property and cash and reviewing it regularly....

Status Quo is an English rock band who plays boogie rock as many of our older clients know.  They have had a long list of hits over the years. Particularly memorable songs include Caroline, Rockin’ All Over The World, Down Down et al.  These hits were at the pinnacle...

  A year ago or so, I was being interviewed by Mike Barry on the radio show MK Today and was asked by Mike if investors should invest in London Capital & Finance mini bonds paying interest of up to 8.5% per annum. A quick internet search on my iPad during the show...

The world’s greatest investor, Warren Buffett, is famous for being what’s known as a “buy and hold” investor.  In other words, he finds great stocks with fantastic brands such as Coca Cola and American Express, then invests in the long term, sometimes for decades.  As...

  If you haven’t had your estate planning reviewed for more than four years it is highly likely it is out of date and not fit for purpose, unless yours is a very small estate.  For individuals or couples with estates worth £1 million or more, legislation has changed...

At the time of writing this blog a Brexit deal with the EU seems highly unlikely, thank goodness.  Two years ago there was a referendum. The result was a 52%:48% vote in favour of leaving the EU. There is nothing in EU legislation or rules that require a divorce...

For those of you in the know, the popular acronym of FAANGs stands for Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google.  Up until the last quarter of 2018 these shares were considered by most people to be virtually unstoppable. This resulted in many investors investing...

Back in the nineties there was a fund manager called Johnson Fry who specialised in innovative, exciting, high risk, tax efficient investments. It was led by Charles Fry who eventually sold it to Legg Mason in 2000. One of its most interesting funds was the M&G Worst...

The world of finance and numbers has been a lifetime passion and fascination to me. I can’t explain why. I guess I am just as passionate about figures as David Attenborough is about nature and wildlife. It’s simply in my blood. One of the most historically interesting...

Regular readers of my blogs will be aware that if you are financially comfortably off there are 3 major benefits to you: You live longer; You live healthier; You have less relationship breakdowns. Most of our clients are baby boomers aged 55 plus. Some are in their...

The world’s greatest investor and third richest man on the planet, Warren Buffett, once said “Keep all your eggs in one basket, but watch that basket closely”. He has also been quoted saying “Do not put all eggs in one basket”. So, which of these quotes by the great...

If you are like the vast majority of the British electorate, you will by now be fed up to the back teeth of the Brexit debacle. In a curious twist of fate, we have a leader, Theresa May, who is a Remainer and an opposition leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who is a Brexiter. We...

A few years ago I had a meeting with long-standing clients, who had remained happily, but resolutely unmarried for 25 years and had 3 teenage boys. I was surprised to be told they had married after taking advice from me 2 years earlier! I was stumped. I truly didn’t...

I recently read a BlackRock research study on megatrends, which I found really interesting. What are megatrends? They are powerful, transformative forces that could change the global economy, business and society. These megatrends are longer term in nature and have...

At the time of writing, the world stock markets have fallen in value by 10%-15% over the last 3 months of 2018. This is the worst world stock markets performance since 2008 when we experienced the global financial crisis. Is this a stock market crash or a long-awaited...

I recently read a White Paper called The Efficient Investor by a US company called United Income. The company conducted a wide-ranging study into 62 different US retirement solutions and over 26,000 potential combinations of future market returns. Their 5 main...

A Happy New Year to all of my regular readers! Unashamedly I decided to repeat the following list based on the Nielsen research from the blog I wrote exactly a year ago. TOP 10 NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS: Stay fit and healthy 37% Lose weight 32% Enjoy life to the fullest...

Having run SMEs, small and medium sized businesses, for more than 30 years I have found the help and assistance of strategic alliances and business associates invaluable. The reason why is simply the fact that a business of our size does not have the in-house...