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Biscayne Capital Launches Wealth Management Office  in the Bahamas with Stephen Coakley Wells

Biscayne Capital abre oficina en Bahamas y pone al frente a Stephen Coakley Wells — Bahamas Government House. Biscayne Capital Launches Wealth Management Office  in the Bahamas with Stephen Coakley Wells

Biscayne Capital, one of the fastest growing private banking firms in Latin America and the Caribbean, has opened an office in Nassau and has named financial services veteran Stephen Coakley Wells as Managing Director of its Bahamas operations.

As well as delivering investment management and advisory services for individual investors, the Bahamas office will offer- a variety of services for international businesses, including incorporation, registered office, agent and administration services, in addition to corporate officer and director nominee services.

Based in Montevideo, Uruguay, Biscayne Capital was founded in 2005 and established its Zurich office in 2012. The firm currently has over $1 billion of assets under management and a team of 41 financial advisors worldwide.

Mr. Coakley Wells, a citizen of the Bahamas, has been in the financial services industry since 1995. Before he joined Biscayne Capital, he was an International Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch, providing financial solutions for high and ultra-high net worth clients in Latin America and the Caribbean region.

“Stephen brings a wealth of experience and great new dimension to our team,” said Roberto Cortes, co-founder and Director of Biscayne Capital. “His commitment to a personalized and strategic approach to help clients make informed decisions about managing, conserving and enhancing their wealth makes him a perfect fit at Biscayne Capital.”

Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, Mr. Coakley Wells was a Senior Wealth Advisor for Latin America and the Caribbean at a global top tier financial institution based in Switzerland. His experience is complemented by a comprehensive knowledge of Latin American tax and legal regulations.

Mr. Coakley Wells has earned advanced degrees in Law and Latin American and Caribbean Studies, concentrating on Economic Law. He speaks English and Portuguese fluently and is conversant in Spanish and French. He is also a proud alumnus of the United World Colleges movement.

MSCI Launches Factor Indexes for Latin America

| For Alicia Miguel | 0 Comentarios

MSCI has announced the launch of a family of new factor indexes for seven country and regional Latin American markets.

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“We have launched these new factor indexes not only in response to the increasing demand for indexes to serve as the basis for index-based investment products in Latin America, but also because of the global trend toward factor investing,” said Diana Tidd, Managing Director and Head of the MSCI Index Business in the Americas.

“This is the first full suite of factor indexes covering the Latin America market and is part of our ongoing commitment to provide our clients in the region with the tools they need to support their investment processes.”

Equity factor investing was pioneered in the 1970s based on research, data and analytics created by Barra – today an MSCI company. In recent years, MSCI has developed a range of indexes that provide institutional investors with a basis for implementing a transparent and efficient passive approach to seeking the excess returns historically obtained over long time horizons through active factor investing. In 2008, MSCI introduced the industry’s first Minimum Volatility Index. More than USD 90 billion in assets are benchmarked to MSCI Factor Indexes¹.

¹As of March 31, 2013 according to eVestment, Lipper and Bloomberg

Chile With a Chance of Rain

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Chile is one of Latin America’s great long-term success stories, with fiscal rectitude and the strong savings culture, fostered by its pension fund industry, often cited as the roots of its success. In recent years though, it has underperformed most emerging markets including Brazil; its currency has proven vulnerable, and the stock of private sector debt has mounted. However, the country is undergoing some profound changes under the leadership of newly elected president Michelle Bachelet.

The changes reflect the nearly universal desire in Latin America to deal with the long-term issues of low public investment in infrastructure, sub-par education, and lack of social mobility. While dealing with these issues could help Chile break free from its ‘stuck in the middle’ status, it seems that few companies are prepared for the changes this will entail, and far fewer still, are able or willing to embrace the president’s vision.

Chile’s economy is slowing down rapidly as the spectre of tax and regulatory reforms from the new, more populist, Bachelet government have spooked corporations, both big and small. Chilean companies pay little tax on corporate profits provided they invest in practically anything; be it foreign acquisitions, company cars, groceries for employees or new plants — eventually it all counts as capital investment. This has led to widespread abuse and severe distortions in the economy, and a severe shortfall in tax revenue for the government. Reform means Chile could grow as little as 2.5% in 2014, which is well below its historic growth rate of 5‑6%. We feel this is a very similar situation to the impact that tax changes have had in Mexico but with perhaps more intense social repercussions.

The slowing economy should drive Chile’s interest rates lower; the central bank cut the policy rate from 4.5% to 4.0% in the first quarter. However, the differential in policy rates between Chile and Brazil has contributed to the peso’s 7.0% underperformance versus the Brazilian real in the last 12 months. Chile’s currency could be vulnerable as more rate cuts look likely in 2014.

Many companies are experiencing headwinds from areas as diverse as environmental protection, data protection, insurance/financial sales practices, and labour relations. Chile’s traditionally pro-business regulatory bodies are being transformed rapidly into much more progressive, proactive bodies. There is an unreal sense of denial amongst Chilean executives.

Meanwhile commodity markets are not particularly helpful for Chile. According to Deutsche Bank, the demand‑led commodity markets of 2002-08 have given way to the supply‑led markets of today. Only where supply is likely to be disrupted — as in the cases of nickel, coffee or platinum — is there likely to be much strength. Producers have excess capacity otherwise to provide rapid supply responses. Chile’s key commodity exports, copper and pulp, have been trendless but it is worth noting that Chile’s producers are generally right at the bottom of the cost curve.

To summarise, the new Bachelet government intends to use higher corporate taxation, stronger environmental protection, vigilance in consumer protection, and vastly higher spending on secondary and higher education to rebalance Chile’s unequal society. Few Chilean companies will see any immediate benefits — it will be particularly important to figure out which companies are getting ‘on side’. For example our research indicates that in Brazil companies such as Cielo and Smiles help the tax authorities with data collection, while Kroton is a beneficiary of big spending on education.

Opinion column by Chris Palmer, Director of Global Emerging Markets at Henderson Global Investors

Francisco Gonzalez is Awarded the Americas Society’s Gold Medal

| For Alicia Miguel | 0 Comentarios

BBVA Chairman Francisco Gonzalez has been awarded the Americas Society Gold Medal in recognition for his important contribution to the growth and development of the Americas. He received the award on Wednesday night at a formal dinner in New York.

At the ceremony, Mr. Gonzalez expressed his gratitude for the award, adding that “in the Americas, BBVA has been guided by principles.” He affirmed that “our presence in the U.S., Mexico and South America gives us a clear perspective on the important interplay between the developed and emerging worlds. In many ways, our bank can be seen as a bridge between these worlds, working for a better future for people.”

The Americas Society Gold Medal is the organization’s highest award for people who have made significant contributions to economic development and social and environmental responsibility, and have promoted cultural, social and educational projects in the Americas.

“With a strong vision and an unwavering commitment to innovation and corporate social responsibility, Francisco Gonzalez has transformed BBVA into a truly international institution,” said Americas Society/Council of the Americas President and CEO Susan Segal. “The Americas Society is honored to be able to recognize him for his contributions to the financial sector and the communities in which BBVA operates.”

Since he was appointed Chairman in 2000, he has turned BBVA into a global financial group with a presence in 30 countries. It is now the top bank in Mexico and has leading franchises in South America and the Sunbelt region in the U.S.

BBVA’s current plans include a $6 billion investment in Latin America for 2013-2016. In Mexico, it plans to invest $3.5 billion in technology upgrades, branch office renovations and on the completion of its new headquarters. In South America, it intends to invest $2.5 billion to boost innovation and make BBVA the top digital bank in that region.

BBVA is also engaged in important social work. By the end of 2013, more than 1.5 million people had obtained financing from the BBVA Microfinance Foundation for entrepreneurial initiatives in Latin America. And since 2007, the bank granted 450,000 scholarships to people in the United States and Latin America.

Fitch Affirms 4 Andorran Banks

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Fitch Ratings has affirmed Andorra Banc Agricol Reig’s (Andbank), Credit Andorra‘s, and Mora Banc Grup, SA’s (MoraBanc) Long-term Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at ‘A-‘ and Viability Ratings (VR) at ‘a-‘, and Banca Privada d’Andorra’s (BPA) Long-term IDR at ‘BB+’ and VR at ‘bb+’. The Outlooks on the Long-term IDRs of Andbank and BPA are Stable. The Outlook on Credit Andorra has been revised to Stable from Negative. The Outlook on Morabanc is Negative.

The banks’ Long-term IDRs are driven by their intrinsic credit profiles, reflected by their VRs. All four banks focus on developing their private banking and asset management franchises and had positive net new money inflows in 2013, which supported their continued assets under management (AuM) growth. Andbank, Credit Andorra and BPA focused on growing through their foreign subsidiaries, while MoraBanc’s international presence is more limited and its growth strategy lies in attracting private banking clients to Andorra. Fitch believes that the onshore nature of Andorran banks’ recent AuM growth reduces the potential impact from future automatic tax information exchange agreements that Andorran banks may be subject to.

Although Andorran banks concentrate on wealth management activities, they are also active in domestic retail banking. Their asset quality deteriorated during the recession of the Andorran economy. As GDP is expected to start growing moderately in 2014, Fitch expects pressure on banks’ asset quality to ease, but asset quality ratios are likely to deteriorate further, albeit at a significantly slower pace. Together with the banks’ generally healthy profitability, this should enable them to provide for impairment needs and build up capital through retained earnings.

Andbank‘s strong capitalisation has a high influence on its VR. Its Fitch core capital (FCC) ratio was 20.8% at end-2013. The acquisition of the Spanish private banking business of Inversis Banco, which is expected to be completed by end-2014, will initially have a negative impact on capital ratios as it will generate EUR120m goodwill. The VR is based on Fitch’s assumption that Andbank will recover its capital position within a short period of time through stronger internal capital generation, helped by a reduction in the dividend pay-out ratio. The bank’s VR also considers healthy profitability and cost efficiency, as well as its deteriorated asset quality. The ratio of problematic assets (defined as non-performing loans and loans in arrears plus foreclosed assets) was 6.5% at YE13 and problematic loans (non-performing loans and loans in arrears) were well covered by provisions at 56%.

The Outlook on Credit Andorra has been revised to Stable from Negative, supported by the bank’s increased problematic asset coverage levels and capitalisation, which in Fitch’s view largely outweighed the asset quality deterioration in 2013. The bank was able to increase coverage and capitalisation due to its strong and recurrent earnings generation capacity, which has relatively higher importance for its VR, combined with a conservative provisioning and earnings retention policy. Nevertheless, Fitch acknowledges that the bank’s relatively large exposure to the domestic retail market affects its asset quality. Credit Andorra’s problematic asset ratio was 8% at end-2013, with problematic loans 34% covered. The VR is based on Fitch’s expectation that the bank will continue to increase its impairment reserve coverage following the provisioning approach set in 2013.

Fitch considers capitalisation and leverage to have a high influence on MoraBanc‘s VR. The agency considers MoraBanc’s capitalisation is strong compared with its peers, with an FCC ratio of 28.5% at end-2013. Combined with a sovereign debt securities portfolio that has higher average ratings than those of its peers, this compensates for the weaker quality of the bank’s loan book. Its non-performing loans and loans in arrears represented 5.1% of loans, with a low 15% coverage, underscoring its reliance on the valuation of collaterals. Including foreclosed assets, its problematic assets ratio was 9%. MoraBanc’s growth strategy, which consists of attracting private banking clients to Andorra instead of incrementing its international footprint, has resulted in relatively lower business growth in recent years.

BPA‘s VR reflects its respectable domestic and growing international franchise, which is beginning to be reflected in profitability, and adequate liquidity. Capitalisation and leverage and asset quality have a high influence on BPA’s VR. Fitch considers capitalisation tight as BPA only maintains moderate buffers. The bank’s FCC/RWA ratio declined to 9.2% at end-2013 from 10.3% at end-2012.

Ongoing Investor Uncertainty Emerges as Key Trend on Advisor Top-of-Mind Index

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More than five years after the 2008 financial crisis, financial advisors report that investors are still skittish, with three of their biggest priorities being “defensive” in nature: protecting wealth from market volatility, finding reliable income sources and minimizing the impact of taxes on portfolios, according to Eaton Vance’s “Advisor Top-of-Mind Index“. Capital appreciation ranked lower on the Index, signaling that many clients are less concerned about growing their portfolios.

Eaton Vance’s new quarterly Advisor Top-of-Mind Index, based on a survey of financial advisors, is calculated using a mathematical formula that incorporates the overall importance of each client issue, combined with how fast the issue is increasing in importance. Volatility measured 114.9 on the index, with income concerns ranking close behind at 106.6 and reducing taxes scoring 92.8. Growing wealth through capital appreciation came in at only 85.5.

“Despite five years of strong equity returns and fairly low market volatility in 2013, many investors are afraid of getting burned like they did in 2008,” said Bob Cunha, Managing Director, Marketing and Distribution Strategy for Eaton Vance. “On top of that, many are looking at the prospect of double-digit losses in their bond portfolios as interest rates rise, along with tax bills that have skyrocketed. They appear to be more focused on protection than growth.”

Rich Bernstein, CEO and CIO of Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC, agrees but sees a silver lining. “The fact that many investors are still fearful is actually a good sign. It suggests to me that the bull market in U.S. equities has not run its course. It’s when investors get complacent and overconfident that I start telling clients to expect a potential market reversal. That’s clearly not the case today.”

With a broad range of factors potentially impacting markets and triggering investor anxiety, the Advisor Top-of-Mind Index aims to articulate the most commonly raised concerns. It is part of an ongoing study developed to help identify the investment themes and concerns clients are raising with their advisors most often. The Advisor Top-of-Mind Index is similar to the U.S. Consumer Confidence Index (which is not affiliated with Eaton Vance) in that it calculates a weighted average of current perceptions and what advisors think about the trends. In future quarters, Eaton Vance will measure which of these factors increase or decrease on the Advisor Top-of-Mind Index to glean insights into what advisors perceive to be clients’ biggest financial challenges, along with how market volatility shapes client and advisor perspectives.

“The Advisor Top-of-Mind Index acts like a thermometer for the financial advisor community,” Cunha said. “We believe it will help us, and our industry as a whole, to develop the tools and resources advisors need so they will be equipped to address their clients’ most pressing needs. As sentiment changes over time, the index will help us identify evolving client concerns so that we can help advisors prepare their clients for the future and effectively navigate a still-uncertain investment environment.”

Robeco Strengthens its Expansion in Latin America and U.S. Offshore with Joel Peña’s Addition

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Robeco refuerza su expansión en Latinoamérica y US Offshore con la incorporación de Joel Peña — CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrJoel Peña, Managing Director for Latin America and U.S. Offshore at Robeco / Courtesy Photo. Robeco Strengthens its Expansion in Latin America and U.S. Offshore with Joel Peña’s Addition

Robeco has announced Joel Peña’s incorporation to its Latin American and U.S. Offshore team; Peña, CFA, will head the U.S. offshore / Latin American business growth from Miami and New York.

Joel Peña, a professional with 13 years experience in the asset management industry began his professional career at BBVA Bancomer in Houston and Miami, later to join Bank Hapoalim as Senior Private Banker. He joins Robeco after nearly six years as head of institutional and private clients in Latin America for Pimco. He graduated in economics from Tec de Monterrey (ITESM) and has an MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University. He also has CFA and CAIA certifications.

Joel Peña will be Managing Director for Latin America and U.S. Offshore, reporting to Javier Garcia de Vinuesa, Robeco’s head for Offshore U.S., Spain and Latam. His main objective shall be to position Robeco amongst the leading investment fund managers in the Latin American market and to continue the management company’s successful growth within this sector. Amongst the main challenges he will face, will be to consolidate and expand Robeco in line with the firm’s strategic plan 2014-2018. His extensive knowledge of the markets and his experience within the industry will be critical in order to meet the growth objectives defined by Robeco for these markets.

Robeco has excelled in recent years both for its contributions in the “Factor” and “Quant” investing area within the pension funds industry, as for its ability in “American Value”, “Emerging Equity” and “Credit” strategies within the institutional sector. It currently manages US$250 billion from its offices in the Americas, Europe and Asia.

Javier Garcia de Vinuesa points out: “Joel Peña’s career within the asset management industry and his knowledge of Latin American and U.S. Offshore markets fits very well with Robeco’s criteria and with industry demands in Latin America: a market with highly filtered product, thorough in ‘best in class’, and based on excellence. “

Argentina Update—Coming Closer To the End of The Saga

| For Alicia Miguel | 0 Comentarios

The markets have continued to trade Argentine bonds with caution, ahead of the Supreme Court audience on the Argentina-Holdout case, which will take place on June 12th. We view the possible outcomes as follows: (1) The Supreme Court accepts the petition to hear the case, perhaps reacting to the plethora of amicus curiae that have been presented in favor of the Republic’s case (great scenario for markets), (2) The Supreme Court asks to hear the input of the solicitor general on the possible implications of this case on the sovereign immunities act before making a final decision, an outcome that could stretch the decision timeframe out to 2015 (good for markets), or (3) The Supreme Court just denies the request to hear the case, in that manner exhausting all the possible appeals of Argentina in the US Court system (very bad scenario). If Scenario 3 occurs, the payment of the interest on the 2033 Discounts, scheduled to take place on June 30, would feasibly be attachable by the holdouts. In other words, under the third scenario, Argentina would most likely default on performing debt.

We will not attempt to forecast how the Supreme Court will act, but rather assume an equal weighting to the just-mentioned possible scenarios. Nine months ago we would have assigned 0% probability to the scenario of the Argentine government agreeing to pay full claim to the holdouts in the event of an adverse Supreme Court decision. Now we see an increased probability of the government potentially deciding to pay the holdouts, most likely in kind (paid with additional bonds rather than cash), as was the case with Repsol. As we argued in our “Winds of Change” piece at the beginning of this year, the authorities have clearly internalized that a recovery in the capital account is a necessity for the current economic model to survive, hence their decision to become increasingly pragmatic on the economic management front.

There seems to be an understanding by the authorities that running a current account surplus is not sufficient to keep money demand strong, and that without external financing, the reserve drain will continue (the reason the government elected to pay Repsol and reach an agreement with the Paris Club is tied to the need to reopen external credit lines). Alternatively, if the US justice system forces Argentina to default, the government may decide to call a debt swap for holders of performing debt, so that investors can receive “mirror” bonds carrying Buenos Aires legislation –and in that manner be able to get paid. The problem with this scenario is that the execution of this strategy seems quite complicated from a logistical point of view, and also, the capacity of provinces and corporates to issue in the future under New York law could be compromised.

The bottom-line: While it is impossible to forecast how the US Supreme Court will ultimately act, our conviction view asserts that the interest of a very small minority places at high risk the right of “the many” (in this case 93% of the holders of debt) to get paid under New York jurisdiction. In any case, we continue to recommend investors stay involved in this credit through sovereign USD-denominated Buenos Aires law paper (2015s and the new 2024s, currently yielding an attractive 10.7%) and NY Law provincial debt (BA 2015s and 2021s, for example). We are not lawyers, but our view is that provincial debt should remain immune to the events affecting the sovereign.

Clearly, if the Supreme Court rejects the case, and Argentina’s ability to make the interest payments on the NY Law 2033s is withheld, there will be ample volatility, but we sense that the willingness of the Fernandez de Kirchner administration to continue paying the debt will remain intact. The amortization schedule of Argentina is relatively light (USD $8.3 billion of public debt matures in 2014, according to the official September 2013 Public Debt Update), and Argentina will probably benefit from increased sources of capital account financing following the agreements reached with the World Bank, the Paris Club, and Repsol.

Now, if Argentina loses the case, but subsequently acts pragmatically, i.e. pays the holdouts to keep interest payments from being attached by the plaintiffs, then we think that the holders of performing debt will refrain from suing the Republic (for violating the most favored offer clause included in the 2005 and 2010 covenants). We maintain this view not least because a decision by the Republic of Argentina to finally end the holdout debacle would likely generate a material, unprecedented rally in Argentine debt given the implied capacity of Argentina to be able to issue without problems in New York. Under this “good case” scenario, we would not be surprised to see the NY-law USD-denominated 2033s rally north of $115 (clean price, now trading at $78) if indeed the government is able to clear the problem with the holdouts.

Alberto J. Bernal-León is Head of Research and partner at Bulltick

Mark Haefele Appointed UBS Global Chief Investment Officer

| For Alicia Miguel | 0 Comentarios

UBS has announced that Mark Haefele will assume the role of Global Chief Investment Officer for UBS Wealth Management and Wealth Management Americas. Alexander Friedman, the current Global Chief Investment Officer, has decided to step down in order to pursue a new opportunity outside the firm.

Mr. Haefele will join the Wealth Management Executive Committee. He joined the firm in 2011 and is currently the head of the CIO Global Investment Office, reporting to Mr. Friedman. Prior to joining UBS, Mr. Haefele was a managing director at Matrix Capital Management, and before that was co-founder and co-portfolio manager at The Sonic Funds.

Juerg Zeltner, CEO of UBS Wealth Management said, “We are pleased that Mark Haefele has accepted this key role for UBS Wealth Management. Mark is a highly qualified investment expert with a global track record. His management skills and ability to transform his deep market knowledge into relevant information that benefits our clients, make him the ideal successor for this important position.”

UBS plans to further invest in the Chief Investment Office with a particular focus on expanding its capabilities in the emerging markets and Asian geographies as well as in its alternative investing and value-based investing offerings.

Mr. Friedman joined UBS in February 2011 to establish the Chief Investment Office and develop a UBS House View. Today, the Chief Investment Office manages the discretionary and advisory assets of Wealth Management clients worldwide, and provides the firm’s clear, consolidated view on all markets and asset classes.

Under the leadership of Mr. Friedman and his team, a systematic, global investment process has been established that has produced strong and consistent investment results for the firm’s clients during a volatile, post-crisis period. The process comprises the expertise of more than 900 in-house analysts and external experts, and forms the foundation of the UBS House View, globally recognized for its comprehensive and effective investment insights.

On the departure of Mr. Friedman, Mr. Zeltner said: “We are grateful to Alex for his exceptional leadership in creating a strong CIO team and running a world-class investment organization that has produced excellent results. He did a fantastic job and we wish him much success in his future endeavors.”

Millionaires Reveal their Top Five Past Investing Mistakes

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The top five most common mistakes made by millionaires are failing to diversify, investing without a plan, making emotional decisions, failing to review a portfolio, and placing too much focus on previous returns, finds a poll by one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organizations.

In the global deVere Group survey of 880 high-net-worth clients, when asked to reveal their number one investing mistake before seeking professional advice from deVere, 23 per cent cited failing to adequately diversify their portfolio. 22 per cent responded investing without a plan, 20 per cent said it was making emotional decisions, 16 per cent answered failing to regularly review the portfolio, and 14 per cent claimed it was focusing too heavily on the history of an investment’s returns. 5 per cent cited other errors, including impatience, investing near the top of the market, adhering to recommendations from acquaintances, and paying tax on the investments unnecessarily, amongst others.

Those polled by the organisation, which has more than 80,000 clients worldwide, are based in the U.K., the U.S., South Africa, Hong Kong, Japan, the UAE, Indonesia and Thailand and have investable assets of more than £1m.

Of the survey, Nigel Green, deVere’s founder and chief executive, observes: “Interestingly, there are minimal differences between the top five most common investment mistakes previously made by high-net-worth individuals. This close weighting could suggest that, according to the respondents, all of them are almost equally as significant and costly – and therefore must be avoided.”

On the breakdown of the poll, he continues: “As the survey highlights, failure to diversify a portfolio is widely regarded as one of the most common investment pitfalls. Spreading your money around is a vital tool to manage risk. However, it must be used correctly. Diversification will only add real value if the new asset has a different risk profile.

“The poll underscores how 22 per cent of today’s millionaires have also in the past fallen into the all-too-familiar trap of randomly investing, or investing without a structured, robust plan. Anyone who has an investment plan can expect their portfolio to outperform those without a plan. To my mind, unless you have a sound investment plan you are gambling, not investing.”

“Most decisions in life are emotional to some degree but making excessively emotional decisions can prove deadly when it comes to investments because they are blighted by prejudices and biases. Working with an independent financial adviser is one recommended way to help take excessive emotion out of the equation.”

“16 per cent of respondents cited that failure to review their portfolio on a regular basis was their number one investment mistake. This is not surprising as even the best portfolios can go off-target over time. Investments need to be reviewed and potentially rebalanced at least annually, preferably more often, to ensure they still deserve their place in the portfolio and that they are still on track to reach your long-term financial objectives.”

“Additionally, high-net-worth individuals told us that they have in the past been caught out by relying too much on historical returns and not giving enough importance to future expectations. The future investment situation is likely to be different from time-aged averages. Past averages may have little bearing on the current environment and therefore the actual returns you receive.”

deVere Group’s CEO concludes: “Mistakes investing can and do occur – it is how they are best avoided, or at least mitigated, that is the key to success. Learning lessons from people, like those we polled, who have overcome these common investment mistakes to go on to accumulate significant wealth in the longer-term is a way to reduce costly errors.

Due to the complexities of investing and the potentially devastating effects of committing expensive avoidable errors, the best thing to do is to seek advice from a professional independent financial adviser who will help circumnavigate the common and not-so-common pitfalls. Avoiding just one of these mistakes – and there are many others – can literally make the difference between poverty and financial freedom, says Green.