I'm contemplating a jolly wheeze to deal with the Vanguard LS 20 that I hold as a "health insurance" fund. I set it up as a cash stash, and was quite happy to keep it in deposit accounts when you could get 1.5% or so. When rates dropped to virtually nothing I stuckk it in LS 20 on the assumption that it would deliver me a pretty safe 1.5% over time. The rest is history...
So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
I'm contemplating a jolly wheeze to deal with the Vanguard LS 20 that I hold as a "health insurance" fund. I set it up as a cash stash, and was quite happy to keep it in deposit accounts when you could get 1.5% or so. When rates dropped to virtually nothing I stuckk it in LS 20 on the assumption that it would deliver me a pretty safe 1.5% over time. The rest is history...
So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
As someone who was disappointed with the performance of a fund do you really want to bring yet further risk into it with FX?
Personally if you wish to hold it as a health insurance fund, and that will likely be in CZ, then just hold it in CZ.
I'm not an expert when it comes to investing, but overall seem to have done well over time, often better than the fund managers, but probably a little more by luck than judgement. However I've always took the view to not hold too much in one thing where possible, So I probably hold in my pension for instance far more funds than I should (appreciate that some overlap and are ultimately mostly Stock Market driven), other investments range from a fair amount of gold to watches to cash to premium bonds to a bit in currency to structured etc etc. All on the basis that if one tanks I've not put all my eggs in one basket. Of course I could have made multiples more if I'd put it all in the best performing, but seeing my crystal ball has no guarantees the chances of picking that top performer would be unlikely! I also try to take every tax advantage, it still amazes me for instance how many people put so little in their pension........
I'm contemplating a jolly wheeze to deal with the Vanguard LS 20 that I hold as a "health insurance" fund. I set it up as a cash stash, and was quite happy to keep it in deposit accounts when you could get 1.5% or so. When rates dropped to virtually nothing I stuckk it in LS 20 on the assumption that it would deliver me a pretty safe 1.5% over time. The rest is history...
So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
As someone who was disappointed with the performance of a fund do you really want to bring yet further risk into it with FX?
Personally if you wish to hold it as a health insurance fund, and that will likely be in CZ, then just hold it in CZ.
I'm not an expert when it comes to investing, but overall seem to have done well over time, often better than the fund managers, but probably a little more by luck than judgement. However I've always took the view to not hold too much in one thing where possible, So I probably hold in my pension for instance far more funds than I should (appreciate that some overlap and are ultimately mostly Stock Market driven), other investments range from a fair amount of gold to watches to cash to premium bonds to a bit in currency to structured etc etc. All on the basis that if one tanks I've not put all my eggs in one basket. Of course I could have made multiples more if I'd put it all in the best performing, but seeing my crystal ball has no guarantees the chances of picking that top performer would be unlikely! I also try to take every tax advantage, it still amazes me for instance how many people put so little in their pension........
I don't normally chip in on stuff like this as I don't feel qualified to ... but if you are looking for somewhere to keep money for health insurance surely you want it to be in something that is reliable and secure with your money, and a decent return is a secondary preference. A 5.5% savings/bond account seems a good return on your money and with very little risk, if you then compare that to trying to game the FX markets, you could make a big gain, but the potential risk is far higher.
Not sure why the £/CZ is relevant if your health insurance is, I assume, in CZ? You might lose out in % gained in comparison to a UK account at 4% pa but it would also be quicker to access and you wouldn't lose out in any exchange or fees if it is already in CZ
@golfaddick.....any funds capture your interest for 2023? Value funds held up well '22, versus growth. Standup which covers both for me has been Royal London Global equity select.
I don't know if I'm reading the figures correctly (Trustnet) but growth funds seem to be doing well since the turn of the year. 3rd best US fund ytd is our good friend BG American. Top 2 are both by Morgan Stanley. For UK equities Artemis UK Select has started the year well (a fund I invested in before the pandemic). Another one I like is Schroder Recovery, but only because it invests heavily in FtSE100 stocks.
As for Bonds, it seems the usual Strateigic Bonds are back in fashion, ie the ones run by Aegon & Jupiter.
Saying all that I'm sticking by my Value funds as well as Absolute / Diversified Return funds for the fixed income element.
In other news, Chase Savings account moving up to 3% from 2.7% as of 13 Feb!
Yes, pretty competitive for instant access. Marcus are losing out at the moment so I expect they will move quickly.
Investec have 3.22% for their 90 day access account.
Yes only instant access I can see on MSE that is higher is Newcastle BS, Tandem, and Kroo at 3.05%, 3.05%, and 3.03% respectively. Haven't heard of the latter 2 before personally.
I'm contemplating a jolly wheeze to deal with the Vanguard LS 20 that I hold as a "health insurance" fund. I set it up as a cash stash, and was quite happy to keep it in deposit accounts when you could get 1.5% or so. When rates dropped to virtually nothing I stuckk it in LS 20 on the assumption that it would deliver me a pretty safe 1.5% over time. The rest is history...
So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
As someone who was disappointed with the performance of a fund do you really want to bring yet further risk into it with FX?
Personally if you wish to hold it as a health insurance fund, and that will likely be in CZ, then just hold it in CZ.
I'm not an expert when it comes to investing, but overall seem to have done well over time, often better than the fund managers, but probably a little more by luck than judgement. However I've always took the view to not hold too much in one thing where possible, So I probably hold in my pension for instance far more funds than I should (appreciate that some overlap and are ultimately mostly Stock Market driven), other investments range from a fair amount of gold to watches to cash to premium bonds to a bit in currency to structured etc etc. All on the basis that if one tanks I've not put all my eggs in one basket. Of course I could have made multiples more if I'd put it all in the best performing, but seeing my crystal ball has no guarantees the chances of picking that top performer would be unlikely! I also try to take every tax advantage, it still amazes me for instance how many people put so little in their pension........
I don't normally chip in on stuff like this as I don't feel qualified to ... but if you are looking for somewhere to keep money for health insurance surely you want it to be in something that is reliable and secure with your money, and a decent return is a secondary preference. A 5.5% savings/bond account seems a good return on your money and with very little risk, if you then compare that to trying to game the FX markets, you could make a big gain, but the potential risk is far higher.
Not sure why the £/CZ is relevant if your health insurance is, I assume, in CZ? You might lose out in % gained in comparison to a UK account at 4% pa but it would also be quicker to access and you wouldn't lose out in any exchange or fees if it is already in CZ
To your final para, right now my problem is that the Czech crown is at an all-time high against the £. Mate of mine here with serious pedigree in such matters expects it to devalue fast when its clear inflation is under control. At the moment local bank rate is 7% so the currency is bolstered by speculators. Happens he’s half Swiss too. He says that lately the franc has more or less been tracking the euro, but it remains a safe haven currency when things go to shit. Over a longer period too, it has paid off to hold it (vs all the three European currencies I’m closest to).
If the £ would somehow strengthen maybe 3% soonish, then I‘d bite the bullet and ship the „fund“ out here, but I don‘t see any reason why that is likely, unfortunately. My mate reckons it likely to hit parity with the euro in the medium term.
The other option is to believe the bond recovery will continue, in which case I‘d be best off holding in the LS20, and perhaps getting another 5% uplift by year end, by which time the Czech crown bubble may have burst.
I'm contemplating a jolly wheeze to deal with the Vanguard LS 20 that I hold as a "health insurance" fund. I set it up as a cash stash, and was quite happy to keep it in deposit accounts when you could get 1.5% or so. When rates dropped to virtually nothing I stuckk it in LS 20 on the assumption that it would deliver me a pretty safe 1.5% over time. The rest is history...
So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
As someone who was disappointed with the performance of a fund do you really want to bring yet further risk into it with FX?
Personally if you wish to hold it as a health insurance fund, and that will likely be in CZ, then just hold it in CZ.
I'm not an expert when it comes to investing, but overall seem to have done well over time, often better than the fund managers, but probably a little more by luck than judgement. However I've always took the view to not hold too much in one thing where possible, So I probably hold in my pension for instance far more funds than I should (appreciate that some overlap and are ultimately mostly Stock Market driven), other investments range from a fair amount of gold to watches to cash to premium bonds to a bit in currency to structured etc etc. All on the basis that if one tanks I've not put all my eggs in one basket. Of course I could have made multiples more if I'd put it all in the best performing, but seeing my crystal ball has no guarantees the chances of picking that top performer would be unlikely! I also try to take every tax advantage, it still amazes me for instance how many people put so little in their pension........
I don't normally chip in on stuff like this as I don't feel qualified to ... but if you are looking for somewhere to keep money for health insurance surely you want it to be in something that is reliable and secure with your money, and a decent return is a secondary preference. A 5.5% savings/bond account seems a good return on your money and with very little risk, if you then compare that to trying to game the FX markets, you could make a big gain, but the potential risk is far higher.
Not sure why the £/CZ is relevant if your health insurance is, I assume, in CZ? You might lose out in % gained in comparison to a UK account at 4% pa but it would also be quicker to access and you wouldn't lose out in any exchange or fees if it is already in CZ
To your final para, right now my problem is that the Czech crown is at an all-time high against the £. Mate of mine here with serious pedigree in such matters expects it to devalue fast when its clear inflation is under control. At the moment local bank rate is 7% so the currency is bolstered by speculators. Happens he’s half Swiss too. He says that lately the franc has more or less been tracking the euro, but it remains a safe haven currency when things go to shit. Over a longer period too, it has paid off to hold it (vs all the three European currencies I’m closest to).
If the £ would somehow strengthen maybe 3% soonish, then I‘d bite the bullet and ship the „fund“ out here, but I don‘t see any reason why that is likely, unfortunately. My mate reckons it likely to hit parity with the euro in the medium term.
The other option is to believe the bond recovery will continue, in which case I‘d be best off holding in the LS20, and perhaps getting another 5% uplift by year end, by which time the Czech crown bubble may have burst.
In other news I looked at my S&S ISA there out of curiosity and I think for the first time since I bought them i'm actually in the black on my IAG Shares! Barely, but profit is profit!
FTSE 100 broke its’ record high this afternoon at 7,905. Eased a little, but still up 1% at the moment 7,899. All helping my pension pot too, which has recovered really well in the first few weeks of the year.
Done so well this week that Ive treated Mrs Idle to brunch at the garden centre. And it's not even Valentine's day.
Expected techs to take a whack today after yesterday's rise and relatively poor results vs expectations, but it's been very restrained so far. The doommongers are still forecasting a crash, and who is to say they are wrong? But a big drop was predicted in Q1 and if you'd been cautiously out of the market you'd have missed a lot of upside so far.
I decided to look at investments again today before looking at this thread. The US stock market is the most over priced so i avoided that & I'm already overweight in UK so avoided that. I plumped for Emerging markets & Asia exc Japan in some funds. Chose 4 different funds.
Agree with TelMc32 re the pension pot recovering mine now at its highest value ever.
Pot is still down overall, but that’s a consequence of going in on last day of June 2020 and something I totally understand. Since the start of the year it is 4.57% up. Fingers crossed it continues to pick up.
The upside on the perceived poor return in the first 18 months is that I obviously took my pension out of the bank at the right time. My cousin is 18 months younger, at another bank but was offered a similar figure not long after I took mine. He didn’t make the move and his offer is now £350k lower because of the change in the yield curve.
I have recently invested in PB and have just found out that i have won 50 quid. How does NS&I make the payment? Do they send a cheque or is it paid directly into a bank account? If its paid directly into my account how long do i wait before I see this credit?
I have recently invested in PB and have just found out that i have won 50 quid. How does NS&I make the payment? Do they send a cheque or is it paid directly into a bank account? If its paid directly into my account how long do i wait before I see this credit?
if you havn't opened an account online and opted for the funds to be paid directly to your bank account or alternatively re-invested then you will be sent a cheque. If it goes directly into your account it's normally about ten days.
I decided to look at investments again today before looking at this thread. The US stock market is the most over priced so i avoided that & I'm already overweight in UK so avoided that. I plumped for Emerging markets & Asia exc Japan in some funds. Chose 4 different funds.
Care to tell us what 4 funds you went for ??
I hope you didnt avoid Japan altogether as that's one area you should be investing in. I usually recommended 2%-3% in there, the same for emerging markets & 5% Asia - so around 10% in total.
Markets doing really well, my Pension has gone up a ridiculous amount since the turn of the year, over £13.5k just in the month of February so far!
Well yes, my beloved LS20 has gained 4 percentage points in five weeks, and is now down only 10% on the year, from its low of -18 in mid-October. What a time to be alive.
But the question is whether it will keep it up? That means, will bonds generally continue to improve?
I had an interesting pitch yesterday from a young lad who is the investments manager at a branch of one of my Czech banks. He called me because he'd noted the large cash deposits I'd built up there (paying 5.3%). Normally I'd dismiss such calls out of hand but he was polite and also listened as i tried to explain why my situation is different to nearly all his other potential punters. So I popped down to hear what he had to say.
Basically, he was pushing one of their "conservative" funds - but as a short-term play. A tad unorthodox, breaking a lot of investment 'rules' but I could see where he's coming from. His argument is that they believe in a sharp rebound for bonds -this is a bond fund, actively managed - and therefore I might make more than a 5.3% gain over maybe 8 months or so. And actually I've been pondering whether exactly this may happen to LS20, which is 80% bonds. It's all about "should" and "may", whereas 5.3% cash is guaranteed and indeed one of their rivals is offering 6% now. But I promised to look at his fund, try to benchmark it against UK based funds, and give it some thought.
Anyone got any views? He seems to be genuinely interested in feedback, and it's good to encourage young people like him who show a bit of initiative and still listen.
I decided to look at investments again today before looking at this thread. The US stock market is the most over priced so i avoided that & I'm already overweight in UK so avoided that. I plumped for Emerging markets & Asia exc Japan in some funds. Chose 4 different funds.
Care to tell us what 4 funds you went for ??
I hope you didnt avoid Japan altogether as that's one area you should be investing in. I usually recommended 2%-3% in there, the same for emerging markets & 5% Asia - so around 10% in total.
Fidelity Funds - Asian Smaller companies Fund Y- ACC -GB Comgest Growth Emerging Markets GBP U Acc HSBC MSCI AC FAR EAST ex JAPAN UCITS ETF GB Schroder Oriental Income Fund Ltd.
Markets doing really well, my Pension has gone up a ridiculous amount since the turn of the year, over £13.5k just in the month of February so far!
Well yes, my beloved LS20 has gained 4 percentage points in five weeks, and is now down only 10% on the year, from its low of -18 in mid-October. What a time to be alive.
But the question is whether it will keep it up? That means, will bonds generally continue to improve?
I had an interesting pitch yesterday from a young lad who is the investments manager at a branch of one of my Czech banks. He called me because he'd noted the large cash deposits I'd built up there (paying 5.3%). Normally I'd dismiss such calls out of hand but he was polite and also listened as i tried to explain why my situation is different to nearly all his other potential punters. So I popped down to hear what he had to say.
Basically, he was pushing one of their "conservative" funds - but as a short-term play. A tad unorthodox, breaking a lot of investment 'rules' but I could see where he's coming from. His argument is that they believe in a sharp rebound for bonds -this is a bond fund, actively managed - and therefore I might make more than a 5.3% gain over maybe 8 months or so. And actually I've been pondering whether exactly this may happen to LS20, which is 80% bonds. It's all about "should" and "may", whereas 5.3% cash is guaranteed and indeed one of their rivals is offering 6% now. But I promised to look at his fund, try to benchmark it against UK based funds, and give it some thought.
Anyone got any views? He seems to be genuinely interested in feedback, and it's good to encourage young people like him who show a bit of initiative and still listen.
Are you overthinking this?
Of course bonds or other assets might rebound / respond better but at a risk.
If you are getting 5 or 6% risk free what is that worth to you versus the risk of some loss / lesser return?
Broadly anything over a double digit return would be exceptional / above normal expectations (I generalise) so is the ‘difference’ really worth it / important or not?
Markets doing really well, my Pension has gone up a ridiculous amount since the turn of the year, over £13.5k just in the month of February so far!
Well yes, my beloved LS20 has gained 4 percentage points in five weeks, and is now down only 10% on the year, from its low of -18 in mid-October. What a time to be alive.
But the question is whether it will keep it up? That means, will bonds generally continue to improve?
I had an interesting pitch yesterday from a young lad who is the investments manager at a branch of one of my Czech banks. He called me because he'd noted the large cash deposits I'd built up there (paying 5.3%). Normally I'd dismiss such calls out of hand but he was polite and also listened as i tried to explain why my situation is different to nearly all his other potential punters. So I popped down to hear what he had to say.
Basically, he was pushing one of their "conservative" funds - but as a short-term play. A tad unorthodox, breaking a lot of investment 'rules' but I could see where he's coming from. His argument is that they believe in a sharp rebound for bonds -this is a bond fund, actively managed - and therefore I might make more than a 5.3% gain over maybe 8 months or so. And actually I've been pondering whether exactly this may happen to LS20, which is 80% bonds. It's all about "should" and "may", whereas 5.3% cash is guaranteed and indeed one of their rivals is offering 6% now. But I promised to look at his fund, try to benchmark it against UK based funds, and give it some thought.
Anyone got any views? He seems to be genuinely interested in feedback, and it's good to encourage young people like him who show a bit of initiative and still listen.
I don't see a sharp rebound in bonds (capital value) until interest rates start to reduce again. Sounds like frying pan and fire to me.
It's really hard on a forum, I don't know what % of your total investments are in LS20 or how much else you have in shares, high risk, cash etc etc.
FWIW in my SIPP I had around 3.5% in bonds, I sold some (and lost some value!) so have only around 1% now, I moved what I sold into three ETF's, all of which have more than made back the reduction in the bonds and profit on top in the past two months.
My difficulty is banking profit's, my best performer since July is FTSE Developed Europe UCITS ETF which is up 15.52%, although the holding is in relative terms small. My biggest holding (around 20% of my SIPP) is S&P500 ETF, up 12.9% since July, I'm very tempted to bank some of that.
My brother moved back to Ireland last year, kept his Barclays account here, this is now being closed in April due to Brexit. He wants to keep an account here so he has sterling. Any ideas how he could do that without using someone else’s address?
Would his Revolut account do? He has PBs and wants winning to go into account.
My brother moved back to Ireland last year, kept his Barclays account here, this is now being closed in April due to Brexit. He wants to keep an account here so he has sterling. Any ideas how he could do that without using someone else’s address?
Would his Revolut account do? He has PBs and wants winning to go into account.
Revolut are certainly positioning themselves as a main bank and saying you can have your salary paid in. Looking at the NS&I site, you just need to provide your sort code, account number & account name. If he can do that, he should be fine.
All the banks had a “purge” on accounts that they deemed were affected by Brexit. I had my Euro account closed and I worked for them. We also closed accounts for EU entities of our clients who were holding accounts here as a “just in case” scenario (they had been cautious about their own country’s economy several years previous.
The other alternative could be for him to open an account with one of the Irish banks that have branches here (or the North).
My brother moved back to Ireland last year, kept his Barclays account here, this is now being closed in April due to Brexit. He wants to keep an account here so he has sterling. Any ideas how he could do that without using someone else’s address?
Would his Revolut account do? He has PBs and wants winning to go into account.
Revolut are certainly positioning themselves as a main bank and saying you can have your salary paid in. Looking at the NS&I site, you just need to provide your sort code, account number & account name. If he can do that, he should be fine.
All the banks had a “purge” on accounts that they deemed were affected by Brexit. I had my Euro account closed and I worked for them. We also closed accounts for EU entities of our clients who were holding accounts here as a “just in case” scenario (they had been cautious about their own country’s economy several years previous.
The other alternative could be for him to open an account with one of the Irish banks that have branches here (or the North).
Wouldn't it be enough to find an Irish bank that offers a multi-currency account? Maybe it doesn't exist yet, but it occurs to me that if HSBC are there, they might offer a Global Money account soon. The UK launch isn't the first from them, they've offered it in Australia for several years. Personally I'd rather that than Revolut. Dodgy Russian shit. But then again. that's just me...
Markets doing really well, my Pension has gone up a ridiculous amount since the turn of the year, over £13.5k just in the month of February so far!
Well yes, my beloved LS20 has gained 4 percentage points in five weeks, and is now down only 10% on the year, from its low of -18 in mid-October. What a time to be alive.
But the question is whether it will keep it up? That means, will bonds generally continue to improve?
I had an interesting pitch yesterday from a young lad who is the investments manager at a branch of one of my Czech banks. He called me because he'd noted the large cash deposits I'd built up there (paying 5.3%). Normally I'd dismiss such calls out of hand but he was polite and also listened as i tried to explain why my situation is different to nearly all his other potential punters. So I popped down to hear what he had to say.
Basically, he was pushing one of their "conservative" funds - but as a short-term play. A tad unorthodox, breaking a lot of investment 'rules' but I could see where he's coming from. His argument is that they believe in a sharp rebound for bonds -this is a bond fund, actively managed - and therefore I might make more than a 5.3% gain over maybe 8 months or so. And actually I've been pondering whether exactly this may happen to LS20, which is 80% bonds. It's all about "should" and "may", whereas 5.3% cash is guaranteed and indeed one of their rivals is offering 6% now. But I promised to look at his fund, try to benchmark it against UK based funds, and give it some thought.
Anyone got any views? He seems to be genuinely interested in feedback, and it's good to encourage young people like him who show a bit of initiative and still listen.
I don't see a sharp rebound in bonds (capital value) until interest rates start to reduce again. Sounds like frying pan and fire to me.
It's really hard on a forum, I don't know what % of your total investments are in LS20 or how much else you have in shares, high risk, cash etc etc.
FWIW in my SIPP I had around 3.5% in bonds, I sold some (and lost some value!) so have only around 1% now, I moved what I sold into three ETF's, all of which have more than made back the reduction in the bonds and profit on top in the past two months.
My difficulty is banking profit's, my best performer since July is FTSE Developed Europe UCITS ETF which is up 15.52%, although the holding is in relative terms small. My biggest holding (around 20% of my SIPP) is S&P500 ETF, up 12.9% since July, I'm very tempted to bank some of that.
I've got two separate tranches of LS20. One, in my SIPP. The other on the Vanguard platform and that's what I call my 'health insurance fund.
The SIPP tranche isn't the issue, but FYI, the LS20 and LS40 holdings are 43% of the total (the "low risk ballast"). They are the reason why my SIPP, unlike yours, remains about 10% off its all time high, even though it has pulled back a lot in the last couple of months, as others' have. Never mind that, I have to resolve what to do with my SIPP overall, which I've already discussed with Golfie, and will open up for discussion later, as I'm sure others are pondering the same thing.
I keep the LS20 on the Vanguard platform as something separate to all other investments. This is what I'm pondering now. The complication in my case is that it is an investment denominated in GBP for something which if needed will most likely be spent in CZK or euros.
There has already been a sharp rebound in bonds, especially UK based. That's why LS20 has recovered 8% points from the October low. Some commentators argue that this a recovery from the Moron Factor, by which they mean Kwarteng, so we are now back in the same boat as the rest of the global bond market. The bond advocates seem to be arguing that the battle with inflation is being won, so interest rates will fall, but if you want to take advantage of that you have to buy bonds now, before the central banks actually start to loosen up. That was the essence of the pitch I got on Thursday.
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So, right now I could still take it out and put it into a UK deposit and get 4%.p.a. But I'm worried about the £, given that more than likely the money would be used here in CZ. I could get even more, over 5.5% over here, but the CZ crown is at an all time high against the £ and its generally expected to fall back as interest rates come down.
So having opened my HSBC Global Money sub-account, I'm thinking about parking it in...the Swiss franc.
What could possibly go wrong? Actually I have an answer to that which I'll provide so you can all laugh at me, but I'd like to hear some thoughts first. Basically accounts like this allow us to trade currencies like the big boys do...
EDIT PS yesterday, the LS20 fund gained 1.4% - in one day!!! My head hurts
Personally if you wish to hold it as a health insurance fund, and that will likely be in CZ, then just hold it in CZ.
I'm not an expert when it comes to investing, but overall seem to have done well over time, often better than the fund managers, but probably a little more by luck than judgement. However I've always took the view to not hold too much in one thing where possible, So I probably hold in my pension for instance far more funds than I should (appreciate that some overlap and are ultimately mostly Stock Market driven), other investments range from a fair amount of gold to watches to cash to premium bonds to a bit in currency to structured etc etc. All on the basis that if one tanks I've not put all my eggs in one basket. Of course I could have made multiples more if I'd put it all in the best performing, but seeing my crystal ball has no guarantees the chances of picking that top performer would be unlikely! I also try to take every tax advantage, it still amazes me for instance how many people put so little in their pension........
Not sure why the £/CZ is relevant if your health insurance is, I assume, in CZ? You might lose out in % gained in comparison to a UK account at 4% pa but it would also be quicker to access and you wouldn't lose out in any exchange or fees if it is already in CZ
Investec have 3.22% for their 90 day access account.
As for Bonds, it seems the usual Strateigic Bonds are back in fashion, ie the ones run by Aegon & Jupiter.
Saying all that I'm sticking by my Value funds as well as Absolute / Diversified Return funds for the fixed income element.
The other option is to believe the bond recovery will continue, in which case I‘d be best off holding in the LS20, and perhaps getting another 5% uplift by year end, by which time the Czech crown bubble may have burst.
https://apple.news/APPu7vLObRhG0o60dsHoj6w
Time to bow out of equities & sit in cash for a while ???
The US stock market is the most over priced so i avoided that & I'm already overweight in UK so avoided that.
I plumped for Emerging markets & Asia exc Japan in some funds.
Chose 4 different funds.
The upside on the perceived poor return in the first 18 months is that I obviously took my pension out of the bank at the right time. My cousin is 18 months younger, at another bank but was offered a similar figure not long after I took mine. He didn’t make the move and his offer is now £350k lower because of the change in the yield curve.
I hope you didnt avoid Japan altogether as that's one area you should be investing in. I usually recommended 2%-3% in there, the same for emerging markets & 5% Asia - so around 10% in total.
But the question is whether it will keep it up? That means, will bonds generally continue to improve?
I had an interesting pitch yesterday from a young lad who is the investments manager at a branch of one of my Czech banks. He called me because he'd noted the large cash deposits I'd built up there (paying 5.3%). Normally I'd dismiss such calls out of hand but he was polite and also listened as i tried to explain why my situation is different to nearly all his other potential punters. So I popped down to hear what he had to say.
Basically, he was pushing one of their "conservative" funds - but as a short-term play. A tad unorthodox, breaking a lot of investment 'rules' but I could see where he's coming from. His argument is that they believe in a sharp rebound for bonds -this is a bond fund, actively managed - and therefore I might make more than a 5.3% gain over maybe 8 months or so. And actually I've been pondering whether exactly this may happen to LS20, which is 80% bonds. It's all about "should" and "may", whereas 5.3% cash is guaranteed and indeed one of their rivals is offering 6% now. But I promised to look at his fund, try to benchmark it against UK based funds, and give it some thought.
Anyone got any views? He seems to be genuinely interested in feedback, and it's good to encourage young people like him who show a bit of initiative and still listen.
Comgest Growth Emerging Markets GBP U Acc
HSBC MSCI AC FAR EAST ex JAPAN UCITS ETF GB
Schroder Oriental Income Fund Ltd.
Broadly anything over a double digit return would be exceptional / above normal expectations (I generalise) so is the ‘difference’ really worth it / important or not?
It's really hard on a forum, I don't know what % of your total investments are in LS20 or how much else you have in shares, high risk, cash etc etc.
FWIW in my SIPP I had around 3.5% in bonds, I sold some (and lost some value!) so have only around 1% now, I moved what I sold into three ETF's, all of which have more than made back the reduction in the bonds and profit on top in the past two months.
My difficulty is banking profit's, my best performer since July is FTSE Developed Europe UCITS ETF which is up 15.52%, although the holding is in relative terms small. My biggest holding (around 20% of my SIPP) is S&P500 ETF, up 12.9% since July, I'm very tempted to bank some of that.
Would his Revolut account do? He has PBs and wants winning to go into account.
All the banks had a “purge” on accounts that they deemed were affected by Brexit. I had my Euro account closed and I worked for them. We also closed accounts for EU entities of our clients who were holding accounts here as a “just in case” scenario (they had been cautious about their own country’s economy several years previous.
The SIPP tranche isn't the issue, but FYI, the LS20 and LS40 holdings are 43% of the total (the "low risk ballast"). They are the reason why my SIPP, unlike yours, remains about 10% off its all time high, even though it has pulled back a lot in the last couple of months, as others' have. Never mind that, I have to resolve what to do with my SIPP overall, which I've already discussed with Golfie, and will open up for discussion later, as I'm sure others are pondering the same thing.
I keep the LS20 on the Vanguard platform as something separate to all other investments. This is what I'm pondering now. The complication in my case is that it is an investment denominated in GBP for something which if needed will most likely be spent in CZK or euros.
There has already been a sharp rebound in bonds, especially UK based. That's why LS20 has recovered 8% points from the October low. Some commentators argue that this a recovery from the Moron Factor, by which they mean Kwarteng, so we are now back in the same boat as the rest of the global bond market. The bond advocates seem to be arguing that the battle with inflation is being won, so interest rates will fall, but if you want to take advantage of that you have to buy bonds now, before the central banks actually start to loosen up. That was the essence of the pitch I got on Thursday.