How to make money through coins as an alternative investment
By financen | December 23, 2015 - 4:03 pm - Posted in Coin, Investment, Money and Banking

Diversification is a core investment principal. The old saw that there are old pilots and bold pilots, but no old bold pilots can be applied to traders. Other than stocks, what are other effective ways of making money? Bonds, commodities, cash? These instruments do not seem to be much appetizing at the moment.

Alternative investments can be the best and worst of investments. This is the zone where an offer of a piece of Brazilian jungle, carbon credits or funky real estate can lead investors astray.

One of the best classes of alternative investment is numismatic coins. They have the following benefits:

Low correlation to other assets: Numismatic coins have kept up a 7% annual compound rate of growth for as long as you care to look back. A coin that was $100 in the past during depression is now $20000. There is no asset that is free of correlation but the main correlation for numismatics is general money supply with an underlying link with fear. During the credit crunch when people were pulling their cash from British banks, coin dealers were as busy as the vendors of safes.coin

Inflation hedge: Coins are very helpful in beating inflation. A Triple Unite from 1646 that was about $10000 to its original owner is now worth anywhere between $80000 to $150000. This is about 3% above the rate of inflation over the last 368 years. Inflation is an increasingly mysterious number. Many people believe that their grocery bills and the constant rise in price do not match the stated inflation numbers. The prices of the hard assets are always going up. This is counterbalanced by a mixture of “soft assets” deflation, questionable statistics and agricultural subsidies.

High portability: Unlike dollar bills, many are not trained to sniff out collectible coins. You can put a multimillion dollar collection in your pocket and go away. Some people believe that bullets are a great alternative investment.

A global market with auctions: Alternative investments tend to be illiquid, just like coins. You can sell the items quickly to a dealer, but the bid/offer on that isn’t too great. Coins are for the investors who are patient and an auction is a solid venue for them.

Coins have a great history of being valuable assets: Coins have a good track record of being desirable assets. They have been collected by popes and emperors, and have been a pastime of the rich for centuries. They provide a good demand in the resale market.

Numismatics is not the only collectible with good investment and diversification attributes. You will find them in the form of stamps, banknotes and many other obscure and/or fascinating genres like film posters, toys, china and other art virtue. Almost everyone has the same reasons to collect coins. If you put all your financial eggs in one investment basket, your probability of loss is concentrated. Collecting is a fine way of spreading your investment risk.

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Are You Sure You Don’t Have Hidden PPI?
By financen | December 15, 2015 - 4:32 am - Posted in PPI

The figures surrounding the PPI scandal are already staggering. What’s arguably more staggering is that many thousands of people still haven’t claimed what they’re owed. The total amount paid out since January 2011 has already gone well beyond £21 billion.

By the time the whole mess is tied off, it’s estimated the total bill will be closer to £35 billion.

That goes to show that while many people have got their money back, a great deal more still haven’t.

One reason so many people still haven’t claimed is simply because they don’t know they have a claim. One way that PPI was routinely mis-sold was to add it on to the finance agreement without the customer’s knowledge.

When that happened, the customer was unknowingly paying out for the product month after month. They believed each repayment was purely for the loan or finance agreement when in fact a portion of it was repaying the PPI as well.

The team over at http://ppiclaimsandadvice.com have been helping many people get back money they didn’t even realise they were owed. For some people, that refund
has been in the tens-of-thousands of pounds.

With a deadline for claiming imminent, it’s important you double check your records to make sure you aren’t due a refund too. Once the deadline hits, there’ll be no route for recourse after that.

Uncovering Hidden PPI

It’s quite normal to discard old paperwork when the finance agreement has run its course. So how can you find hidden PPI if you no longer have your records?

One way is to run a credit check on yourself. A credit check will pull up your financial history, showing you what loans and finance agreements you’ve had in the past and with which lenders.

There are a number of firms that offer such a service. One well know firm is Credit Expert, owned by Experian. They offer a free trial period to use the service, after which there’s a monthly fee (cancel the trial before it ends and you won’t have to pay).

Another similar service is by Noddle, which is free all the time.

Sign up for the service, follow the instructions and download your report. Print it out if you have a printer and then go through it — carefully, of course — to locate any PPI you weren’t aware of, or which you’d forgotten about.

PPI often went by other names, hence the reason for going through the report carefully. It may have been sold as ASU or something similar. Whatever name it’s listed under, if you find instances of PPI that are a surprise to you, then it was almost certainly mis-sold and you should be due a refund.

No Account Numbers or Paperwork

There’s much debate about whether you should claim PPI by yourself or have a PPI claim company do it for you. As with many things in life, there isn’t a right or wrong answer. It’s largely a personal choice based on your own circumstances.

One area where it can make more sense to use a company rather than handling it alone is if you no longer have your paperwork and/or account numbers. Some companies, like the one mentioned at the top of the article, have negotiated special agreements with many of the main banks and lenders.

These agreements allow them to get claims started without account numbers and without paperwork. It’s an agreement specific to some companies and isn’t available to individuals claiming by themselves. For many people, this not only makes a slow and laborious process quicker, but it’s also far less stressful.

Whichever way you decide to claim your money back, just make sure you do it soon. Once the deadline is official, the clock will be ticking and it will count down to zero much quicker than you probably realise.

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Fighting Fraud & Securing Your Business
By financen | December 7, 2015 - 5:25 pm - Posted in Business

Unfortunately, fraud can affect all businesses, both large and small, and can have very costly consequences for your company’s finances and reputation if word of the fraud gets out; especially where fraud directly affects your customers. Many fraudsters thrive on and feed off of the reluctance of business owners to deal with a potential security breach within their business. However, fighting fraud and securing your business should be standard practice.

Assess your risks

The first step you should take is to determine the areas in your business that are vulnerable to fraud. You could start with common risks, such as payment exchanges with suppliers, POS cash payments from customers, and other areas that involve the exchange of finances. Invest in a counterfeit detector to ensure you don’t receive fraudulent bills and remember that fraud doesn’t always have to be on a large scale.

Theft or exchange of business products (asset misappropriation) by staff is very common and schemes where employees steal or exploit your organization’s resources, or make fictitious expense reimbursement claims need to be addressed. While this type of fraud is often overlooked, as it is less costly than corruption cases, or financial statement fraud, the effects of it can add up greatly over time. Tightening security at entry and exit points, as well as establishing guidelines can make a big difference.

Come up with an anti-fraud plan

Once you’ve determined the areas you need to focus your attention on, it’s time to create a fraud prevention policy. Write it down for the employees as well. Whether your staff have to start using counterfeit money detection products, or need training on ethical behavior, a policy in place can be a good guide and deterrent. If you need expert guidance, you can consult with Certified Fraud Examiners, who can help you find out where your company is most vulnerable and assist creation and action of your plan.

Make examples

Business owners may be reserved when it comes to raising the issue of fraud with their staff or customers for fear of coming across as untrusting. But one of the best ways to approach this issue is by being open about it. Customers can take advantage of employees when exchanging cash for products and employees can do the same, so purchase a money counting machine that records every transaction for both parties to see. This will make he said/she said arguments a thing of the past. And making examples of any employees or customers who abuse this rule will be a deterrent to other people.

Maintain the culture

Maintain positivity and open communications in your company. Organizational structure and policies should be followed. There’s no sense in creating an anti-fraud plan and handing out a copy to everyone involved and then not respect it. Carry out random assessments, follow the protocol. If you do still find cases of fraud, think about installing CCTV cameras in your offices or stores. Will these tips in mind, you can take charge and work to fight against fraud and secure your business.

Michael Peggs is the founder of digital marketing agency Marccx Media, where they specialize in SEO and Content Marketing. Before Marcxx, Peggs worked at Google in business development, forming digital media and advertising partnerships. He is also a blogger and podcaster, hosting the iTunes Top 10 New & Noteworthy podcast You University – The Personal Branding Podcast.

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5 Ways to Boost Morale in the Business Meeting
By financen | December 5, 2015 - 4:30 am - Posted in Business

A lot of employees dread the traditional business meeting. In many cases, your employees could become bored and less likely to retain the information you’re providing. If you want your staff to be more likely to take something away from the meeting, you need to engage them. You need a platform that can keep their attention while delivering the materials you need them to understand.

Interactivity With Staff

Giving your staff a voice in the company does two things: empowers the employee and increases the likelihood of discovering new ways of doing things. Although you’re the boss and want things done a certain way, listen to the input of staff. You never know if an employee’s idea could save the company money or make the workflow more efficient.

An Engaging Presentation

Too many meetings use featureless and plain presentations to deliver information. Studies have shown that more engaging slideshows offer increased chances of retaining the information while improving focus on the topic. Improving these demonstrations, such as professional PowerPoint slide designs, can impact your workforce and enhance the outcome of the business meeting.

Catering to Excite the Masses

Catering can be anything from basic snacks or doughnuts to full dinners ordered from the local pizza parlor. Food helps attract the employees while filling their stomach. Studies have shown that people with food in their stomachs are more likely to retain and process information.

Focus on the Positive

Depending on the reason behind the business meeting, you’ll want to keep focus on the positive aspects. People who are encouraged to succeed in a positive manner are more likely to do so. Dwelling on negative aspects of the business can hurt morale and may be counter-productive to creating a strong work environment.

Be Energetic

You should always lead by example. The more energetic and positive you are, the more likely the staff will be as well. According to various studies, an employer who demonstrates a positive frame of mind and is energetic affects the mindset of those around him or her. This often leads to a happier and more productive workplace.

You don’t have to stick to the mundane and plain business meeting. Getting the staff excited about working for the company can help keep employees on staff while improving their need for success. Don’t think of it as bribing them to do a good job. Think of it as an investment to keep quality staff working to benefit the business as a whole.

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