However, it is logical that buying when others are selling and holding onto your equity holdings for the medium- to long-term is the best strategy. Too many investors are too quick to sell when markets turn down, missing out on the subsequent rebounds in the market. Investors with the ability to resist the urge to sell on the first signs of turbulence, investing more where possible, and ride out market volatility will reap the rewards in the end.

Warren Buffet, CEO Berkshire Hatherway Inc, and probably the world’s most successful investor, said “Profit from folly rather than participate in it”. That is exactly what people have the opportunity to do now; whilst simultaneously moving some of their savings out of banks which have a real risk of collapsing in the current market.

Naturally, we would not recommend investing in the shares of financial institutions, or indeed any individual company, at this time but if you invest in diverse funds that invest in thousands of companies in a multitude of sectors (commodities, healthcare, mining, pharmaceuticals, retail, technology, telecommunications, etc...) the risks are substantially reduced. Obviously, there is the real risk of some loss in the short-term but when you look at the markets, there is definite room for growth in the medium-term and longer-terms. You just have to look at the current value of the various markets around the world to see the value:

* Values as of 18^th September 2008.

On average, the worlds markets are 35% lower than they were just 12 months ago and, whilst we may not see these gains recovered in full in the next 12 months, it is likely that they will have recovered these gains in 3 or 5 years times – even if it takes 5 years to recover the losses of the last 12 months, this equates to an average growth rate of 7% per annum!

At Candour Consultancy, we offer a wide range of offshore investments which allow access to up to 10 different funds (from a choice of 100) at any one time; this means the policyholder can hold a diverse portfolio of funds, investing in all the markets that they are interest in. These means the portfolio will generically follow the worlds stock-markets without being unduly influenced by the performance (or even demise) or one individual company.

Minimum investment levels start at just US$ 20,000 and, whilst these investments should be held for 5 years or more, policyholders can often access up to 80% of their investment at any time without penalty. Additionally, some of the bond providers are in jurisdictions that have Government back investor protection which means that you are guaranteed to get at least 90% of your investment back even if the very worst happens.

This same principle applies to those with regular contribution savings plans and pensions, rather than leaving your excess income in the bank during this time of volatility, why not top-up your regular contributions, buying more investment units whilst they are so cheap? Again, Candour work closely with all the major providers of offshore savings and pension plans and can help you top up your policy, and advice on suitable funds to be invested in at this time.

For more information on moving some of your savings into investments, click here to contact us.

Best regards,

Managing Partner

Candour Consultancy