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The
Growth of Alternative Investment
'Alternative Investment' is one of those terms
which is easier to define by saying what it is
not, than by saying what it is.
The
investment opportunities on offer to the average,
moderately well-off person living in a developed
country are limited by the regulatory structures
of the country one lives in, by lack of knowledge
on the part of financial intermediaries, and to
some extent by fear of the unknown. Thus: stock
exchange investment becomes more awkward the further
afield one tries to invest; many types of offshore
fund cannot be marketed at all in most high-tax
countries; and private banking is felt as intimidating
or elitist by many people, although this is less
the case nowadays.
The
investment options tend to narrow themselves to
local stock-markets, funds which conform to tight
investment guidelines, and the savings products
of high street financial institutions.
Alternative
investment can be defined as everything else.
Various
processes have tended to broaden the range of
accessible investment options over the last ten
years:
- In
most countries, domestic financial liberalisation
has encouraged a more competitive atmosphere.
- In
Europe in particular, the growth of the EU single
market has forcibly demolished exchange and
capital controls, and has again increased the
level of competition in financial products.
- Increasing
financial sophistication on the part of investors.
- Finally,
and most importantly, the Internet has provided
financial institutions with the ability to offer
their products directly to retail customers,
by-passing geographical restrictions for the
most part.
Alongside
this increase in accessibility, there has been
a parallel increase in diversity, particularly
in investment or mutual funds. Twenty or thirty
years ago, funds were little more than staid ways
of investing in local stock markets without the
hassle of going through a grand (and expensive)
stockbroker. While such funds still exist, they
are outshone, particularly for 'alternative' investors,
by a vast array of fund instruments based on property,
emerging markets, derivatives, bonds, pop stars'
earnings etc etc. It's almost: you name it, and
there's a fund.
Ownership
techniques have blossomed along with the instruments
themselves. There is now a very wide choice of
jurisdiction, of structures within jurisdictions,
and of regulatory frameworks to suit all purposes.
All
this diversity gives choice, but in itself it
becomes a problem. How can an investor, or within
limits even an advisor, know enough about the
available choices to make the right decision in
a particular case? All too often, a particular
advisor, or a particular provider, will give advice
which, while not necessarily bad, is self-serving
and imperfect.
Information
providers exist to fill that gap, but even they
can often be partisan. In our Information
Providers section, we list a number of information
sites, with comments from users and from our own
analysts; and in our DIY
Guide to Investment, we try to correlate different
types of investment with different types of investors
and their differing residential situations.
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New On The Network Today
This feed is published daily with selected new or updated
content from across our network. For a list of network sites, many of
which feature daily news, see below. |
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| 02/09 New
Lowtax Editor Column, by Kitty Miv |
| 01/09 International
Privacy and Security, Investors Offshore special feature |
| 31/08
Lowtax Belize, annual update |
| 27/08
IRS To Drop UBS Lawsuit, Tax-News.com |
| 26/08 New
Lowtax Editor Column, by Kitty Miv |
| 25/08 New
PBTG Editor Column, Caroline, PBTG editor |
| 24/08
Uruguay Stays On OECD Grey List, Tax-News.com |
| 23/08 Don't
Forget Doha, And I Don't Mean The Tennis, Jeremy Hetherington-Gore
blog entry |
| 20/08
Ireland Plans Social Security Overhaul, Tax-News.com |
| 19/08 New
Lowtax Editor Column, by Kitty Miv |
| 18/08 New
PBTG Editor Column, Caroline, PBTG editor |
| 17/06
Lowtax Cayman Islands, annual update |
| 16/08
Germany's Fiscal Court Seeks Property Tax Reform, Tax-News.com |
| 13/08 Jurisdiction
Special Focus: Antigua and Barbuda, Investors Offshore special feature |
| 12/08 New
Lowtax Editor Column, by Kitty Miv |
| 11/08 New
PBTG Editor Column, Caroline, PBTG editor |
| 10/08 Brazil
Cuts Import Tariffs, Tax-News.com |
| 09/08 Ukraine
Tax Code Published, Tax-News.com |
| 06/08
France Plans Reform Of Property Tax Credit, Tax-News.com |
| 04/08 New
PBTG Editor Column, Caroline, PBTG editor |
| 02/08 Islamic
Finance - The New Mainstream Alternative, Investors Offshore special
feature |
| 28/07 New
PBTG Editor Column, Caroline, PBTG editor |
| 27/07 UK
Launches Raft Of Tax Consultations, Tax-News.com |
| 26/07 Fat
Tax On The Menu , Jeremy Hetherington-Gore blog entry |
| 23/07 Sarkozy
Seeks 'Fiscal Convergence' With Germany, Tax-News.com |
| 20/07 Singapore
Base For Tuvalu OIFC, Tax-News.com |
| 15/07 St
Vincent & The Grenadines, Investors Offshore special feature |
13/07 Tax-
News.com Jersey Review 2010-2011 |
| 12/07 Goodbye
To All That, Jeremy Hetherington-Gore blog entry |
06/07 Hong
Kong Full PBTG Guide, added to Personal Business Tax Guide |
| 28/06
Lowtax Dubai, annual update |
| 18/06 Singapore
- Another Hong Kong?, Investors Offshore special feature |
| 15/06 Swiss
Parliament Approves UBS Agreement, Tax-News.com |
08/06 Dubai
Full PBTG Guide, added to Personal Business Tax Guide |
| 04/06
Lowtax Panama, annual update |
| 01/06
Lowtax Luxembourg, annual update |
03/03
Personal Business
Tax Guide, PBTG, has launched! |
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