News & Insights

Originally launched by the UK Government as the Post Office Savings Bank in 1861, the NS&I provided the opportunity for both the public to save and as the government to fund the deficit. To encourage post war saving in 1956, Premium Savings Bonds were introduced - but not without some political and religious opposition. Despite the resistance, NS&I has since evolved into one the largest savings organisations in the UK and has approximately 25 million customers and more than £179 billion invested.

Throughout history, the month of August has usually been one where investors take a break and the financial markets lose some steam. However, 2020 is far from being an “usual” period in time, and the month of August recorded one of the most aggressive upward trends in some of the global stock markets indices.

Looking back to July, the S&P500 and the NASDAQ continued to shine when compared to its peers, registering some substantial gains in the month. Following this, August continued on this same path and we saw the S&P500 record a 7% gain in the month, while the NASDAQ soared 11%, in this period of usual calmness in the markets.

An interview given to Portuguese newspaper Público’s Pontos de Vista magazine, takes us to meet Manuela Robinson, Joint Country Manager of Blacktower Financial Management (International) Ltd, in the Algarve - Portugal. A woman in the financial industry, which is still very much male dominated, but she feels is changing. Meet our interviewee, a Leader who is determined and does not like to be a mere spectator, but likes to lead by example.

Cyprus, June 2020 – In the latest stage of its global growth plans, the Blacktower Group has announced today the complete licencing of its Cyprus entity, Blacktower Financial Management (Cyprus) Limited.

Previously, Blacktower’s EU operations have been based solely from Gibraltar, however following the vote for the UK to leave the EU back in 2016, the business sought to gain regulatory approval and licencing for both IDD and MiFID business in Cyprus.

The market crashed because people panicked, but their fears were exaggerated.

The market collapsed again because Covid-19 is the end of the world as we know it.

The markets came back because the US government agreed a 2-trillion relief package. Then they crashed because that wasn’t enough.

During these unprecedented times the Corona Virus pandemic has impacted so many lives in so many ways.  The fact that every country in the world is affected and having to take measure to help support their economy will have such profound long-term consequences that governments are forced to take actions never before seen.  You have probably seen the headlines: Australia pumping $66Billion into their economy, Spain €200 Billion, UK £500 Billion, USA $2Trillion, the list goes on.

Generally speaking, saving money and planning for your future are two key aspects of financial planning. So, getting this right as early as possible should be one of your main priorities, to ensure that there are no nasty surprises down the line. There are a multitude of reasons that you might choose to put money aside, such as for a "rainy day fund", a house purchase, your children’s education or making sure that you can retire comfortably.

Whatever your objective is, you can save by either putting money aside each month, or, if you have already managed to save money in the bank, look to gain a better rate of interest for a greater return. This could be a particularly advantageous avenue when you consider that in fact, once you take inflation into account, most money on a bank deposit will effectively be losing its value each month.

The United Kingdom finally left the European Union on 31 January 2020. As such, the two jurisdictions are now in the process of implementing the Withdrawal Agreement, with the transition period ending at the close of 31 December 2020.

This means that in the short-term, nothing really changes for UK expats in the Netherlands – they will continue to enjoy the protections and freedoms of EU regulations, including, crucially, freedom of movement and the right to work and study in the country. Find out more about how Blacktower can help you during Brexit, here.

However, following the end of the transition period – i.e. after 31 December 2020 – UK nationals and their family members who live in the Netherlands will require a residence document. This should be arranged through the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), which, in theory, will be sending letters to all UK nationals in the Netherlands detailing how they can apply online.