Guangzhou Daily       2005. 03. 07 report

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Andy Kwok : Principal of Thornton Global Wealth Management Limited and Lecturer of financial planning course for South China University of Technology and University of Hong Kong.  He believes that 25% is the maximum rate to place in a single investment product and most of our investments should be placed in a medium to long-term product.

Financial planning should be directed with a strategy based around a client’s financial objectives and target goals.  Investors have different phases in ones life that can change, hence does ones financial investments with their risk tolerance level.  Financial Planners apply their market expertise with suggestions to a specific client on how to adjust their assets and investment distribution, to achieve their target for “maximization of wealth”.

I advise that 25% is the maximum rate to place on a single investment product, which leads to a larger opportunity for “maximization of wealth”.  Investments should be either medium or long term investment products.

Real Estate long term investment

Real Estate investment is one of my long term investment concepts that I believe in, however, it only consists of 25% of my financial plan, and in fact, it shows my concepts are correct.

By the end of the last century the price of Hong Kong real estate were starting to devalue, which developed into many cases of negative assets.  Possible reasoning for such an occurrence is that too many investors were narrowing their focus to just a single estate investment product while eliminating all other possible investments to diversify their portfolios.  The economy started declining creating a reduction of personal income, which limits the possibility of financial investment opportunities, resulting in many investors exchanging assets for cash.

Current market trends with real estate valuation in Hong Kong are increasing in price very dramatically over the past few years. On the 25th of May 2005, a public land auction in Hong Kong showed that the price of real estate has increased by 50%. Such an increase in market value creates a strong demand with investors buying property assets, once again.  The real estate market in Hong Kong is truly starting to have a fabulous rebound.

When the economy is terrible, the 25% strategy really assists me to restrain myself from exchanging assets to cash.  Such diversity allows me the luxury to enjoy the financial gains from real estate appreciation in value.

Saving money is always the first thing to do

With ten years of financial planning experience I have learned a few things about the industry. Exposure to the altercation and volatility of the market place has allowed me the ability to assess certain beneficial trends to consider when investing.  

1.  To earn more of a return on your financial investments you need to invest larger amounts of capital assets.  With larger financial figures to move around, a greater return on investment will be accumulated.  The only way to retain more of a cash flow to invest is by starting to save early.  If I start saving at 24 years old I would save 10% of my salary in the bank.  After three months I had 10,000 $ in the bank.  After saving for 10 years I had 1,200,000 in my bank account.     

2. The earlier I started to save and invest the greater the benefit for my investment portfolio.  With more to invest the easier things will be to reach my financial target.  I set my financial target for 2,000,000, 10 years prior.  But if I started 5 years earlier I just need to save 5,000$ a month and I can still achieve my goal.  Accessing wealth truly is attainable, investors just need to realize the power of starting early with a divers and profitable investment plan.

My Asset Distribution:

Real Estate of Hong Kong: 25%

Stocks of Hong Kong: 15%

Stocks of Europe: 10%

Global Fund: 10%

Private Equities: 15%

Foreign Currency (including Australian Dollar): 10%

Cash and time deposits: 15%

On the 1st, of July 1997, the valuation of real estate in Hong Kong was declining steadily.  Until 2003, during the SARS period prices of real estate were in a serious devaluation period.  In these six years, the declining value was an amazing 69%.  The real estate market came crashing down creating an extremely volatile market, henceforth effected other financial investments in a negative way.  During this period of dropping rates, a great deal of negative assessments and opinions were created effecting the overall investments in Hong Kong.  Many biases were created about the real estate market with the majority of the population solely focusing on the demanding real estate market losing value constantly.  At the same time the economy was in a dismal state will less money circulating so more investors sold their investments and cashed out, which reflected a repeating cycle of a down turn with investments formulating a general public’s lack of confidence in the market place.

The price of real estate started to increase in a short amount of time defying most speculation.  In fact in 2004, on the 25th of May a public land auction of real estate acknowledges that the valuation of Hong Kong real estate has increased by 50% compared to the SARS period.  This is a remarkable occurrence to show how value can be made through and after the tough economic times, reflecting that investments are best made for the long term.  CEPA is promoting the solo tour traveling plan.  This Chinese tour was formulated to benefit the Hong Kong economy with visitors staying in local hotels and the buying of local merchandise.  The solo plan helps to make the Hong Kong economy improve in a very short time period with an influx of outside capital.  Many clever investors are starting to invest in the Hong Kong real estate market once again after noticing financial gains in the real estate market.  This is one of the many signs of the increase in wealth and value of real estate for the first time in six years to create a solid rebound, which the entire market economy can benefit from.

I believe that real estate should be a long term investment allowing a stake of 25% of your portfolio.  So when the market is bad an investor can still reap the benefits of having a diversified portfolio.  Then when the real estate market is up an investor can gain from the increase in capital net assets.

3. Clients should understand what products and services they are investing in because they should be held medium to long term. An investor should not wish to hinder futuristic financial gains with the quickly buying and selling of investments.  Investment planning should involve the combination of distributions of diversification with comprehending the ratio of each product in a portfolio to spread around the market risk.  Decide on the investments and trust your financial planner who has the client’s best interest in mind.  The whole relationship is based on trust and solid investments.  Some investors try to change and alter their new investments but that is a terrible concept.  Investors should stay with the financial plan for the most beneficial out come. The turnover can affect possible profit off of the initial investment.  If you want to know the future of the market, it is hard and expensive.  Therefore an investor should invest for ten years without any major change and then reevaluate the investments at that time.  Because then there should be a great benefit from all of the long term investments.  I trust my belief in long term investment ideas that allow an investor to plan. 

《Shenzhen Special Zone Daily》

2005.1.06  report

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 “Fellow Chartered Financial Practitioner” starting to train by a cooperation with AIA (Shenzhen), South China University of Technology and PrimeVest Consulting. On the 5th of January, 2005, this cooperation held a ceremony to celebrate the initiation of this Fellow Chartered Financial Practitioner course.

 AIA (Shenzhen) offered the first FChFP professional qualification course in the insurance field, which indicated that Life Insurance Companies in China are starting to upgrade the qualification and professional knowledge desired for their insurance and financial planners.  Professional Expertise acknowledged that this program will qualify for continuing training requirements for the China financial planning consultants. Such training assists in the development of the financial planning field, as well as increases the professionalism and knowledge about insurance and financial planning. Such training will provide financial planners with the tools they need to successfully become effective and efficient in their profession, which will prosperously lead China into the fields of international insurance and financial planning services.

This is the first major FChFP class to start since 1996.  Asia Pacific Finance Service Association (APFINSA) organized the initial course for this qualification.  APFinSA is an organization with 11 countries that are members/regions that are setting the tone for high expectations with this level of qualifications met by this course.  To promote this class these institutions only need to reflect how this course sets the standard for higher qualifications about financial and insurance knowledge.  Such an organization has a united financial service field with an international united aligned guideline and a stand of professional capabilities with a skill level that sets a standard of what is acceptable with such a title.  This qualification is an applicable standard and is of a high degree of professionalism.  Such a qualification allows a person to become competent in the field of financial planning or equivalent employment with the knowledge they will need to succeed.  As we know APFinSA is starting a corporation with Europe and America and future relations with other perspective countries in many regions.  APFINSA communicates with a certain level of financial planning organizations and hopefully in the future will be able to organize a global international financial service united association.  APFINSA has an excellent qualification that can be attained by financial planners which sets them above and beyond the rest with a qualification that provides a reputation of excellence.

《Yang Cheng Evening News》

2004. 6. 23 report
 

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　　A Chinese newspaper article that came out on the 21st of June, 2004, reported that a money doctor is known as a certified financial planner.  This title is going to arrive to China and the working fields which are related to financial planning are going to notice and recognize this specification.  Many readers are starting to call the newspaper and ask about how to receive such a dignified title.  The reporters are going to China and interviewing Andy Kwok who is a Hong Kong certified financial planner and the director and trainer of Thornton Global Wealth Management Limited. 

　　The ticket of financial planning

Reporters: Before FChFP arrived to China, how is the financial planning environment going in the Asian Pacific?  What are the real uses of this title?  What about other countries financial companies and famous professional people, what do they think of this title?

Andy Kwok:  In 2001 the Asia Pacific had already recognized the title of FChFP professional qualification.  APLIC has 11 countries/regions memberships that recognize this title together.  Some related courses have been promoted since 1996.  The program has the support of the local government central bank and has become the most popular course that people in this industry like to take.  Hong Kong, Singapore, and other surrounding cities have constant promotions for this course, it is welcomed by the financial planning fields, and large banks, insurance companies, and intermediate financial companies are promoting their staff to join this program.  There are more than five thousand people that have already attained this certification and there are many more that are in the process of receiving this certification.  The number of the people that wish to join this program is increasing rapidly.  Famous professional people in Holland, such as Mr. Faye a director for an international financial planning company says that the certified financial planner provides a united guideline with a standard of working with strong ethics, sets a tone for the standards of working abilities, and application control.  Having certified financial planner qualification means that you have the ticket for the Asia Pacific region which is around the world in the field of financial planning.

　　Decrease the risk dramatically

Reporter: After the students join the course and gain the knowledge and certificate what kind of effects will we be able to see from these individuals?

Andy Kwok: The advantage of the certified financial planner certification is that personal and their company’s financial resources control have efficiently decreased their financial risks.  Financial planning is a general procedure to assess the financial needs of a company.  Such as consumption, the income and financial analysis, the insurance coverage, investment target, retirement planning, taxation planning etc, the organization of the companies tax, risk management (include insurance planning and assets the protection coverage) etc, overall this means the educational financial investment planning, insurance planning, tax planning, retirement planning, inheritance planning, stock advising, and real estate planning, etc...

For example, the Holland international financial planning company director Mr. Faye has managed in the insurance and financial planning fields for over ten years said after he accomplished the courses of the certified financial planner, he can take his professionalism as well as working quality to a higher level.  At the same time there is more than sixty medium to senior level management employees within his company that have already joined this program as well.  This program has assisted his company to having a proper professional service in formulating a well developed organization. 

　　Increase of the resources price

Reporter: Who is suitable to enroll in the certified financial planner courses? For the people who want to enroll in this program what kind of benefit will they have after they finish the training?

Andy Kwok:  The certified financial planner course cooperates with some company direction and the financial service employees can increase their knowledge, their power to compete in the international field, and increase their professionalism from being apart of this program.  Therefore the purpose of increasing their professionalism and making their title sound better we make these courses applicable to the real world.  After a student finishes the programs and maintains the certificates they become a member, which assists them for renewing their knowledge with more convenience about the financial planning field especially with the overseas financial planning consulting companies.  If they want to renew their information about how the financial planning field is currently a past student can attain such information back through the institution where they received their certificate.  The training is suitable for a senior level executives, financial planners, and people that would like to be a financial planner in the fields of finance, insurance, accounting, and business administration. 

Financial Planners is a new profession in the industry that is now offered by the western countries and with the Asia Pacific regions in the past fifteen years.  At the moment more than half of the western countries retail financial services market has individual financial planners, this industry has developed very quickly because of the imperfect services at that time.  Companies and major corporations as well as personal investors were not satisfied with the personal attention and individual planning advice they were receiving.  Financial Planners plan around risk management planning, investment planning, retirement planning, and tax planning, etc...through the companies and personal assessments.  This allows financial planners to provide a better service for increasing their assessment for a company and an individual investor.

China has a lack of international financial planner professionals.  Especially the financial planners who have a qualified certificate already and they will become very important and valuable people in the Chinese financial market.  The forming of the business alliance with Hong Kong and China creates a united professional standard, which is very important therefore in the financial field a financial planner should have this qualification which can assist them to conduct business in all 11 Asia Pacific regions and countries.  The future of the certified financial planner is very optimistic in assisting with future development overseas.