5 Signs That Your Investment Adviser Is Scamming You by Oakmere Road
When it comes to investing, there are precious few certainties, other than the fact that nobody works for your financial best interest as completely as you do.
That fact became obvious to the clients of the Warrenville, Ill., company Capital Management Associates recently when the SEC brought a suit against the father-and-son team that run it for "cherry picking" trades.
We'll get back to that story in a moment. But it's important for everyone to know that even the ethical players in the financial industry earn their living based on the fees they get directly from you or via the providers of products they recommend to help you achieve your goals.
In addition, because financial management is somewhat complicated and the future is never guaranteed, it's an industry rife with opportunities for fraud and theft. That's especially a risk when people turn over complete control of their hard-earned cash to an "expert" who promises to manage it for them.
If you suspect that your financial adviser may be scamming you, here are five signs that can help you uncover it.
Sign No. 1: An Adviser Won't Provide Real-Time Trading Information.
In the case against Capital Management Associates, the SEC alleges that the duo ran trades without specifying whether they were for clients' accounts or for the owners' accounts. Then, once the profitability or loss of the trade was assured, the company would backdate that information, assigning the profitable trades for themselves and the losers to clients.
Losing money in an investment is not a crime, but cherry-picking among winning and losing trades after the fact is.
How could clients of Capital Management Associates have known that they were getting saddled with the bad trades? The short answer is: by staying in the loop.
Those who trust their adviser to trade on their behalf should, at the very least, insist on receiving a running total of all trades when they are made. If your financial adviser can't or won't do that for you, then chances are pretty good that you're being scammed.
Sign No. 2: An Adviser's Returns Are Too Good to Be True.
Bernie Madoff swindled investors out of billions of dollars in what has been called the largest Ponzi scheme ever uncovered. While Madoff, a former chairman of the Nasdaq stock exchange and securities representative on SEC industry panels, knew enough to hide from the regulators for decades, his returns were too consistent to be real.
Sponsored Links Any time an investment advisor is guaranteeing returns or assuring consistency, year in and year out, there's a pretty good chance it's a scam. And while there are a few legitimate annuities with investment accounts structured in a way to "guarantee" you won't lose money, they're generally just high-cost insurance plans where you're paying dearly for those guarantees through the structure of the deal.
Sign No. 3: You're Getting Hot Tips That You're Told You Need to Act on Now.
Any legitimate investment worth owning will still be available tomorrow, after you've had the time to think about it (and research it independently). Any pushy advisor telling you things like, "You've got to act today to get in on the ground floor" or "You don't have time to read the paperwork" is asking you to act without reviewing something, which is a common hallmark of a scam.
While there are real deadlines for things like IRA contributions, the money in those accounts can easily sit as cash until you've had time to review the details of the investment recommendation. And be aware that prices in the stock and bond markets do change regularly -- often several times throughout a trading day. If your adviser brings you an investment to consider and you do take the time to review it before buying, don't be surprised if the price winds up being a bit different than initially discussed.
Still, it's better to wait and lose a little bit than to lose everything to an outright scam.
Sign No. 4: You're Promised Investments That Will Be "No Cost to You."
If you're working with a financial adviser, that advisor is getting paid by you, either directly by checks you write or indirectly via commissions, spreads, or fees generated by the investments you make. Any adviser claiming otherwise is hiding something -- likely an outlandishly high fee for placing an investment or insurance policy, which can often run north of 7 percent of the invested amount.
A competent advisor deserves to be paid for his or her time and expertise. But one that won't tell you how much you're paying for the service or how you're paying for it is an adviser to walk away from.
Sign No. 5: Your Account Is Being Churned and Burned.
And speaking of fees, be wary of an adviser who regularly churns your account through multiple trades of similar types of annuities, mutual funds, or other investments. If your adviser is getting paid through a hidden commission from making the transaction, that activity is very likely lucrative for the adviser ... but not so much for you.
Not all investments work out, of course, but a common definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results.
If your advisor is trying to convince you that the investment you are in is so much worse than a fairly similar one you should be in, that's a sign that neither investment is likely right for you.
OVERVIEW by International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission
IFC PROVIDES COMPREHENSIVE SOLUTIONS TO CLIENTS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES TO ADDRESS TODAY’S GREATEST DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES.
IFC’s offerings are designed to meet the specific needs of our clients in different industries, with a special focus on infrastructure, manufacturing, agribusiness, services, and financial markets.
Our financial products enable companies to manage risk and broaden their access to foreign and domestic capital markets. Our advice helps unlock private sector investment, which is essential for expanding businesses, creating jobs, and growing economies.
We work with the private sector to encourage entrepreneurship and build sustainable businesses—advising them on a wide range of issues, including environmental, social and governance standards, energy and resource efficiency, and supply chains. We help expand access to critical finance for individuals and micro, small, and medium enterprises through our work with financial intermediary clients.
We also measure our results and those of our clients to assess whether we are contributing effectively to our goals of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity—and whether our work is making a difference to the people and markets that most need our help.
In fiscal year 2015, our long-term investments in developing countries totaled $17.7 billion, a 17 percent increase over the previous year. More than a third of that amount—over $7 billion—was mobilized from other investors.
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The International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission was established to promote investor confidence in the securities and capital markets by providing more structure and government oversight.
International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission: Scaling Solar Delivers Low-Cost Clean Energy For Zambia
Adding power capacity is a matter of urgency in Zambia, where only one fifth of the population has access to electricity and two years of drought have crippled existing hydropower facilities, causing a national electricity crisis.
It was in this context that the southern African country signed up to try Scaling Solar, a World Bank Group program designed to make it easier for governments to procure solar power quickly and at low cost through competitive tendering and pre-set financing, insurance products, and risk products.
The results of the first auction, which took place in May, have surpassed even the most optimistic expectations, with seven of the world’s leading renewables developers competing for the opportunity to build Zambia’s first large-scale solar plants.
The winning bids were for just 6.02 cents per kilowatt hour and 7.84 cents per kilowatt hour—the lowest prices for solar power to date in Africa, and among the lowest recorded anywhere in the world.
“This is a tremendous result for Zambia and for Scaling Solar, which has proved itself as a vehicle to open up new markets for clean energy,” said Philippe Le Houérou, IFC’s Chief Executive Officer and Executive Vice President. “It is now possible for governments across sub-Saharan Africa to look first to solar power as a solution for inexpensive, quick-to-build power—something unimaginable outside of South Africa until now.”
Because the 6-cent Zambia tariff is fixed for 25 years and won’t rise with inflation, it represents about 4.7 cents per kilowatt hour over the life of the project—on par with recent auctions in Peru and Mexico.
Scaling Solar has also delivered on its promise of speed: Zambia’s results come just nine months after the government first engaged IFC to advise on the transaction. The winning bidders—Neoen/First Solar and Enel—are expected to reach financial close on the projects within three months and complete construction a year later. This is especially critical in Zambia, where blackouts happen daily. The two new solar power plants will increase the country’s available generating capacity by 5 percent and will also help to restore water levels in its dams.
Zambia has already committed to a second round of Scaling Solar tendering, and Senegal and Madagascar have also signed up. Given growing interest in the program, Scaling Solar is now targeting developing 1 gigawatt of solar power in the next three years. At the tariffs recorded in Zambia, this would provide African consumers with more than $7 billion in savings compared to oil-based power, which costs about 20 cents per kilowatt hour.
Scaling Solar has financing support from USAID’s Power Africa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark, and the Infrastructure Development Collaboration Partnership Fund (DevCo). For more information, visit www.scalingsolar.org.
The International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission was established to promote investor confidence in the securities and capital markets by providing more structure and government oversight.
International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission - Products & Professionals
Whether you're just starting out or a seasoned investor, it's smart to understand fundamental concepts such as asset allocation and how to figure return on your investment. That base will help you evaluate investment products you might encounter—and investment professionals who sell them. Once you've mastered the basics, move on to more advanced concepts and strategies.
Choosing an Investment Professional
A qualified investment professional can help ensure you have the information you need to make intelligent investment decisions. Learn what each type of professional offers to support your financial goals.
Financial products—from bank products to stocks and bonds—are like tools that can help you achieve your financial goals. Learn the features of various types of investments and the ways each can put your money to work.
Learn about the rate of return, asset allocation, diversification and rebalancing your portfolio, as well as the relationship between reward and risk.
Understanding the Brokerage Account Transfer Process
At times, investors transfer their securities accounts between broker-dealers. While the process generally runs smoothly for the vast majority of the thousands of accounts transferred each year, there are times when delays occur and investors pose questions.
Learn more about managing your investments, from reading your account statement to employing various investment strategies. If you day trade or have a margin account, be sure you know the accompanying risks and rules.
5 Questions to Ask When Your Broker Changes Firms
Brokers, like many of us, move on to new job and career opportunities for a number of reasons. If you're thinking about whether to follow your broker or stay with your current firm, it's a good idea to examine the key issues that will help you make an informed decision.
The International Financial Securities Regulatory Commission was established to promote investor confidence in the securities and capital markets by providing more structure and government oversight.
Legal Mistakes To Avoid For Small Businesses - Singapore Lawyer
Running and operating a small company requires you to multi-task. Besides generating more sales and revenue, you need to make sure the company starts generating profits. As a small business owner, you also need to deal with some areas that don’t fall under your comfort zone. Legal issues is one of these important tasks.
Every successful small company relies on the services of a good lawyer for legal support and advice. However, there are times when you may not want to bear the expense of consulting a reputed lawyer. Due to this, you may plan to take care of everything yourself. This can lead to various mistakes. In this post, we’ve discussed 6 legal mistakes a small company needs to avoid.
Don’t Enter Into Verbal Contracts
A lot of non-attorneys don’t realize that it’s possible to enter into a legal contract without agreeing to things in writing. In some cases, even a verbal contract is considered to be binding. Many small companies enter verbal contracts on a regular basis. This is considered to be a big mistake. If it’s worth entering a contract, you need to make sure it’s documented correctly. In case you’re entering into a contract with suppliers or customers, you need to make sure all the terms are clearly set in a detailed written contract. This reduces the chances of a dispute in the future. Both parties can easily refer to the documented agreement.
Get Contracts Reviewed by Attorneys
One of the biggest mistakes is to draft a written contract on your own. Drafting a written contract is a skill developed over the years. When you try to draft a contract on your own, you tend to miss important clauses. This leaves the contract open to misinterpretation. It also fails to protect your interests. Before presenting a contract to the other party, you need to consult an attorney.
Read Before Signing
This mistake is quite obvious. You would be surprised to know that numerous people sign a contract without reading it. It’s important to spend some time going through the contract. You need to make sure the contract says exactly what you want it to say. You should make some sincere efforts to understand the contract.
Act in Accordance with Governing Documents
All companies have governing documents, which lay down the rules for Board of Directors, management and other employees. For instance, if you’ve chosen to offer a guarantee to another party, you need to make sure you work according to the process laid down to conduct this task.
Employees Should Act in Accordance with Fair Work Act
It’s worth mentioning that many small companies get into legal troubles for breaching obligations stated by the Fair Work Act. When you want to terminate an employee’s job or make him/her redundant, you need to make sure the company acts in accordance with the law. You need to work with an experienced employment specialist.
Taxes
Last but not the least, payment of taxes is one of the most complicated matters related to business operations. Failure to pay your taxes in time is against the law. You need to make sure you understand all the obligations. You should work with an accountant and business lawyer to avoid any legal trouble.
Gantz Associates: Attorneys
ADAM J. GANTZ, FOUNDER AND MANAGING PARTNER
“Gantz Associates care about our clients’ situations,” says Adam J. Gantz. “We give honest answers.”
A real estate attorney who has experience in many areas of the law, Adam J. Gantz listens to people and takes their interests, finances and work situations into account before embarking on every legal pursuit. He is the best attorney to call when you’re worried about financial problems or losing your home.
“I genuinely care about helping people,” says Gantz. “There are some people who don’t need the assistance of an attorney and I’m always straight with my clients about how I can help them.”
A graduate with honors in research, writing and advocacy from Michigan State University College of Law, his legal briefs have won high-profile approval in the Michigan Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Michigan and the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Adam Gantz chose to practice law because of his innate talent in analyzing situations and applying a keen problem-solving mindset. He greatly enjoys helping people solve problems.
“I am dedicated to helping my clients save all they’ve worked for, from money to home to the ability to earn a livelihood,” says Gantz. “My greatest business success is achieving that for every person who walks through my door. My firm is dedicated to saving your dignity, protecting your livelihood and, if it comes down to it, helping you leave on your own terms rather than be forced out of your home.”
To be lost in the City of Singapore - Bacall Associates
We all work for something. Be it a want, a goal or dream, that we follow the same routine, drive the same highways a hundred or even a thousand of times, do the same thing over and over again to earn and simply enjoy our lives.
But there will be times when you will just feel tired, I felt tired. I wanted a break, a short vacation, but little I had known that I was out of time
Summer had grown to a close and I was left with little time to plan, prepare and ready myself. I was supposed to be relaxing, that was then that I found Bacall Associates when I was at my wit’s end.
Working for hours to free up the next days while preparing everything proved to be tiresome. But Bacall fixed everything. In the end, I was only able to bring a few clothes, basic amenities and needs and next thing I know, I was on a plane. They prepared me a schedule that I can chose to follow, contacted hotels and made reservations and basically everything that I needed to do but didn’t have time to.
It was an hour after dawn when I arrived, most attractions are closed for the next few hours, and I had nothing to do. I checked in the given hotel dropped of what little things I had bring and took a walk.
What I had first enjoyed when I arrived at Singapore was the view. Everywhere I look was lush green, the streets were clean and maintained, and the climbing sun was in the background. I followed the detailed advises of Bacall Associates, took a train or two, walk a bit and soon found myself at the market.
As I stroll, I bought off what I didn’t bring, like clothes, bought myself some comfortable sandals (all in which I brought home as souvenirs) and continued to let myself be lost in the city. Had a lunch in a local restaurant I had passed through when I strolled (I’d recommend the Bak Chor Mee) and ultimately enjoyed.
Days went pass as I visited tourist spots like the gardens, the man made waterfalls and a lot more that in the end I felt satisfied. It was relaxing. It was then that I decided that once a year or two, I will take a vacation, god knows where but thankfully there is Bacall and Associates to help me with that.
Lucas P. Cromwell
