This week Chief executive and chairman Larry Fink sent a personal letter to clients stating the firm would be focusing on sustainability as BlackRock's "new standard for investing."

“Climate risk is investment risk...Indeed, climate change is almost invariably the top issue that clients around the world raise," Fink wrote.

The firm, which manages $6.9 trillion for investors all aorund the world, communicated that it would pulling out of any "high sustainability-related risk" investments such as fossil fuels and that it would be including questions pertaining to sustainability as part of its process when building new client investment portfolios.

Fink also stated BlackRock will be weighing in its shareholder vote on many sustainability and climate issues that arise in shareholder decision making.

The CEO's letter also read: “Climate change has become a defining factor in companies’ long-term prospects.

"Last September, when millions of people took to the streets to demand action on climate change, many of them emphasized the significant and lasting impact that it will have on economic growth and prosperity – a risk that markets to date have been slower to reflect.

“But awareness is rapidly changing, and I believe we are on the edge of a fundamental reshaping of finance.”

In the letter Fink makes reference to climate change as a highly impacting factor in investment models, claiming that this new approach will destroy existing products and create new markets, ridding traditional investments and creating fresh and new opportunities for investment.

“What will happen to the 30-year mortgage – a key building block of finance – if lenders can’t estimate the impact of climate risk over such a long timeline, and if there is no viable market for flood or fire insurance in impacted areas?” he said. “What happens to inflation, and in turn interest rates, if the cost of food climbs from drought and flooding? How can we model economic growth if emerging markets see their productivity decline due to extreme heat and other climate impacts?”

This statement will have significant impact on the proceedings and discussions that take place at the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, as the drive to protect investor value will turn towards climate change and sustainability as key considerations to factor into each and every investment.

Here Finance Monthly hears from Kasim Zafar at investment specialists EQ Investors, who looks back at the past decade and considers the investment opportunities we should be considering ahead.

We started the decade with the global economy still reeling from the worst financial crisis in modern times.

Following the failure of the banks, trust in capitalism was then further eroded by the largest financial fraud in US history; Bernie Madoff was imprisoned for 150 years after defrauding clients to the tune of $65 billion.

Extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures. By 2012, most major central banks had slashed interest rates close to zero or below, hoping that ‘free money’ would help the economy heal and return to growth. Trillions of dollars were pumped into financial markets to plug anything resembling a hole. The idea was basic, yet oxymoronic. To save free market capitalism, central banks staged the greatest market intervention of all time.

Sovereign debt crisis

Europe was tested further by its sovereign debt crisis. Despite zero interest rate policies, the rate demanded to fund government debt of the ‘PIIGS’ (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain) soared between 2010 and 2012, reaching almost 30% in the case of Greece’s 10-year debt.

The European Central Bank created its rescue package to save the European Union from imploding, committing to buy a massive amount of European sovereign debt. Despite this, since the root cause of the problem was too much debt, European governments adopted austerity measures, cutting fiscal stimulus spending.

Quantitative easing in the US put a line under asset prices, first bringing stability and then allowing growth, to the substantial benefit of those with wealth invested. The wave of economic austerity that swept across Europe led to an increase in income inequality and sowed the seeds of populism.

Environmental instability

Distrust of big companies spread beyond bankers like wildfire with the largest environmental disaster in American history. BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico eventually cost the company more than $65 billion in clean-up costs and compensation.

There was no shortage of environmental tremors. We saw floods on multiple occasions in Pakistan, India, China, Brazil, Thailand and the UK. Hurricanes Sandy, Irma, Maria and Harvey; earthquakes devastated Haiti, Chile, Mexico and of course Japan where in Fukushima we witnessed the world’s second largest nuclear power plant disaster after Chernobyl.

The latest signs of an overheating planet are record temperatures (high and low) across the globe, including fires in the Amazon rainforest and across Western Australia in 2019.

A concerted effort to tackle the climate crisis was finally embraced by 195 governments in the form of the Paris agreement. Last year, the EU declared a climate emergency, no doubt inspired by Greta Thunberg. All legislative and budget proposals will be fully aligned to limit temperature increases to under 1.5 degrees – seen as the danger line for global warming.

Looking forward

The last decade has seen rapid technological advances and we see a number of these coalescing over the next decade. Let’s take a glimpse into the future because we think it’s pretty exciting.

Sustainable finance

Why would you want to invest unsustainably? Now that’s a powerful question. When the rules of the game change, only a fool plays the same strategy.

The next decade is going to see financial markets transform to incorporate a broader set of stakeholders and interests well beyond the bottom line. Legislative changes are already underway in the EU that will significantly alter the reporting requirements for companies and investment products including:

• Climate change mitigation;
• Sustainable water use;
• Transitioning to a circular economy;
• Prevention and control of pollution; and
• Protection of ecosystems.

Although the UK will have exited the EU by the time these rules come into force (around December 2021), we fully expect the UK to adopt similar reporting requirements.

The next decade is going to see financial markets transform to incorporate a broader set of stakeholders and interests well beyond the bottom line.

This will help to establish a common language for what qualifies as sustainable and unsustainable through legislature. The associated data reporting will bring transparency to the conversation and encourage us all to consider the merits of economic activities, particularly those ones which are deemed to be harmful.

AI revolution

A decade ago, we were buying the iPhone 4 and the original iPad had only just been released. The idea of cloud storage and cloud computing was just taking off and the volume of data in the world was estimated to be around two zetabytes – that’s two trillion gigabytes. For comparison, entry level iPhones today have a data capacity of 64 gigabytes. The volume of data in the world has since exploded to around 41 zetabytes. That’s a lot of data! Through analysing these big data sets, we are finding better ways of doing things and finding altogether new things to do.

This is the realm of artificial intelligence (AI). Data scientists are creating sophisticated computer algorithms that identify esoteric features in data of a known entity (such as known ailments in radiology scans). When the algorithms are presented with new images, they are now able to identify things better than their human equivalents. This technology has incredibly wide applications in everything from early stage healthcare diagnoses to logistics route optimisation.

Data and artificial intelligence is being combined with robotics to achieve some pretty incredible feats, often referred to as the ‘internet of things’. Computing power is now decentralised, agile and mobile, freed from the confines of the home and office. The smartphone heralded a new era of fast and interactive data sharing and then the proliferation of sensors has taken things to another level. Everything is being connected: the smart home, smart buildings, wearable consumer devices, remote machine & engine diagnostics and of course, our transportation systems.

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Transforming healthcare

Healthcare is getting better from improved diagnostics, but there are improvements in treatments themselves. Increasingly healthcare is become an exercise in engineering. Biotechnology is developing medicines that are designed to combat specific diseases; treating the cause rather than the symptoms. In the future, it is easy to envisage so called ‘designer drugs’ that are designed for our specific genetics and perhaps beyond a decade from now, we could even be 3D printing these at home.

Precision fermentation

The current world population is 7.7 billion and the UN forecasts we’ll add another one billion people over the course of the next decade. Resource efficiency will be crucial for this to be sustainable, especially to create enough food for everyone. Robotics assisted precision agriculture and partially or wholly embracing veganism will help, but a new technology could change the face of agriculture and food supply altogether. Precision fermentation is the name of the technology behind the various meat alternatives we see in restaurants and supermarkets.

These are synthetic, precision engineered proteins that have similar nutritional value and are approaching cost parity to animal protein. We haven’t synthesised the perfect rib-eye steak yet, but we believe there is a good chance that agriculture will look wildly different in a decade’s time. Could we be looking at the path to ending poverty by then?

Quantum computing

Many of these transformational technologies are based on analysing data using artificial intelligence with computer power that is thousands of times faster today than it was a decade ago, all connected through the digital infrastructure of the internet. There is one problem though. We are approaching the physical limits of computer miniaturisation that has driven the increase in computer power.

However, human ingenuity is pushing through this boundary, developing a new breed of computing. Based on Einstein’s concepts of quantum superposition and quantum entanglement, this new breed of quantum computing would rewrite the rulebook and open the door to… a world of even more new possibilities yet.

From more intelligent healthcare to synthetic steak, the decade promises major developments.

With UN Secretary-General Antonio Gutterres warning that climate change is about to reach a point of no return - and with Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage empty-chaired for Channel 4’s climate change debate in Novermber – new research suggests the green agenda is gripping the UK investor community. Renewable energy is now a top investment choice for investors of all ages; it is equally popular with men (29%) and women (31%) and it also transcends investment philosophy. For example, active traders, those that are simply looking to make an opportune gain, place as much emphasis on renewables as those investors that act with a specific ethical investment philosophy (33% and 36% respectively).

At a time when the general election and protracted Brexit delays are casting a cloud of uncertainty over what lies ahead in 2020, GraniteShares research suggests economic and political events have powered a greater sense of conviction among investors, with 76% seeing clear investment opportunities to capitalise on. Further, more than a third of UK investors (37%) identified as being in control of their investment decisions, acting with conviction.

Given this UK appetite to amplify their investment edge, GraniteShares asked a nationally representative sample of 1,560 UK investors which sectors they would put their money into if they were looking to make a long-term gain over the next year.  After renewables, the most popular sectors were technology (28%), property (25%), and gold (22%). Technology was most popular with younger investors aged 25-34 (31%), whereas property was most popular with the over 55s (33%). Gold was evenly popular across all age groups, a top choice with around one in five investors.

In addition, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology were particularly popular with over 55s (36% and 23% respectively), cannabis was most popular among the over 40s (20%) and oil and gas was top choice among the 25-34s (17%).

With recent warnings that UK car production could plummet with a non-deal Brexit and bleak warmings of the health of the high street for the crucial Christmas season, retail (8%) and auto (7%) along with industrials were the sectors that investors were least interested in putting their money into. With all these sectors, it was older investors (over 45) that were walking away and investing their money elsewhere.

The sectors UK investors would put their money into if they were looking to make a long-term gain over the next year (by age group)

The warning from Nigel Green, chief executive and founder of deVere Group, follows the landslide victory for Mr Johnson’s Conservative party in the UK’s general election last week in which he secured an 80-seat majority, and as stocks rose across Europe on Monday.

The Queen will officially open Parliament on Thursday, outlining her new government's legislative programme.

It is expected that the Withdrawal Agreement Bill on leaving the EU could be put before MPs as early as Friday. Nigel Green affirms: “The decisive win for the Conservatives triggered one of the pound’s biggest ever rallies, the FTSE 250 index of UK shares climbed by 3.6% and the FTSE 100 rose 1.3%.

“On Monday, European stock markets reached all-time highs.

“This has been driven in part by investors’ relief that a hung parliament had not been delivered, meaning years of uncertainty and indecisions over the UK’s way out of the EU is coming to an end. Also, perhaps, because the Conservatives promised a more pro-business agenda.”

He continues: “But Boris Johnson now has the daunting task of turning his powerful election campaign slogan of ‘Get Brexit Done’ into reality.

“When Britain leaves on January 31, there will be only 11 months to thrash out the basics of the future relationship with the European Union.

“The self-imposed end of December 2020 deadline is a mammoth challenge or Britain will fall through the ‘trap door’ of no-deal Brexit on January 1 2021.”

The Prime Minister could request another extension for the transition period. The government has until 1 July 2020 to agree with the EU a one-off extension, until the end of 2021 or 2022.

But, says Mr Green, this is unlikely. He notes: “I don’t believe that Johnson will use his significant majority to slow down or soften - the Brexit process.  

“Instead, his assumption from the election outcome will be that people want quick, easy answers.

“Indeed, in an interview on Sunday, Michael Gove guaranteed that the Brexit transition period will not be extended.”

He goes on to add: “The task ahead is monumental. The time frame in which to complete it is narrow. Failure to agree a free trade deal by the end of next year will mean the UK crashing out of the EU and all the far-reaching negative economic implications, including the likelihood of a recession.

“With such uncertainty, following the election bounce, in 2020 investor confidence in the UK is likely to remain subdued and Boris Johnson’s Brexit stance could be a major source of volatility in financial markets.”

The deVere CEO concludes: “Despite the markets currently surging, investors must avoid complacency.

“2020 promises to be a year in which political factors – including Boris Johnson’s Brexit plan and the U.S. presidential election, amongst others – could potentially spook markets.

“Investors should assess and, where necessary, rebalance their portfolios to take advantage of the potential opportunities and to mitigate the risks.”

Following the recent failure of a student housing investment scheme in Stoke-on-Trent, Peter Robinson, Joint Head of Property at Hunters Law LLP, examines the pitfalls that can be encountered in investing in 'off-plan' development schemes, particularly those involving leaseholds. Peter argues that buying 'off plan' is highly speculative and, therefore, high risk.

Investing in a commercial property development scheme has a number of risks associated with it. Some of these are illustrated by the problems being encountered by private investors in a student housing project in Stoke-on-Trent[1].

The scheme involved the developer selling long leases of individual rooms in student accommodation for capital sums and relatively high ground rents subject to review at five-yearly intervals throughout the term of the lease. Each investor then granted a sub-lease of his or her room to the management company (which appears to have been connected to the developer)[2].

The grant of nearly 200 leases on this basis generated for the developer [3] :

• capital receipts of several millions of pounds; and
• an annual ground rent income stream of nearly £150,000 which allowed the developer to sell the freehold for over £2.8 million.

In October 2018, investors failed to receive from the sub-tenant company the “additional rent” due to them under the sub-leases that they had granted. After a further default in making these payments, the sub-tenant company was put into administration[4].

The administrators subsequently advised investors that[5]:

• the management company had not generated enough income to pay the additional rents representing the returns to investors under the sub-leases;
• investors would have to fund payment of the rent and service charge payable under their own leases; and
• to enable the administrators to continue the process of administration the investors would have to waive their right to receive “additional rent” until all other necessary expenses of the administration had been paid.

This has frozen returns on the investments made in the scheme, at least, until the scheme is re-structured to generate an appropriate level of income.

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In order to minimise the inherent risk of collective investment of this type, an investor should understand:

• the criteria for making the project a success (in a student housing scheme the criticality of opening at the beginning of the academic year); and
• the process of realization of the project and the associated risks.

Buying into such a scheme 'off plan' is speculative and, therefore, has a higher than normal level of risk. In particular:

• a number of individual units will need to be completed (on time and within budget) to make the whole development viable;
• a lease is both a wasting and, potentially because of the landlord's right to forfeit for non-payment of rent/service charge, vulnerable asset; and
• there are cost, timing and quality issues, particularly in a specialist sector such as student accommodation.

Engagement of appropriately experienced professionals to advise on making such an investment is a key part of a successful strategy for investing in such a scheme.

The benefits of such engagement in managing the inherent risks are:

• The standards which a professional must meet in order to have satisfied the duty of care owed to a client are high and, not meeting those standards would lead to the client having a claim for negligence against that professional; and
• A good and experienced solicitor/surveyor should be capable of identifying and advising on the potential risks of the scheme and, most importantly, be capable of advising the client not to proceed with the investment or, at least, not on the terms offered.

Informal collective investment property schemes are currently only loosely regulated and disaffected investors will, generally, not be able to obtain redress for lost or impaired investment from the state. Prudence, research and preparation before investing is such schemes is, therefore, imperative.

Sources:

[1] "How a £100m student accommodation scheme went wrong. Thomas Hale – July 3 2019 – FT Alphaville : https://ftaphalphaville.ft.com/2019/07/03/15562130014000/How-a--100m-student- accommodation-scheme-went-wrong/ 

[2]  Paragraph 3 of A1 Properties (Leicester) Limited (In administration) Statement of Joint Administrators' Proposals Pursuant to Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 of 23rd April 2019 – Companies House.

[3] Register entries for HM Land Registry Title Number SF514607

[4] Paragraph 3 of A1 Properties (Leicester) Limited (In administration) Statement of Joint Administrators' Proposals Pursuant to Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 of 23rd April 2019 – Companies House.

[5] Paragraph 5 of A1 Properties (Leicester) Limited (In administration) Statement of Joint Administrators' Proposals Pursuant to Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 of 23rd April 2019 – Companies House.

Below Peter Wood, CEO at CoinBurp delves into the current crypto-scene, the value of Bitcoin and the grey cloud that looms over the future of crypto-investment.

Bitcoin saw highs of over £7,000 at the end of October, dropping to just over £5,000 in the early hours of the 25^th of November – a 6 month low.

Just as media headlines and finance experts began to offer damning opinions on the declining value of the digital currency, bitcoin skyrocketed – increasing by £600 in value within just six hours.

This is not surprising. In fact, at any given time of the year, a 24-hour cryptocurrency price chart will have more peaks and troughs than a rollercoaster. Therefore, first-time crypto investors should never be concerned about the declining value of their digital finances, as they need only wait a period of time, be it a week or a month, before the value soars again.

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Newcomers to cryptocurrency, or those who have considered investing in cryptocurrency, should do their best to ignore the negative media headlines when Bitcoin suddenly drops in value, as there is quite simply no better time to invest. With any business investment or purchase, the aim is to buy low and sell high. Those who invested in Bitcoin this time last year probably purchased at the value of £2,500 to £3,000; within just seven months, this value more than tripled to around £9,500.

Therefore, investors should never be concerned about the short-term future of their digital finance investment. In fact, one can be optimistic when looking at the fact that, year on year, the tail end value of Bitcoin has grown increasingly higher – thus demonstrating gradual annual growth in the way of higher lows, and possibly even higher highs to come.

A grey cloud that looms over cryptocurrency, however, is what is known as bitcoin halving: this is where the number of bitcoin rewarded to miners for every block mined is cut by half, occurring every time 210,000 blocks are mined. As it stands, the next bitcoin halving is expected to take place in the middle of May 2020.

Much like the short term value of Bitcoin, nobody knows exactly what impact the next bitcoin halving will have on the value of the cryptocurrency – all we can say for sure, is that the next bitcoin halving is expected to have a significant effect on the price of bitcoin, we’re just not certain about whether this ‘effect’ will be positive or negative, upwards or downwards.

Much like the short term value of Bitcoin, nobody knows exactly what impact the next bitcoin halving will have on the value of the cryptocurrency.

If cryptocurrency has set any precedent, however, it’s that low valuations and high valuations are never permanent. If the upcoming bitcoin halving does cause a large-scale crypto crash, you can be rest assured that your money has probably not been lost forever. On the other hand, it could be worth investing in bitcoin at the next affordable opportunity before the halving, in preparation to reap the rewards of a possible soar in value.

I would love to offer specific, short term investment advice on when exactly to invest in cryptocurrency, but the time between me publishing this article, and you reading it, could be the difference of thousands of pounds in any given cryptocurrency market.

This depends on many factors, but you can still determine it nonetheless. Here's how you can do it.

Which cryptocurrency?

First, remind yourself which cryptocurrency you will be buying or choose one if you haven't decided yet. Here are the most popular types of cryptocurrency to choose from:

• Bitcoin: Abbreviated as BTC, Bitcoin is probably the most popular of all the cryptocurrencies. You can purchase it almost anywhere.
• Bitcoin Cash: Abbreviated as BCH, Bitcoin Cash was only launched in 2017 and has since become pretty widespread.
• Litecoin: Abbreviated as LTC, Litecoin is only two years younger than Bitcoin and is quite well-known as well.
• Ethereum: Abbreviated as ETH, Ethereum could be primarily found on the platform of the same name.

There is no right or wrong cryptocurrency to buy, so consider all your options and make a choice you will be satisfied with.

Why are you buying it?

The next thing you should do is think of why you are buying the cryptocurrency you chose. Consider what you will be doing after you purchase the cryptocurrency. Are you going to sell it? Or maybe you will be donating it or gifting it to someone?

This point is very important as it will decide your further actions. You must know what goals you are pursuing so that you can find the best means to achieve them. Besides, some cryptocurrencies might have technical restrictions that will prevent you from doing what you want to do.

Remember that the cryptocurrency market is constantly evolving and changing. For instance, there’s this new concept of stablecoin being developed that may be the next big thing in the world of cryptocurrencies.

“Stablecoin initiatives are developing at a rapid pace. Adoption of stablecoin, a form of collateralized cryptocurrency pegged to a stable fiat currency like the yen or dollar are being debated by central banks,” says Robert Anazalone, an expert on cryptocurrencies.

What is your financial situation?

You are probably aware that some cryptocurrencies are more expensive than others, so if you are on a budget, you probably won't be able to buy them. You have to take into account your financial situation before going online and looking for your cryptocurrency.

“Due to the limitations placed on capacity, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum see higher transaction fees when the networks become congested,” writes Kyle Torpey, a writer and a specialist on Bitcoin, in an article for Forbes.

At the same time, this point is directly tied up with the next one as the current state of the market will influence the price of your chosen cryptocurrency. Sometimes, even a usually cheap currency may cost more due to the fluctuations in the market. This can also influence what you will be buying and when.

What is the current state of the market?

Last but not least, think of the current state of the market. Research and read about what is going on so that you are aware of the situation and clearly know what you are doing. Analyze the data you collect and decide whether or not it's the right time to buy cryptocurrency.

You should be conducting such research and analysis regularly so that you can determine the best time for buying your chosen type of cryptocurrency.

Clem Chambers, the CEO of private investors website ADVFN.com and author of Be Rich, The Game in Wall Street and Trading Cryptocurrencies: A Beginner’s Guide, says: “Market timing is incredibly difficult, especially in a hugely volatile asset like bitcoin.”

Final Thoughts

To sum up, try to be skeptical of what you read online when someone is claiming that it is the right time to buy cryptocurrency. Read and research or seek help from a professional adviser to understand when is the right time to buy and which cryptocurrency to choose.

This was authored by digital marketing executive Cynthia Young .

Regular people who had the courage to speculate were instantly transformed into millionaires, with access to all the wealth they could ever have dreamed of. These success stories were well documented in the media, and others were kicking themselves that they hadn’t jumped on the bitcoin bandwagon in the early days. But it might not be too late for other investors to make money from the cryptocurrency market. Indeed, with the e-currency now back down to a market value of around $7000, it could be the perfect time to invest.

The time has definitely passed for people to invest a small amount of money in bitcoin and become millionaires a few years later. The digital currency created by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto is too well-known and has already broken into various industries as an accepted payment method. However, there is a chance that the value of bitcoin could spike again in the near future, and those who buy when it is at its current value could stand to turn a profit.

One of the best options right now may be to trade your bitcoin for other cryptocurrency assets. Because this is such a big industry today, there are actually apps that can assist you. This means you don’t have to follow the markets yourself. Bitcoin Loophole is a great example of one such service - a bitcoin bot developed by bitcoin investor Steve McKay, which is designed to allow manual and automated trading. It is easy to sign up to and has been lauded for its user-friendly features. For newcomers who don’t know much about bitcoin trading, this could be a good option to get in on the ground level.

How to Bag Bitcoin

Getting hold of bitcoin is quick and easy, and there are various websites that can help you access the cryptocurrency in exchange for your own. All you have to do is go through a few security questions in order to set up an account.

Once you have some bitcoin, you could choose to hold it or play the exchange markets in an attempt to turn a profit. If you want to sit on your investment, it is wise to store it in a hard wallet which can be removed from the computer and put in a safe location. This way, your assets won’t be vulnerable to cybercriminals. With this method, you have to hope that bitcoin will rise considerably in value again so you can cash in at a later date.

With bitcoin having reached highs of $20,000 in the past, there is no reason why it can’t push back to those levels at some point. Indeed, if the cryptocurrency can gain traction and break into the mainstream, the price could rise much further. Now could be the ideal time to invest in bitcoin and to start trading.

BlackLine commissioned independent global research firm Censuswide to survey over 760 institutional investors across the world to establish their attitudes to financial risk, due diligence and reporting. The findings reveal the financial practices that raise red flags for investors, as well as the factors they rely on to make informed investment decisions.

According to the survey, creative accounting, where companies exploit financial loopholes to present figures in a legal though misleadingly favourable light, was identified as a major concern for the global investor community. Not only do the majority of investors believe that these tactics are commonplace at their portfolio companies, but 91% believe that more large companies will resort to these techniques over the next 12 to 18 months.

Worryingly, 83% of investors surveyed also agreed on the likelihood of a global recession in the next 12 to 18 months, meaning businesses will need to work even harder to outstrip the competition. However, companies should think twice before trying to manipulate their figures; a quarter (25%) of investors singled out evidence of creative accounting as the factor that would make them least likely to invest in a company.

“In many ways the international business landscape is more complex, uncertain and challenging than it was a year ago. Companies are therefore under increasing pressure to perform and retain a competitive edge,” said BlackLine CEO Therese Tucker. “However, businesses cannot afford to have the integrity of their financial data questioned at a time when investors are evidently becoming more stringent about unnecessary and unwarranted financial risks.”

In fact, inaccurate reporting and poor financial controls raise alarm bells for a large number of global investors. Less than 1% of those surveyed say they will invest in a company with poor financial controls without taking some form of corrective action first, such as imposing changes on the company or its management team.

A third of investors (33%) say risk of internal financial fraud or financial non-compliance make them less likely to invest. Meanwhile, a quarter (25%) are put off by consistently late filings, with a slightly higher portion less likely to invest in companies that make adjustments post reporting (29%).

These red flags are encouraging investors to take a much closer look at the numbers, highlighting the importance of accurate and transparent financial data. When asked what the most important considerations were when deciding whether to invest, a company’s financial growth forecasts (46%), access to real-time snapshots of company finances (42%) and key metrics within financial reports (46%) came out on top. This suggests that while investors are forward-looking, they also need a clear and realistic view of current financial data in order to make informed decisions.

“It’s likely that investors will increasingly want to look ‘under the hood’ of their portfolio companies, to ensure they are getting a transparent and accurate view of their finances,” continued Tucker. “The ability to access, and more importantly analyze, data in real time will not only be vital for driving business competitiveness, but also for maintaining investor trust.”

The full findings are outlined in ‘The New Age of Increased Investor Due Diligence’.

The news comes after recent debacle surrounding the collapse of London Capital & Finance. The ban, set to be introduced on 1 January, will comes just as consultancies and financial managers encourage clients to place money into ISAs before the end of the tax year.

Currently, various mini-bonds have ISA status and would therefore be included in said advice, however the FCA believes many consumers may not have the expertise required to understand and therefore appropriately evaluate the risks involved in certain mini-bonds.

According to reports the ban will exclude mini-bonds that raise capital for individual companies or properties.

The intervention comes in regard of the recent administration of London Capital & Finance, whereby over 11,000 customers were left in debt and at a loss when the financial management firm collapsed after peddling 6.5% to 8% yearly returns on mini-bonds.

Subsequently, the FCA was under immediate scrutiny and was heavily criticised for not taking action when warned about the firm’s operations three years prior.

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Both the FCA and LC&F are now under investigation by a leading high court judge, Dame Elizabeth Gloster, and the SFO respectively.

Andrew Bailey, Chief Executive of the FCA said: “We remain concerned at the scope for promotion of mini-bonds to retail investors who do not have the experience to assess and manage the risks involved. This risk is heightened by the arrival of the ISA season at the end of the tax year, since it is quite common for mini-bonds to have ISA status, or to claim such even though they do not have the status.

“In view of this risk, we have decided to complement our substantial existing actions with a further measure which will involve a ban on the promotion and mass marketing of speculative mini-bonds to retail consumers. We believe this will enable us to further consumer protection consistent with our regulatory principles and the FCA Mission.”

A press release from the FCA has also stated: “The FCA ban will mean that unlisted speculative mini-bonds can only be promoted to investors that firms know are sophisticated or high net worth. Marketing material produced or approved by an authorised firm will also have to include a specific risk warning and disclose any costs or payments to third parties that are deducted from the money raised from investors.”

The research found that:

• The most common assets investors hold are stocks and shares (53%), property (41%) and bonds (30%)
  • 20% of investors said they plan to increase the amount of money they have invested in real estate in 2020
  • 61% of investors believe traditional assets like property are best positioned to deliver stable and secure returns during the current political uncertainty
• Art and forex (both 19%), cryptocurrencies (17%) and classic cars (16%) were the least common investments
  • 10% of those who have invested in cryptocurrency plan to reduce their amount of investment in this asset in the new year
  • 64% of investors do not think cryptocurrencies are a safe or reliable investment
• 43% have become more socially and environmentally conscious in their financial strategies
• 42% are holding off making any major investment decisions until Brexit has been resolved

UK investors are turning to traditional assets as a result of the political uncertainty currently facing the country, new research from Butterfield Mortgages Limited (BML) has found.

The prime property mortgage provider surveyed 1,100 UK-based investors, all of whom have assets in excess of £10,000, excluding pensions, savings, SIPPs and properties they live in.

The research revealed the most common assets investors hold are stocks and shares (53%), property (41%) and bonds (30%). On the other end of the spectrum, classic cars (16%), cryptocurrencies (17%), art and forex (both 19%) ranked as the least popular.

Delving into the factors influencing their investment decisions, 61% believe traditional assets like property are best positioned to deliver stable and secure returns during this current period of political uncertainty. One in five (20%) property investors are planning to invest in more real estate in 2020.

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When it comes to non-traditional asset classes, nearly two thirds (64%) of investors surveyed by BML do not think cryptocurrencies are a safe or reliable investment. A tenth (10%) of those who have invested in cryptocurrency plan to reduce their amount of investment in this asset in the new year.

Looking into the factors influencing their financial plans for 2020, 43% of investors said they have become more socially and environmentally conscious and this will influence their financial strategy in 2020.

Brexit is also playing on investors’ minds. Two fifths (42%) are holding off making any major investment decisions until Brexit has been resolved, though half (49%) are confident in the long-term performance of UK-based assets. This compares to 23% of investors who are looking to assets based outside the UK for their investments in 2020 because of Brexit.

Alpa Bhakta, CEO of BML, said: “In this era of political uncertainty, investors are rallying towards traditional asset classes like property, which are historically resilient and able to hold their value in times of transition. The fact a significant proportion of investors are planning to increase investment into property in 2020 shows that despite Brexit, demand for real estate remains resoundingly strong.

“Interestingly, the factors influencing financial strategies are also changing–on top of security and stability, investors are also taking into account the environmental and social impact of their investments. This will evidently be an important trend over the coming years, and is something both financial services firms and advisers will need to pay attention to in 2020.”

The salaries today barely cover the monthly expenditure. Medical and education costs have skyrocketed, which can take a toll on your entire savings. It is also possible that you might require a loan to cover expenses. It sounds intense, doesn’t it? We all are going through similar circumstances and thus it is important to get complete financial freedom.

Apart from the typical ways of earning money, you should consider a few unconventional ways that can get you financial freedom, some of which could also cover your retirement years.

1. Find the Best Deals on Any Purchase

Money saved is money earned. Finding coupons and deals on every purchase of products or services, especially big ones, can save you a tremendous amount of money in total. There are a number of online platforms and sites that also provide you cash back on every purchase. Not only are the products trusted, but you also get a wide variety to choose from through a single portal. The money you put to purchase cuts a certain percentage of commission, half of which reaches back to you.

2. Invest in Assets

Investing in a property or a piece of land in your younger days would surely require a huge amount of money, either through your savings or by taking a loan. But it would bring you a massive return after a couple of years. Property rates are revised every seven to ten years and thus the resale price would almost be multiplied by two to three times. The resale price would completely secure your retirement, also compensating for your principal amount. If you are worried about paying the mortgage in your initial years of debt, you can rent your property and use the money to pay your loan installments. This might also bring you extra income every month in some cases.

3. Babysit or Walk a Dog

If you are fond of babies, what is better than getting paid to spend some time with them? If you are experienced with looking after babies, you can take up a babysitting job. It is always in demand because parents are generally working and away from home. Add the earnings in your monthly expenses and you are almost covered. Walking a dog is another blissful job which you would look forward to every day. It is highly likely for you to get a dog walking job if you approach elderly people who own one.

4. Filling Online Surveys

This job might be the most easy going and undemanding at all. Although it does not pay the equivalent of a month’s salary, you are still getting some extra bucks while lying in bed during your leisure time. Filling online surveys for money is highly popular among students, as it takes little effort and makes their spare time more productive. Also, the fact that it just takes a few minutes to fill in one form, you can aim at filling in at least three or four per day and that should help you earn a few bucks. Earning money while passing time, sounds terrific, right?

5. Crawl into Blogging

Even though setting up a blog can be a dreary task, it will promise you revenue generation once it has reached your target audience. Becoming successful in blogging requires patience, as there are thousands of sites within the same discipline. If you want quicker fame, your blog needs to stand out and should carry its own language. Being different is the mantra. Whether you are an artist or a writer, your content should connect and relate to your audience. Once it is a hit, you are bound to generate passive income for a lifetime.

6. Take up Freelancing or Part-Time Jobs

Freelancing jobs will not only provide you with the financial freedom to some extent, but also give you the convenience and flexibility of working according to your schedule and from any part of the world. A lot of online platforms are looking for freelance writers, designers, and developers on a regular basis. Part-time jobs such as food delivery or working in nearby coffee shops for a few hours a day can help you collect a good sum of money which you can directly add to your savings.

From meager to highly critical approaches, every way is useful to generate extra income that can support you in the present and ensure your future. Start experimenting and get going; the time is right. Solidifying extra sources of revenue will provide you with the financial freedom that will make your life more enjoyable.