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April 2020

Nigel Stockton CEONigel Stockton, CEONigel Stockton, CEO

Staying in touch

Last week I gave you a flavour for how we’re staying open during the current COVID-19 crisis and have mobilised our business to continue to serve you over the phone.

Many Advisers are telling me that you’re welcoming the calls they are making to you, to reassure you about your current investments and to discuss any specific concerns you might have.

Of course, the current situation is still unfolding as we speak, and our minds are very much on the health of the nation and preserving our NHS not forgetting all of the wonderful key workers and essential services are doing to keep us afloat.

As we’ve shared market updates with you over recent weeks, and you may well have had specific letters regarding your investments from Avellemy or other investment houses regarding the market falls and their impact on you, it can be a worrying time financially. Of course, this doesn’t detract from our larger concerns about our families, our health and the welfare of our nation, but the looming impact and speculation about how the economy will be impacted in the medium to longer term will rumble on for many months to come.

Your Financial Adviser is there for you

At times like this, there has probably never been more need for an expert to help reassure and guide you through any decisions you might want to make, particularly as circumstances change during this period.  There may be many things we can help you with, even if it is to just assure you that by doing nothing, you’re doing the right thing.

There’s no crystal ball

Through all of this, we have been keeping a close eye on the market downturn.  Ascot Lloyd has an Investment Committee and working with our sister company Avellemy too, an investment philosophy that has a solid track record.

We are in unprecedented times, so we are all dealing with the “today” whilst also trying to imagine the "tomorrow” and what might happen next.

Much has already been reported and speculated on the market downturn. However, this is a major global issue and with the US now moving into a much deeper phase of impact, the nervousness of how the economy will recover will prevail.

The world’s major governments are doing what they can to reassure markets and the markets are volatile as the shock is still impacting. However, history tells us that it won’t last forever and historically after a fall comes a rise. We also know that the climb usually takes us to a better and higher place than before the fall. So, we must hold on tight and prepare to the ride the storm until we come out on the other side. The market will inevitably bounce back, as will our lives and our families and our health. There will be some bruises along the way, but we will get back to normal life.

Stocks are purported to have outperformed cash in every 20-year period across history (using U.S. data since 1871) so holding stocks through crises has been rewarded in the past.

How we can help

As your Financial Adviser talks to you about your concerns, now is the time to make sure that your financial plan is on track. Take the time to have a wider conversation about what you’re looking to achieve in life and build a path together to get you there and work your way through the downturn.

You may be concerned about family members that might be starting to feel the impact through redundancy or lack of ability to move to a new house, for example. Or it may be that your own circumstances are changing. Now is a good opportunity to have family conversations and talk about the future.

  • Make sure you have a life goal and a financial plan in place to support it and don’t be side-tracked by panic and anxiety.
  • Involve your family and let us help you help them too.
  • Try not to pre-empt or predict what might happen. At this point no-one can. But rely on the experts to help guide you.
  • Focus on tomorrow as well as today. Whilst you might be thinking about your current cashflow and the immediate impact of the situation, it’s essential to keep the bigger picture in mind.

Ascot Lloyd is there for you

Working with a larger national IFA firm like Ascot Lloyd, means we’ll be here for you now and in the future. We’re a strong, stable company, with financial strength and a strong team. We’ve moved to working remotely very quickly with over 450 staff still fully operational. Our Financial Advisers are supported by paraplanning and admin teams across the UK who continue to make things happen for you. We have a strong management team and investors supporting us.

We are starting to do more digitally, as we can no longer rely on post and nor do we want to have people exposed to the virus if unnecessary. So, making sure we have your email addresses is really important. Please do update your contact details with your Financial Adviser or by responding to this communication.

As I have promised, we will stay in touch over the coming weeks with various updates and information for you. In the meantime, please stay safe and stay well, and take the opportunity and time to talk to your Adviser.

Important Information

Past performance is not a guide to future performance and may not be repeated. Investment involves risk. The value of investments and the income from them may go down as well as up and investors may not get back any of the amount originally invested. Because of this, an investor is not certain to make a profit on an investment and may lose money. Exchange rate changes may cause the value of overseas investments to rise or fall.

This communication is for information purposes only. Nothing in this communication constitutes financial, professional or investment advice or a personal recommendation. This communication should not be construed as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any securities or related financial instruments in any jurisdiction. No representation or warranty, either expressed or implied, is provided in relation to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained herein, nor is it intended to be a complete statement or summary of the securities, markets or developments referred to in the document. Any opinions expressed in this document are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by other business areas or companies within the same group as Ascot Lloyd as a result of using different assumptions and criteria.