‘Why adopt poor attitude over wealthy habit?’

Findings have shown that many people causr their financial woes, in most cases. this is traceable to their ways of life.

Most financial problems people have are tied to preferences for poor attitudes over accomplished behaviour.

A farmer , who after cultivating his farmland fails to visit his farm, could be likened to an investor who after investing large sum in a company fails to monitor his investments or the company he invested in.

There are different categories of investors, some invest and monitor their investments, while many others, specifically retail investors, look the other way after buying shares of a company.

Some people bought shares in companies through the Initial Public Offer window (IPO) or p

Public Offer (PO) and have been receiving dividend warrants in the addresses they entered in the share purchase form.

These category of investors, neither cared to visit the location of the company they bought shares into, or attend their annual general meetings (AGMs) to be acquainted with developments in the firm.

They also have not sought the service of a stock broker, investment adviser, or financial adviser to put them in line with latest developments on investing, time value of money or in the equities market.

On the 28th February , 2018, the Securities and Exchange (SEC) sponsored free electronic dividend registration (e-dividend) ended. This means from March 01, 2018, all investors who sought to register for the e-dividend mandate will have to pay a cost of N150.00 for the services of the financial service providers.

A visit to the office of a stock broking firm located in Broad Street, on 28th February, showed that the last minute rush for the e-dividend registration was overwhelming as more people who had earlier jettisoned the services of experts in the investment business, had no alternative than to ensure that they key into the scheme in order to secure their earnings from the various investments they have made.

According to MS Money investment experts, even though it has been accepted as a common misconception that “you only need a financial advisor if you have a lot of money to invest”, but it more pertinent for those with meagre funds for investment to seek services of experts.

“Nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is, novice investors and those on a tight budget need more advice than anyone, so, they don`t end up spending a large portion of their discretionary income on poorly performing investments” stated the experts.

A shareholders who pleaded anonymity told our correspondent that he has investment in many companies and never taken it serious until he started hearing his friends revealing how much they receive from their companies as dividends.

The retail investor who was in a stock brokers firm in Mandilas building Marina Lagos on February 28, said that he had many dividend warrants that may have become status barred, and was regularising his investment documents through a broker in order to benefit from his unclaimed dividend and subsequent declarations by companies he invested in.

The investor mentioned above, falls into the category of many who delight in savings, through investing, but rarely seek the services of experts. Meanwhile, some services investors require, could be traceable to the followings.

Avoiding interest or fee payments whenever possible

Investors with the objective of getting the best on their investment ensures to take advantage of any free investment window or documentation to save funds.

The recently concluded free e-dividend registration sponsored by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Nigeria , offered investors great opportunity to save funds, yet many investors fail to take advantage of the offer and now positioned to spend huge funds in mandating electronic payment of their dividends across all their investment classes in the equity market.

Financial advisor

Investment advisors provides an overview of the different types of financial advisors and the titles they go by.

They also gives the investor, the risk appetites of various investment window and also the type of investment for the investor based on his risk appetite or age bracket.

Brokerage firms

Stock brokers serve as financial intermediaries in the capital market as they help the investor forage into the equites market, receive buy mandates from the investors, execute the mandates and also receive and execute the sale mandate of the investor and ensure safety and payment of the realised funds from sales to the account owner.

Brokers assist investor to open investment accounts and follow up with developments in their clients’ accounts. In some cases, stock brokers also offer investment advisory services of which charges are attached to.

Mutual fund companies

With over 9,000 funds available today, mutual fund companies play a major role in the investment industry and have introduced millions of Americans to the magic of compound interest.

Banks

Banks have fought hard to earn a piece of the pie within the growing investment industry. Learn what your local branch has to offer when it comes to investment services and how you will exploit such opportunities to enhance you investment appetite.

Insurance companies

Insurance companies have lots of funds and continue to introduce new investment products that pervade the industry and control the purse strings of Nigerian investors.

Online investing

Online investment is a rising tide that come with a tot of challenges and may be considered as high risks in many quarters.

Online investing runs the gamut from checking account balances to launching day trading millionaires.

That`s why everywhere you look, there are so-called experts trying to convince you to invest in their product or service. You see commercials on TV, receive brochures in the mail, and even endure annoying telephone pitches.

As an investor, you need to understand Ponzi scheme and the attachment to online offerings as well as the inherent risks involved.

An investor or prospective investor need to understand the role of different types of investment experts, what services or products they provide, how they get paid, and the benefits and disadvantages of using them to attain optimum result in personal finance management.