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LACK OF SUITABILITY ------ THE MAJOR CAUSE OF INVESTMENT LOSSES NOW ELIMINATED
SUITABILITY ASSESSMENT SERVICES
YOU CAN PREVENT FUTURE INVESTMENT LOSSES FROM HAPPENINING
We can help you determine whether your current investments or your investment portfolio that you lost money on is suitable for you, so that you can, prevent future investment losses, caused by the unsuitability of your investments, from happening.
Most, if not all investment losses, happen because an investor’s portfolio is invested in unsuitable investments. Our experience shows that of all the investment claims that we have investigated over the past 15 years, 75% were based on unsuitable investments. The Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments statistics show that slightly less than half of all the complaints they receive, are based on the unsuitability of investments. The question is……. what does the word “suitable” in the investment sense mean?
Our experience shows that almost all investors have no idea what “suitability” in the investment sense means. Many investors think that if their portfolio drops in value and they lose money, their investments were unsuitable and that it’s their financial advisor’s fault.. ….. This may not always be the case!.
Suitability in the investment sense means, that for an investment to be suitable, it must be in accordance with the investor’s investment objectives, risk tolerance levels and the investor’s ability to withstand or absorb financial losses and declines in the value of their portfolio. So, if the investments are not in conformity with these criteria, they are unsuitable, and if an investor loses money because of these unsuitable investments, they can generally recover their investment losses. If however, suitability is an issue, and the investments are in fact suitable, and the investments drop in value, such losses are attributable to market risk ( to which all investments are subjected to), and not to your financial advisor’s fault. So ---------- how can you determine whether your investments are suitable or not? Your financial advisor certainly won’t tell you! Don’t worry -------------------- We can.
Our suitability assessment service helps you determine whether your current investment portfolio (or the portfolio that you lost money on) is or was not suitable for you, so you can prevent future investment losses, based on suitability issues, from happening or help you recover your investment losses, if they were caused by unsuitable investments.
To use this suitability assessment service, e-mail or call us for further details. We will also give you a quote for our services. Our charges vary depending on how many investment accounts you have, and how many investments are in each account.
INVESTOR ALERT!
We are enclosing a questionnaire which sets out your investment objectives, risk tolerance levels and ability to withstand losses in your investment account. Even if you don’t use our services, we suggest that you still fill it out and show it to your financial advisor, so that either your Know Your Client Form on record with your advisor can be updated, or if the contents of the Know Your Client Form differ from the contents of this questionnaire, your advisor can make the necessary changes and adjustments to your Know Your Client Form. This way you can prevent future losses in your portfolio, caused by unsuitable investments, from happening.
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Questionnaire for Suitability Assessment
(If there is insufficient space on this form to write in your answers, do so on a separate sheet of paper)
_________________ _____________________ Date: Signed:
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Appendix A DEFINITIONS RELATING TO INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES Preservation of Capital: Here you are seeking safety of principal i.e. you are not prepared to lose any money on your investments. Income: Here you are seeking a steady stream of fixed income from zero to low risk investments. Capital Growth: Here you are seeking potential growth through capital appreciation, re-investment of dividends, and preferred shares. Speculative: Here you are seeking capital appreciation through investments in volatile, speculative, aggressive and high risk securities.
Appendix B RISK The main underlying question in determining your risk tolerance levels is “How much i.e. what percentage of your money are you prepared to speculate with , or lose in order to get a higher return?”
RISK DEFINED No Risk: Means there is no chance of you losing your money Low Risk: Means there is a 5 to 10% chance of you losing your money. Your investments will show low volatility over time. Moderate Risk: Means your investments will be slightly more volatile than low risk, with a 10 to 20% chance of loss. Medium Risk: Means your returns will be more volatile, with a 20% to 40% risk of losing your money. High risk: Means your returns may fluctuate wildly and you have a good chance of losing up to 50% to 70% of your money and in some cases, even all your money. It also means, that your returns (if you make them) will be greater. It’s a trade-off. High risk for high returns. It also means that you are prepared to speculate, go on margin and sell short. You are prepared to take a much higher risk in order to try to get much higher returns.
Note: We do not use the medium to high risk category , because it’s impossible to categorize such investments, and is very confusing
Appendix C INVESTMENT KNOWLEDGE Sophisticated/ Experienced: You have a long track record of investing with or without a financial advisor. You understand the risks of investing. You can and do make your own investment decisions after careful analysis. You like to sound ideas and suggestions off your financial advisor. You don’t depend on the advice of your financial advisor. You are very experienced and knowledgeable. You know as much as your financial advisor does. You don’t need to have investments explained to you. You know it all. You can read and understand financial statements, investment documents, prospectuses, monthly statements etc. You can invest yourself but don’t have the time to do the necessary research. You constantly monitor the markets. You are a professional. You know what’s going on. You can evaluate all the important points of an investment and can apply fundamental analysis to your research. You have operated an on-line investments /trading account in the past or are currently doing so.
Good: You understand the workings of the stock and bond markets. You can understand the explanations of your financial advisor. You can read and understand your statements. You are unable to perform a fundamental analysis of a security. You need a financial advisor to advise and guide you . You know what a stock, bond and mutual fund is but are not so sure about the other securities. You watch business shows on TV, listen to them on the radio, and read the financial media. You need to have the risk of an investment clearly explained so that you can understand and evaluate it . You need help in setting up an asset allocation portfolio. You cannot make an investment decision without help and advice. If you and your financial advisor have differing opinions about an investment, you will always defer to his/her greater knowledge.
Limited/Poor: You have a vague idea what a mutual fund and a stock is, but you are not too sure what a bond or other investments are.. You have difficulty understanding what your financial advisor is talking about. You cannot make an investment decision by yourself. You. always follow and accept your financial advisor’s recommendations, irrespective of whether you understand them or not – most times not. You rely and depend on your financial advisor. You cannot understand your statements, correspondence from your brokerage house, confirmation notes, prospectuses or financial documents. You have no idea of the concept of risk and have. no idea what is suitable for you or not. You need help in determining your investment objectives and risk tolerance levels. If you had to write an investment knowledge test you would get between 5% to 10% on your paper. You depend on your financial advisor to do everything properly and to always follow your Know Your Client Form’s information.
Zero: You know absolutely nothing about choosing investments, asset allocation or risk tolerance levels. You can’t understand any financial documents. In the investing sense, its as if you were born yesterday … on Mars!
Appendix D INVESMENT EXPERIENCE Answer these questions: a) What investments have you previously invested in i.e. i.e. stocks, bonds options, futures, commodities, mutual funds, ETFs, Principal Protected Notes, Income Trusts, Structured Products or any other kind of investment? b) Do you know what the advantages and disadvantages are, of the various types of investments listed in (a) above? c) Do you know the risks attached to the investments listed in (a) above? d) Which of the investments listed in (a) above do you feel would be suitable for you (if any)? e) Did you invest in these investments by yourself or with a financial advisor ? f) Did your financial advisor buy them for you? g) Did your financial advisor explain to you what these investments do and what risk is attached to each such investment? h) Did you understand what your financial advisor said? i) Did you understand the risk attached to any investment your financial advisor suggested or recommended? j) Have you ever taken any investment courses? k) Have you ever attended any investment seminars? l) Have you ever read or do you still read books, magazines or articles on investing or finance? m) Do you listen to the radio or watch on TV, financial and investment programs? n) Are you able to evaluate potential investments? o) Do you keep a constant eye on investment markets and keep up to date with all new financial/economic developments? p) Do you operate an on-line investment account? q) Are you able to read and understand your monthly statements, and all other communications from your financial advisor and/or brokerage house and/or financial institution such as for example investment forecasts and news, confirmation notes, prospectuses, risk and conflict of interest disclosure documents etc? r) Do you know how a margin account operates and when a margin call is triggered? Now complete, in question 18 “How would you rate your investment experience”, based on the answers given? If you are not sure what category you fit into, always choose the more conservative viewpoint.
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