Before the internet went mainstream, it could be extremely difficult for smaller-scale investors to access international markets at all, especially ones at the greatest distance from their country of domicile. There were numerous practical barriers in the way, such as the lack of availability of key data and the cumbersome (and expensive) nature of international […]
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How to be the (practically) perfect mortgage candidate
When it comes to getting a loan of any description, the key to success is to convince the lender that the risk of lending you their cash is justified by the reward they can reasonably expect to receive in the form of interest payments. Although mortgages are secured loans, meaning that they are backed by […]
Understanding Interest Rates
Interest rates can genuinely be very interesting and it can certainly pay to understand what they are and how they work. With that in mind, here is a brief guide to what interest rates mean in practice. Interest rates are a tool to control inflation The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England has […]
When you’re self-employed you need to protect yourself
You might be tempted to think of self-employment as being your own boss. That’s true, but you are also your own HR department and finance department as well. Those in formal employment may have access to in-work benefits in the case of ill health and a formal redundancy process, with appropriate payoff, if they find […]
Business security is about more than just alarm systems
When you think about security for businesses what springs to mind? Do you think about physical security, cyber security or financial security? The truth is that all three are component parts of one whole, which means that missing out on any one of them could put your business into serious danger. Physical security Effective physical […]
Mortgages, should you fix or float?
Last year, the Bank of England’s decision to raise interest rates took the Monetary Policy Committee out of the financial pages and into the mainstream headlines. Given that the raise took interest rates from 0.25% to 0.5%, it was hardly the sort of change to make savers jump for joy, but it was a warning […]