Having money on deposit can be a great way to achieve short-term financial goals, such as having enough money to pay for a new car or a holiday, or having easy and instant access to the funds for a rainy day. However, for longer-term financial goals, clients may want to consider other Savings and Investment options.

Just like saving money in a deposit account, you can start investing with a moderately small amount of money. You can also invest using a lump sum or regular amounts, i.e. on a monthly basis. The big difference between a deposit account and investing is that the money is used to invest in funds that purchase assets such as shares, properties, bonds or commodities. The values of these assets have the potential to grow at a greater rate than inflation. Therefore, the value of your investment can potentially increase and generate a higher profit/return for you in the medium term.

Investments have tended to yield a better return over the long term compared to cash deposits. This is because a client’s money has more time to benefit from the growth of local and global economies and the effect of compounding, where the profits/returns added back to capital generate even greater returns.

When it comes to investing, a key to successful investing is about time rather than timing. Markets can be unpredictable and your investments will perform differently over time. So it is important to keep the long term in mind and to see past any short-term peaks and troughs.

By and large, we recommend that clients diversify their investments in various asset classes whilst maintaining their personal attitude to risk. Investment performance is usually derived from Asset Allocation; therefore, choosing the right mix of funds over any given period, taking into consideration the client’s particular circumstances, is of paramount importance.

Given the significance of the client’s risk attitude, Con Friel & Company will conduct a Risk Assessment and then provide the client with the results, a personal report and a set of recommendations.