DIY Investor Magazine
/
Jan 2017
4
2017 – THE YEAR OF FINANCIAL SELF-RELIANCE?
Shortly after Britain voted to leave the EU
, DIY
Investor predicted a new political, social and economic
era that would foster far greater financial self-reliance as
previous certainties became less so.
Our look ahead to 2017 includes expert opinion from
industry participants and commentators – each with
a slightly different perspective on what the future may
hold, particularly around bond yields; we also have a
Q&A with tech boss, hSo’s Chris Evans, to see how
Brexit is affecting his business and his DIY portfolio.
One thing is for sure, those that haughtily dismissed
Brexit as an unwashed, populist tantrum will no doubt
be nervously awaiting President Trump’s first 100 days,
with a watchful eye on the French and German (and UK?
– 6/4 at Paddy Power) elections.
The 401k/59and-a-half conversation has long been
a staple around US dinner tables, but will this be the
year in which ‘DIY Investing’ is finally established in the
public lexicon?
There are plenty of drivers with millions of people still
denied access to, or unwilling to pay for financial advice
and record sums being offered to savers to cash in final
salary pensions.
Those going it alone have access to an unprecedented
amount of information and education; social media
allows investors to interact and share experiences.
Encouraged by the FCA to close the advice gap, digital
investment managers –
– hoped
to encourage millennials to adopt the savings and
investing habit; but with squeezed wages, student debt
and high housing costs, the cash just wasn’t there and
early adopters tend to be experienced investors looking
to keep costs down.
Traditional lines have blurred – instead of waiting for
clients to become wealthy enough to qualify, wealth
managers are offering their own incubator service;
enter Killik’s ‘bionic finance’ (!) solution, Silo, and Brewin
Portfolios.
UBS will enter the market with Smartwealth and a
number of banks and big institutions are likely to follow;
Barclays has started to leverage its position by actively
promoting investments to its banking customers.
Reaching out to millennials is a growing number of
savings or
such as Moneybox,
and
is likely to gather
momentum with the IFISA as public awareness grows –
the ‘populist’ investment choice? Robo-advice is certain
to be a hot topic in 2017, but the building blocks that
underpin these services are there for the DIY investor
willing to spend a little time and looking to save some
cash.
Whilst true Artificial Intelligence may be some way down
the line, the current platforms typically serve up risk-
adjusted model portfolios of ETFs; in this issue CEO of
Dominique Rieldl explains how to find the right
ETF for your DIY portfolio.
Despite seismic events such as Brexit and DJ Trump’s
election, markets have proven remarkably resilient;
there were stutters as investors pondered ‘unknown
unknowns’, when prices of fine art, wine and classic
cars all rose, but by and large markets have remained
strong and with the help of
we look at
how you can invest for dividend income.
In the new era of transparency, investors want very clear
information about the performance of their investments
and the associated costs and because of that, more
traditional investments are well worth revisiting – the
cost of ownership of unit trusts has been falling and
managers are working hard to prove the value that
active management delivers.
If you are in any doubt, take a look at this end of
year video from the
and consider the opening statement
from Communications Director, Annabel Brodie-Smith:
‘Despite some market volatility the average investment
company (Investment Trust) is up an impressive 12%
this year’
Whatever path you take to financial freedom in 2017, DIY
Investor will be right by your side, and pleased to hear
from you –
