February 7th, 2010 | Posted in Uncategorized
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
In what seems akin to a new Klondike Gold Rush sign-ups at Team Themco for their LiberatorOne opportunity have rocketed since it was opened up again yesterday.
The original sign-up window closed a week or so ago as the response had been much greater than anticipated for the 10,000 registrations required. Rather than taking the 4 months they’d anticipated it took something like 2 weeks.
It seems that on reflection the Admin has decided to re-open the free registration for 24 hours to ensure that they have enough cover for the inevitable drop-out when it actually comes to laying money down to participate.
At the moment Team Themco are putting together the legal agreements that will create the necessary co-operative for executing the programme. This will then allow them to register with the chosen payment processors (which haven’t been announced yet) so that the next stage can begin.
There is clearly a lot of focus being directed at this opportunity at the moment and I’m sure many people will sign up in the knowledge that they can refrain from paying on this round knowing that will automatically be able to participate in LiberatorTwo when it happens.
There is a video presentation available that will give you more information on just what LiberatorOne is all about. It gives a sensible assessment of what is on offer and allows you to make a decision on whether to participate or not.
So, time is of the essence as the registration closes at 12 noon GMT on Sunday 07 February.
February 3rd, 2010 | Posted in holding int, vanfunds
It’s somewhat ironic that two organisations linked by a purchase could operate in such different ways when it comes to communicating with their clients. I’m talking about the now defunct Vanfunds which was swallowed up by HoldingInt in the latter part of 2009.
Vanfunds had a highly professional website that offered many services and was easy to use. They provided literature that explained their investments and also offered some very useful security features. Clients were allocated an account manager and you could rely on questions being answered quickly. If only HoldingInt treated clients in such a way.
A recent news item on the HoldingInt site effectively told Vanfunds clients that their enquiries were interrupting what HoldingInt were doing and would not be answered. In effect being told to go away and wait until HoldingInt decide to tell clients what is going on.
So, not having any information about when we will learn more about what has happened to our money it really does feel that we are second class citizens and not that important to the world of HoldingInt. It shouldn’t come as any surprise that an email I sent some months ago now has still not been answered.
January 31st, 2010 | Posted in Liberty Reserve, alertpay, fxstar, perfect money, strictpay
I recently joined a new investment opportunity that makes its return by trading on the FOREX markets. Now, sometimes it isn’t always easy to verify just how a programme makes a return and you have to rely on what you’re told without too much proof.
FXStar is different as they not only declare that they make money in FOREX but also allow you to see what money was invested on a trading day, the number of trades made and the return for the day. In fact you can ask for this information to be sent to you by email without having to go near the website.
It does appear that FXStar is going the extra mile to ensure investors can part with their funds with a degree of assurance that it is being invested wisely. Together with trading results you are also able to download a small desktop utility that allows you to track your investment without having to log in to your account.
For those who like to keep a weather eye on transactions to their account you can also opt for SMS notifications.
The majority of investment plans require you to invest for 100 days and depending on how much you invest will determine the daily interest rate you receive. If 100 days seems too long with such a new investment then the Start plan is a more manageable 30 days for which you receive 1 percent a day. There is also an ability to compound returns if desired.
January 31st, 2010 | Posted in Liberty Reserve, alertpay, c-gold, perfect money
Often I write about programmes that publish updates or for one reason or another have issues to deal with. This means that programmes that don’t suffer from problems like this tend not to get the exposure they deserve.
This is a shame because it means readers could potentially miss out on a programme that has great potential and good rewards but keeps a relatively low profile.
One such opportunity is WBwso which I invested in some while ago. They are performing well and from what I can see the membership is very satisfied with how things are going.
If you are not familiar with WBwso I should explain that it is a UK based company which develops websites to the point where they have the potential to make a regular profit and then either sell them on or continue with them themselves.
You can find more details on how everything works by signing up for free at WBwso and reading the specific information there. You don’t have to invest straight away and in fact it was some 3 months after I joined that I actually made an investment.
I have to say that everything is working very smoothly and profits are regularly recorded in my back office. Reading elsewhere also indicates that WBwso have a solid business model and many enthusiastic members.
When I first posted about WBwso several readers joined up and like myself are taking the time to evaluate how they perform before actually parting with funds. This is a sensible approach although you shouldn’t wait too long before deciding whether to invest or not as earnings could be lost were your decision to go ahead.
January 27th, 2010 | Posted in payment processor, strictpay
One of the recurring themes that investors have about virtually all programmes is the poor communication that pervades them.
At last at least one company has set a standard that others should follow. Now I’m not saying that Strictpay has always been a shining beacon in the murky world of programme communications but I do think is that the latest update provides clear answers and reasons as to why the problems they are facing occurred and what they are trying to do about it.
In summary, Strictpay has suffered over the last few months with both deposits and withdrawals where banks were involved. Complications explained in the update show that not everyone in the banking world are fans of companies like Strictpay.
Whilst I don’t think that the company is wholly out of the woods as yet the fact that they are acknowledging the problems is a very positive step in providing transparent communication with its members.
Let’s hope that other companies take to heart the lead being taken by Strictpay and follow suit.
January 24th, 2010 | Posted in Uncategorized
I’m not sure why but it’s taken me some time to get the news that Passive Investments run by Andy Shaw and Greg Ballard has gone into liquidation. The company was set up to purchase and manage a UK property portfolio for its investors.
I thought long and hard about joining when I first came across them and after attending one of their seminars at Heathrow. Ultimately I decided not to and it seems in hindsight to have been a wise decision.
Accounting irregularities seem to be in evidence and a forum post I read suggested that Greg Ballard had little sympathy for a member who was looking to get a refund on the fee that Passive charged up front as they were having problems sorting the additional finance needed.
Some high profile investors are also backtracking on their relationship with Andy and Greg and it does appear that both individuals have managed things very poorly. This is somewhat in contrast to the sophisticated presentations they made at their seminars and I’m sure that there are many people in the UK that will be considering their situations very carefully.
Andy had moved to Cyprus where he felt the market for property was poorly exploited and from the information I saw it seemed that he had done some very thorough research which may now well go to waste.
Once again it shows that no matter how legitimate something appears it is always worth seeking more information to make sure that you are wholly comfortable with any investment you make.
January 24th, 2010 | Posted in imperia invest
The majority of members in Imperia Invest will now no doubt be aware that some schedule changes have just been announced. As far as I can tell there was no commentary on why the changes were necessary and hopefully this will be the last change.
You will now be able to invest up until the 22 February 2010 which is 3 weeks later than previously advised. Final payouts have moved back a full month from 01 May 2010 to 01 June 2010.
Whilst this adds to the annoyances around continual slippages I don’t believe we should get too hung up on it as it is outside of our direct control.
Tomorrow, Monday 25 January they anticipate publishing details of bank accounts and debit cards so if you are a member who didn’t receive the recent email then I’d be vigilant over the next few days to make sure this information gets to you.
Members are already speculating as to whether Imperia will be making further charges for the debit card and bank account. Experience suggests that there will be some sort of charge involved but I think it is premature to try and second guess what this might be.
If you are not already an Imperia investor then you might want to spend a little time taking a closer look. Keep an open mind and make a decision based on your own findings, otherwise you will look to blame others if things don’t turn out as you hope.
January 16th, 2010 | Posted in gold nugget invest, passive, sport arbs
For some time Gold Nugget Invest has been subjected to a problem with a bank they deal with. It seems that the German financial authorities have frozen the assets of this specific bank because of a particular client irregularity and this has resulted in many accounts being inaccessible. One of these is GNI.
Combine this with other problems related to abuse of referral payments and unusually high request levels for principal withdrawal and the end is result is problems for GNI.
Now, they could have thrown their hands up and walked away but they are not doing that. What they want to do is restructure significantly to stabilise and create a long term future. The alternative is to fold and I don’t think anyone would want that.
What this means is that outstanding withdrawals are being cancelled and members will have the option to leave them as pending or to re-invest in the new plans being implemented. In place of weekly plans the new proposal is for monthly payments of 16% which will last for 14 months (this period will include return of principal). Premium members will receive 20% a month.
Whilst it’s disappointing that GNI find themselves in this position I’m encouraged by the level headed approach being taken and will continue to maintain my investment with them once they get things back to normal.
Given the stellar performance of GNI up until now this is a salutary lesson that no-one should put all their faith in one online investment especially if they try to use it for payment of everyday expenses.
I’m optimistic that the refreshed GNI will be a success and I look forward to the future.
January 14th, 2010 | Posted in Liberty Reserve, hci25, investing, passive
Well it’s taken an exceedingly long time but the HCI25 website is finally back online. With it there is a newsletter in the back office and in fact I’ve also received copies to my email address which didn’t happen for some time when the last site was up.
As explained in the newsletter the hosting company lost much of the member database which has resulted in an older backup from HCI25 themselves being used. What this means is that if you can’t login they you’ll need to register again and send an email that includes proof of payment and batch number of contracts purchased.
The admin also rebuffs any accusation that this is a scam and berates those who try to make these statements.
As it happens there are still 615 pension plan contracts available so it will take a little time to complete. Note that you can hold a maximum of 27 contracts per individual.
There is talk of some photos being provided soon of the first user meeting held in New York before Christmas and whilst that won’t necessarily prove anything in the long term it shows that HCI25 are sensitive to comments that are circulating.
Let’s see how the next few months turn out.
January 10th, 2010 | Posted in TEP, qcoopers
I’ve heard from a contact that the QCOOPERS Traded Endowment Plan (TEP) opportunity has met problems in the last few weeks. It appears that part of the assembled group weren’t happy with the way in which Quatro Worldwide were managing the programme and have pulled out.
As I read it this means that Quatro Worldwide has to make a decision on whether to assemble their own financial partners or wind things up. Unfortunately I can’t see any comment about this on the Quatro Worldwide website so we may need to wait a while for further clarification.
On the other side of the fence the other party, Team Themco are continuing with the programme and are in the process of establishing the member database. As far as I can make out all existing QCOOPERS policy holders will be transferred and payments honoured.
The overall effect of this change is that once the plan matures the payout will be the full value of the policy, some €91,000. Previously part of the payout was to be given in shares for other Quatro Worldwide offerings. See this post for more details.
Team Themco are currently re-designing their website to provide a gateway for policy holders to learn more. Hopefully this will be available in the next week or so.
