compare over 300 life insurance policies
 

Investigating Your Broker Can Save a Fortune
In the late '90s, Oleg Babakov lost millions of rubles by making poor Internet trading deals on behalf of Surgutsky Proyekt, where he served as president. As if that was not painful enough, it soon came to light that most of the money Babakov invested on the Russian securities market was not his to risk. Babakov had attracted assets from unsuspecting investors through newspaper ads; Surgutsky Proyekt was not even a licensed broker. While the "Wild East" days of the Russian market now appear to be over, Surgutsky Proyekt, which dissolved in 2002, was not the last company to dupe investors. Last year the demise of Prolog, a licensed investment company, was widely reported in the media. Prolog went bankrupt after mishandling clients' assets and making too many bad deals.
While such scandals are becoming increasingly rare, investors remain highly cautious about trusting Russian brokerage companies with their money. But perhaps the high level of concern is unwarranted. Some experts believe that a simple round of research could shed light on the quality of a company and help a potential investors safeguard against damages.
The first step toward safer investing is gathering information on a given brokerage firm, recommends Maria Semyonova of the National Association of Securities Market Participants, or NAUFOR. "How do they treat other clients?" Semyonova said. "What is their business development strategy? How do they manage risks? These are all important questions to ask." A more basic question always lies underneath.
"How do I know you are not going to run off with my money?" customers often ask Anton Rodchenko, deputy director of personal brokerage at an investment company called IT Trade. "Greed and fear are in constant conflict when investors make their decisions," Rodchenko said. "But when I mention insurance, they relax a bit." Rodchenko said that IT Trade partners with Rosno, a large insurance company, to provide optional coverage.
"Depending on each investor's request, the policy can cover all or some of the cases that lead to investor damages," Rosno's Dmitry Chugunov said, including a broker's sudden flight.
Policies also cover a broker's intentional mistakes -- which result from a "lack of customer loyalty" -- as well as unintended mistakes, such as pressing the wrong keyboard stroke and sending a client's money to the wrong place.
Chugunov explained that the distinguishing feature of this type of insurance, instituted at Rosno in April, is that the policy names one third-party beneficiary -- a specific investor -- instead of covering all brokerage clients for damages. "It makes this new type of coverage several times cheaper," Chugunov said.
Rodchenko claims that few IT Trade clients opt for the insurance because they are able to track broker's trades online in real time, which provides some amount of peace of mind.
Ivan Kuznetsov, deputy director of the legal department at Aton, an investment company, advises investors to check company ratings in order to avoid problems before they start.
"Seeing how a company is rated and how many years it's been on the market is the primary way to safeguard yourself," Kuznetsov said. He explained that more direct information on a company's risk-management strategy is normally unavailable to the public.
Tatyana Guseva, head of the professional activity department at NAUFOR, also believes that brokerage companies' reliability rankings are a good indicator, although "normally, only the big market players get ranked." Guseva said checking for a valid license -- in order to operate legally, brokerage companies must be licensed by the Federal Service for Financial Markets -- and reading the fine print on the contract is also critical.
Guseva said that a contract's wording should signal trouble if "a company is trying to displace all risks and responsibilities onto the client." She recommends showing all contracts to a legal expert for advice.
"When signing a contract, it's vital to check who the other signatory is, what they are authorized to do and where your money will be transferred," said Oleg Mikhasenko, director of Brokercredit Service.
If those investors who trusted Surgutsky Proyekt with their money had done their homework, they would have discovered that their contracts did not cover them for damages and that Surgutsky Proyekt was never rated by NAUFOR, or any another organization, nor licensed by the former Federal Securities Commission.
Even when a brokerage company is legitimate, however, investors should carefully consider all risks and returns. Brokerage professionals advise clients against betting their "last cent" on the market.
"By law, we cannot guarantee any profits," Rodchenko said. "Our clients are people who have spare money to invest."


Investigating Your Broker Can Save a Fortune
In the late '90s, Oleg Babakov lost millions of rubles by making poor Internet trading deals on behalf of Surgutsky Proyekt, where he served as president. As if that was not painful enough, it soon came to light that most of the money Babakov invested on the Russian securities market was not his to risk. Babakov had attracted assets from unsuspecting investors through newspaper ads; Surgutsky Proyekt was not even a licensed broker. While the "Wild East" days of the Russian market now appear to be over, Surgutsky Proyekt, which dissolved in 2002, was not the last company to dupe investors. Last year the demise of Prolog, a licensed investment company, was widely reported in the media. Prolog went bankrupt after mishandling clients' assets and making too many bad deals.
While such scandals are becoming increasingly rare, investors remain highly cautious about trusting Russian brokerage companies with their money. But perhaps the high level of concern is unwarranted. Some experts believe that a simple round of research could shed light on the quality of a company and help a potential investors safeguard against damages.
The first step toward safer investing is gathering information on a given brokerage firm, recommends Maria Semyonova of the National Association of Securities Market Participants, or NAUFOR. "How do they treat other clients?" Semyonova said. "What is their business development strategy? How do they manage risks? These are all important questions to ask." A more basic question always lies underneath.
"How do I know you are not going to run off with my money?" customers often ask Anton Rodchenko, deputy director of personal brokerage at an investment company called IT Trade. "Greed and fear are in constant conflict when investors make their decisions," Rodchenko said. "But when I mention insurance, they relax a bit." Rodchenko said that IT Trade partners with Rosno, a large insurance company, to provide optional coverage.
"Depending on each investor's request, the policy can cover all or some of the cases that lead to investor damages," Rosno's Dmitry Chugunov said, including a broker's sudden flight.
Policies also cover a broker's intentional mistakes -- which result from a "lack of customer loyalty" -- as well as unintended mistakes, such as pressing the wrong keyboard stroke and sending a client's money to the wrong place.
Chugunov explained that the distinguishing feature of this type of insurance, instituted at Rosno in April, is that the policy names one third-party beneficiary -- a specific investor -- instead of covering all brokerage clients for damages. "It makes this new type of coverage several times cheaper," Chugunov said.
Rodchenko claims that few IT Trade clients opt for the insurance because they are able to track broker's trades online in real time, which provides some amount of peace of mind.
Ivan Kuznetsov, deputy director of the legal department at Aton, an investment company, advises investors to check company ratings in order to avoid problems before they start.
"Seeing how a company is rated and how many years it's been on the market is the primary way to safeguard yourself," Kuznetsov said. He explained that more direct information on a company's risk-management strategy is normally unavailable to the public.
Tatyana Guseva, head of the professional activity department at NAUFOR, also believes that brokerage companies' reliability rankings are a good indicator, although "normally, only the big market players get ranked." Guseva said checking for a valid license -- in order to operate legally, brokerage companies must be licensed by the Federal Service for Financial Markets -- and reading the fine print on the contract is also critical.
Guseva said that a contract's wording should signal trouble if "a company is trying to displace all risks and responsibilities onto the client." She recommends showing all contracts to a legal expert for advice.
"When signing a contract, it's vital to check who the other signatory is, what they are authorized to do and where your money will be transferred," said Oleg Mikhasenko, director of Brokercredit Service.
If those investors who trusted Surgutsky Proyekt with their money had done their homework, they would have discovered that their contracts did not cover them for damages and that Surgutsky Proyekt was never rated by NAUFOR, or any another organization, nor licensed by the former Federal Securities Commission.
Even when a brokerage company is legitimate, however, investors should carefully consider all risks and returns. Brokerage professionals advise clients against betting their "last cent" on the market.
"By law, we cannot guarantee any profits," Rodchenko said. "Our clients are people who have spare money to invest."


Investigating Your Broker Can Save a Fortune
In the late '90s, Oleg Babakov lost millions of rubles by making poor Internet trading deals on behalf of Surgutsky Proyekt, where he served as president. As if that was not painful enough, it soon came to light that most of the money Babakov invested on the Russian securities market was not his to risk. Babakov had attracted assets from unsuspecting investors through newspaper ads; Surgutsky Proyekt was not even a licensed broker. While the "Wild East" days of the Russian market now appear to be over, Surgutsky Proyekt, which dissolved in 2002, was not the last company to dupe investors. Last year the demise of Prolog, a licensed investment company, was widely reported in the media. Prolog went bankrupt after mishandling clients' assets and making too many bad deals.
While such scandals are becoming increasingly rare, investors remain highly cautious about trusting Russian brokerage companies with their money. But perhaps the high level of concern is unwarranted. Some experts believe that a simple round of research could shed light on the quality of a company and help a potential investors safeguard against damages.
The first step toward safer investing is gathering information on a given brokerage firm, recommends Maria Semyonova of the National Association of Securities Market Participants, or NAUFOR. "How do they treat other clients?" Semyonova said. "What is their business development strategy? How do they manage risks? These are all important questions to ask." A more basic question always lies underneath.
"How do I know you are not going to run off with my money?" customers often ask Anton Rodchenko, deputy director of personal brokerage at an investment company called IT Trade. "Greed and fear are in constant conflict when investors make their decisions," Rodchenko said. "But when I mention insurance, they relax a bit." Rodchenko said that IT Trade partners with Rosno, a large insurance company, to provide optional coverage.
"Depending on each investor's request, the policy can cover all or some of the cases that lead to investor damages," Rosno's Dmitry Chugunov said, including a broker's sudden flight.
Policies also cover a broker's intentional mistakes -- which result from a "lack of customer loyalty" -- as well as unintended mistakes, such as pressing the wrong keyboard stroke and sending a client's money to the wrong place.
Chugunov explained that the distinguishing feature of this type of insurance, instituted at Rosno in April, is that the policy names one third-party beneficiary -- a specific investor -- instead of covering all brokerage clients for damages. "It makes this new type of coverage several times cheaper," Chugunov said.
Rodchenko claims that few IT Trade clients opt for the insurance because they are able to track broker's trades online in real time, which provides some amount of peace of mind.
Ivan Kuznetsov, deputy director of the legal department at Aton, an investment company, advises investors to check company ratings in order to avoid problems before they start.
"Seeing how a company is rated and how many years it's been on the market is the primary way to safeguard yourself," Kuznetsov said. He explained that more direct information on a company's risk-management strategy is normally unavailable to the public.
Tatyana Guseva, head of the professional activity department at NAUFOR, also believes that brokerage companies' reliability rankings are a good indicator, although "normally, only the big market players get ranked." Guseva said checking for a valid license -- in order to operate legally, brokerage companies must be licensed by the Federal Service for Financial Markets -- and reading the fine print on the contract is also critical.
Guseva said that a contract's wording should signal trouble if "a company is trying to displace all risks and responsibilities onto the client." She recommends showing all contracts to a legal expert for advice.
"When signing a contract, it's vital to check who the other signatory is, what they are authorized to do and where your money will be transferred," said Oleg Mikhasenko, director of Brokercredit Service.
If those investors who trusted Surgutsky Proyekt with their money had done their homework, they would have discovered that their contracts did not cover them for damages and that Surgutsky Proyekt was never rated by NAUFOR, or any another organization, nor licensed by the former Federal Securities Commission.
Even when a brokerage company is legitimate, however, investors should carefully consider all risks and returns. Brokerage professionals advise clients against betting their "last cent" on the market.
"By law, we cannot guarantee any profits," Rodchenko said. "Our clients are people who have spare money to invest." What makes a 'resident' liable to be billed on foreign assets
SOMEONE is considered a New Zealand resident if he or she is in New Zealand for more than 183 days in any 12-month period, has an "enduring relationship" with New Zealand or is away from New Zealand in the service of the New Zealand Government.
The 183 days do not have to be consecutive. Days on which people depart or arrive are treated as days present in New Zealand.
The Foreign Investment Fund regime is an extension of the Controlled Foreign Companies rules, which subjects people with interests in certain foreign entities to New Zealand tax.
It also applies when investors do not have a sufficient interest in a CFC to be taxed under that regime.
Investment vehicles classified as FIFs include foreign companies, foreign superannuation schemes and life insurance policies issued by foreign entities not subject to New Zealand tax.
Generally, a New Zealand resident will not have an interest in FIFs when:
The foreign entity is a company or unit trust resident in exempted countries, such as Britain and the United States. This does not apply to interests in foreign superannuation schemes. Nor does it apply to life insurance policies.
The total cost of FIF-type interests held does not exceed $ 50,000.
The interest is a "qualifying foreign private annuity".
Someone acquires interests in foreign life insurance policies or superannuation schemes before becoming resident in New Zealand.
These interests will be exempt from the FIF regime for the rest of the income year in which the individual first became resident and the following three years.


Click here to return to the main articles menu.


RhinoLifeInsurance Friends Directory

Suggested Web Sites provided by the Editors of RhinoLifeInsurance.com

Scrouge Online give you acces to great deals on life insurance all online | Visit the RhinoLifeInsurance Life Insurance Home Page | Good insurance provides you access to Mortgage Insurance, Mortgage Protection and lets you request online quotes | If you need to get Life Insurance Quotes Quote life insurance is an absolute must ! Insurance | Life insurance from life insurance advisers | Mortgages from the mortgage prospector | Life Insurance Quotes from the life insurance professor | Life Insurance from Brokers Online | Life Insurance from Express Life Insurance |

These extra resources are brought to you Via topic related websearches on Msn and Yahoo. If you have any suggestions for other sites that should be included please email simon@andromedawebs.co.uk. All sites go through a vigorous review before they are added.