Riding the wave of economic buoyancy during the Noughties saw many investors being seduced by financial products offering the potential for big returns. Leveraging, gearing and ‘capital guaranteed’ were all terms bandied about the BBQ, without it seems any real understanding or concern for the potential consequences. It has taken a market downturn of the size and scale we are currently experiencing to make us aware that all investments carry with them a level of risk. (more…)

I was at a dinner party the other night for a friend’s birthday. It didn’t take long for the conversation to turn to the economy and the global financial crisis. I noticed all the men in the room had plenty to contribute, whether it was discussing the latest corporate collapse, the dire state of the share market or prophesising more doom and gloom. What they were saying was relevant and affects us all, yet compared to the men the women were conspicuously quiet. (more…)