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Investments & Savings While "savings" is generally a term applied to regular (e.g. monthly) savings, "investments" tend to refer to lump sums. Whether you are seeking to invest a lump sum or save on a regular basis, managing risk in the increasingly diverse and complex investment market is very important. We can offer advice across a wide spectrum of investments, namely:
If you are saving towards a lump sum, or over a fixed
period, you may wish to try our simple savings calculators to see how long it
will take, or how much you will have at the end. Click on the calculator symbol
to try our useful tool
Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) were introduced by the government in April 1999. They replaced the PEP (Personal Equity Plan) scheme, and like the PEP are essentially just a wrapper, which gives the underlying investments tax-free status. Many people find ISAs more complicated because the rules allow you to hold cash or insurance products within the scheme as well as stockmarket investments such as stock, shares, and unit trusts. You can buy an ISA at the beginning or the end of the financial year, or contribute to an ISA on a monthly basis. You can choose between a 'Maxi ISA' and a 'Mini ISA'. With a Maxi ISA, the whole of your ISA for that tax year is managed by a single ISA manager. With a Mini ISA, you can invest in two ISA components - cash or stocks and shares. You can only have one Maxi ISA (per year) into which you can invest up to £7,000. Alternatively, you can invest up to £3,000 in a Mini Cash ISA and up to £4,000 in a Mini Equity ISA. You must be resident in the UK and be over 18 years of age (or 16 for investment in the cash component only) to invest in an ISA |
© Protection & Investment Ltd 2005