Getting In Too Deep With Iceland?

LongTermLurker

Likewise though, if you had £100k to invest, you wouldn't buy into 100 different companies - that would be equally crazy.

fg22 wrote: »

Why is buying into 100 different companies crazy? It sounds like sensible diversification. If I had 100k I'd probably choose to invest in around 10 funds and therefore easily over 100 companies.

Sorry, point taken on funds. However, researching 100 different individual companies would be hard work. I've read somewhere that to diversify individual shares, around 30 or so would be a minimum safe bet. I was just trying to point out spreading your money out too thinly is hard to manage in itself and can actually reduce the reward. Perhaps the figure of "100 companies" I used was potentially a bit small.

As you suggest, funds give instant diversification, assuming your choice of funds are diverse in themselves, of course.

trashcan_2

planemad wrote: »

KE are a good institution and we are only hearing good things about them.
If you are still worried then just stick more cash into UK institutions, the Northern Rock fiasco has shown that the UK government will not allow a UK bank to default.

Failing the above stick loads in Northern Rock as currently they have unlimited protection.

Hope the above helps.

You mean the present Government, maybe the next government, or not.

planemad

Any government cannot and should not allow a bank to go down.
If they did it would be disastrous to our whole economy.

trashcan_2

They might give savers protection to £35,000 but they would not prop up a foreign bank, though, would they?

trashcan_2

I have just came on this page that shows the risk factors of banks.
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing/article.html?in_article_id=442580&in_page_id=166&ct=5

Oblivion

trashcan wrote: »

I have just came on this page that shows the risk factors of banks.
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing/article.html?in_article_id=442580&in_page_id=166&ct=5

Thanks for that, interesting. It still shows Landsbanki (IceSave) and Kaupting Edge as a high perceived risk but nowhere near as bad as a few months ago, which I see as reassuring news.

Dave.

Paul_Herring

Oblivion wrote: »

Apologies, I probably should have included in my OP that, due to specific personal circumstances, I need all my money available as 'instant access' and so I'm not looking at fixed rate / fixed period terms.

Just out of interest do you need *all* of the money on instant access or would you be prepared to wait 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 months for staged 'repayments' of captial? (I'm thinking of laddering with 6-monthly fixed rate savings bonds here.)

Oblivion

Paul_Herring wrote: »

Just out of interest do you need *all* of the money on instant access or would you be prepared to wait 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 months for staged 'repayments' of captial? (I'm thinking of laddering with 6-monthly fixed rate savings bonds here.)

Hi Paul, I see where your coming from but for personal reasons, yes I do indeed need it all on instant access I'm afraid.

Dave.