Low risk investments

dunstonh

joewest1802 said:

Well I feel rather enlightened about the risk of stocks now. I admit I was under the impression that big companies were a wise choice to invest in. Tesla for example, how well it's done this year, combined with the inevitability of demand for electric cars in the future. But I take the point that there is clearly more to consider than that.

Perhaps I need to rephrase my question as: I have a few thousand sitting in my bank, what could I do with it to earn some interest?

What is your definition of low risk?  The shares you mention could lose 40-60% in any 12 month period.   That doesn't fit any definition of low risk.   The last time tech stocks had similar gains, they went on to lose 90% collectively from their peak point.     

ElephantBoy57

joewest1802 said:

Perhaps I need to rephrase my question as: I have a few thousand sitting in my bank, what could I do with it to earn some interest?

You could get something like this, Fidelity Index UK Class P unit trust.

The Fund's investment objective is to achieve long term capital growth by closely matching the performance of the FT-SE Actuaries All-Share Index.

Thrugelmir

joewest1802 said:

Perhaps I need to rephrase my question as: I have a few thousand sitting in my bank, what could I do with it to earn some interest?

Firstly decide what your objective for the money is. If it's a house deposit then a LISA maybe more apppropriate. If it's for retirement then consider this when reviewing your pension savings and strategy. 

Apodemus

ElephantBoy57 said:

joewest1802 said:

Perhaps I need to rephrase my question as: I have a few thousand sitting in my bank, what could I do with it to earn some interest?

You could get something like this, Fidelity Index UK Class P unit trust.

The Fund's investment objective is to achieve long term capital growth by closely matching the performance of the FT-SE Actuaries All-Share Index.

Or perhaps one of the lower volatility Investment Trusts,such as Ruffer, Personal Assets or Capital Gearing?

dunstonh

ElephantBoy57 said:

joewest1802 said:

Perhaps I need to rephrase my question as: I have a few thousand sitting in my bank, what could I do with it to earn some interest?

You could get something like this, Fidelity Index UK Class P unit trust.

The Fund's investment objective is to achieve long term capital growth by closely matching the performance of the FT-SE Actuaries All-Share Index.

Still 50% loss potential in a 12 month period.  And pretty awful quality investing at that. (100% into any one sector is bad)

Shankers

Steer clear of individual shares
Funds might be more appropriate once you've done some reading on what Funds are; try Jack Bogle's Little Commonsense Book of Investing
In the meantime, Premium Bonds are probably your best bet; approximately 1%, easy access, government backed, slightly frustrating but also slightly exciting. 
If you're saving for a house then a LISA is a good idea as if you put in £4k you get £1k added by the government, and there are cash LISAs as well as ones for investing in. However, should you be saving for anything else, look elsewhere than a LISA due to accessibility issues. 

Voyager2002

joewest1802 said:

Hi all,

I'm just after some advice on basic relatively safe investments.

I have money that's just sitting in my bank account, not really gaining any interest.

SNIP

I understand there is always at least some risk, whatever the stock, but just want to pick one which is pretty much safe and will earn me some form of return of the coming months or longer.

You might care to look at some of the 'robo-investments' mentioned on this site, with names like Evestor, Moneyfarm, Nutmeg and so forth. Generally there are promotions for new customers and when you set up an account you can choose the risk level. As an example, my Evestor account has been open for just over a year. I invested £500 and that holding has grown by just under £25 after charges, giving a return of almost 5 per cent for some but low risk. On top of that, they paid me a bonus of £50 as a new customer promotion..

comment_as...

Well not Tesla or Amazon for safety, they're both trading on huge multiples. It sounds like you're probably better off in cash tbh.

DiggerUK

Hi joewest1802, as you have found out, there are some nasties who post on MSE. Don't be intimidated away by the responses that are only aimed at  putting  a newbie in their place.

You clearly have little experience of how to put by for the future, but now I have intervened the responses will get friendlier. 

First things first, any assets over £6k will have to be made known to the benefits people. Next is your reason for being a claimant, your business of course, but it might help the friendlier posters advise.

I suspect you don't have a large amount, so for now get your assets in highest rate instant access savings a/c, or Premium Bonds. Then do some studying.

As to the advice given so far, take it all as opinions only, putting money in single shares has the same level of risks associated with it as funds do, it's all in the hands of the gods, idiots and the venal.
Best of fortune on your learning curve and welcome to MSE, even though some here think themselves more equal than others..._

cloud_dog

@DiggerUK, what posts prompted this?    I've just re-read the thread to see if I had missed something.  I can only assume the posts your are referring to have been deleted?