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chris1634
- Sep 19, 2018
- 2 min
Holiday Reading
I have been away for a few days so have had more time to peruse the press as well as confirming I will never be able to finish a crossword. I have read a number of stories - involving the banking world - where the outcome is usually to the detriment of us. In the 1990s and the early years of the new century the banks began to offer a Will service, very low in price but where the small print gave permission for the bank to help itself to around 2.5% of the value of the decease
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chris1634
- Aug 15, 2018
- 1 min
Tax Rules “impossible to fathom”
The President of the Law Society of England and Wales was recently quoted as saying that Solicitors regard the tax rules regarding inheritance tax and stamp duty as “overly convoluted and ambiguous” HMRC confirmed record breaking tax receipts in 2017-18 for inheritance tax alone of £5.2m. Is this a coincidence or a direct result of the rules being steeped in mystery or at least ambiguity? Regardless of the answer things continue to go well for the “system” which will please i
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chris1634
- Aug 9, 2018
- 1 min
System Attack Part 2
A week after the Central Bank raised the borrowing rate many of us suffer 2 further attacks on our finances. Yesterday British Gas announced a 3.8% price hike on its variable tariffs and then, with that excuse for everything - BREXIT - there is a big sell off of sterling just in time for holiday makers to be screwed yet again. Imagine a world where these events had far less impact on our lives. Where exchange rates were largely irrelevant and where we could buy our energy - a
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chris1634
- Jun 17, 2018
- 1 min
For the Few - at the Expense of the Many
I was putting together a portfolio of cash accounts for a client the other day as part of a lifestyle planning exercise; I knew savings rates were poor - we know the banks remain reluctant to pass on the borrowing rate rise last December. I was looking at the Nationwide, our largest building society and one which advertises so positively about offering the best to its many customers. I was shocked to see that an instant access online account will pay a mighty 0.1% pa before t
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chris1634
- Jun 16, 2018
- 1 min
Bank Branch Closures
It was reported in the Mail June 15th that 60 bank branches are being closed every month. The expensive TV adverts paid for from the profits generated at our expense talk about being our “partners” for the journey of life - they really ought to add that this is true provided we live in a non rural area and that we generate sufficient income earning opportunities for the bank and now that we will forgive the agressive financial services selling of the last decade and be seduce
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chris1634
- Jun 13, 2018
- 1 min
Pay per View TV
A strange subject you might think but maybe not! Recently a family members satellite TV developed a problem; a call was made seeking help and after being put through a series of exhausting tests the conclusion was that an engineer was needed. Ok so far - until the news that it would be a week before one could visit. Many of us will be familiar with this and similar problems, broadband springs to mind! There may be relief just around the corner! Blockchain technology will be f
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chris1634
- Jun 12, 2018
- 1 min
More “ System” Upheaval
The retail sector is in crisis - anyone walking round a shopping centre or in town can see that. House of Fraser thought it had resolved its problems but in the Mail June 11 it was confirmed that the Landlords who were originally asked to cut rents are now threatening legal action as the store looks to close more than half its stores and throw 6,000 people out of work. The same newspaper carried a story about the first cryptocurrency group to list on the London Stock Exchang
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chris1634
- May 31, 2018
- 1 min
Cryptocurrency Trading - Is There a Better Way?
By any chance have you been approached, online or by someone, to enter the world of Bitcoin?! Chances are you have. I certainly have-3 times today already! I notice that the core tactic of persuasion is the fear of missing out. After all-they point out-Bitcoin was 3c in 2010 and around $8,000 now. A lot of us get involved because of this I’m sure. Trading crypto currency is broadly similar to trading stocks. It is a gamble and few of us can really afford to do that these days
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