By: Kevin-Barry Henry, #1 Bestselling Author
Many of my return readers (Thank you!) will know that I have been a big proponent of Guaranteed Investment Funds (GIFs) for a long time. Your investment and your return can be guaranteed, and they just make sense, especially when you happen to have over 50 candles on your birthday cake. Why bother with the risk?
It seems that people are starting to notice Guaranteed Investment Funds (GIFs).
The need for a safe haven in this difficult world economy has led to increased interest in GIFs. Net flows into GIFs have tripled in 2021 to $4.6 billion from $1.5 billion the previous year, according to Canada Life.
Their recent popularity is most certainly due to the general state of the economy. There is a lot of uncertainty these days and the seemingly ever-increasing interest rates tends to encourage folks to explore more guaranteed-type investments.
Guaranteed Investment Funds offer a number of features that boost their appeal, including maturity guarantees of either 75% or 100%, which is an especially attractive feature in today’s market.
With the bulk of their capital protected, many GIF investors are able to continue participating in the stock market to capture gains where they can be found, enjoy dividend income and realize capital gains that are taxed at lower rates.
GIFs give you the freedom to invest while giving you protection against market downturns that preserve your savings. They provide very similar investment options as mutual funds and are often managed by the very same fund managers, but your money can be guaranteed.
They also offer tremendous benefits on the estate side of the discussion, with provisions that ensure control over death benefits, creditor protection and simple tax reporting.
The death benefit of Guaranteed Investment Fund goes directly to a named beneficiary privately, which keeps those details out of the public. A will of course, becomes a public document during the probate proceedings and GIFs with a named beneficiary will avoid probate. It is a contract between the owner and the insurance company, and no other party is privy to the contents of the policy.
Money flows in cycles. I remember when I first began to really notice the benefits of Guaranteed Investment Funds during the 2008-2009 market crash and I am very thankful that many of my clients own them in 2022.
Last year at this time, many of my clients were asking me if they should own crypto or NFTs or any of the many “investments” that became so popular during the low-interest rate market frenzy of 2021. This year most of my clients are simply asking me what their guaranteed values are, which is a much nicer conversation for both of us.
GIFs are not as sexy as crypto, but they are guaranteed, which is so important. Everyone loves a fast convertible sports car with fat tires, but you would probably rather be in a boring SUV with good snow tires when a blizzard strikes.
If you would like to discuss adding Guaranteed Investment Funds for your own portfolio, you can contact me for a FREE 15-MINUTES to discuss your options.
As always, I look forward to hearing from you.
With Gratitude,
KB.
THIS ARTICLE IS PROVIDED AS A GENERAL SOURCE OF INFORMATION ONLY AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED TO BE PERSONAL INVESTMENT OR LEGAL ADVICE. READERS SHOULD CONSULT WITH THEIR FINANCIAL OR LEGAL ADVISOR TO ENSURE IT IS SUITABLE FOR THEIR CIRCUMSTANCES.