Imperia Invest maintain the butt cheek tightening for two more weeks…

As promised Imperia Invest has published an update in the back office. Surprisingly for them the update is pretty long and does provide some tempting news.

Of course, the end point is still not quite there and we have another two weeks to wait before anyone will be in a position to confirm one way or the other.

Again, the update is somewhat lacking in precise details so readers should be cautious about stating things as definite. Yes it does say that the iBanking platform will be available on 16 August. It doesn’t say anything about when purchased cards will be sent out.

If we assume that everything goes as planned any funds that can’t be claimed because owners didn’t purchase a card will be transferred to a trustee fund and disbursed to those who purchased an iBanking product.

Okay, so we are a step closer to the end and the update is positive. Having said that no-one should take things as a given. As always use common sense to understand what is going on. If cards are received and the banking interface is opened as we are told then we can start to really believe.

If you are lucky enough to be going away for two weeks where there is no email or internet you can avoid all the speculation that will most likely ensue between now and the 16th August. In some ways I’d be quite envious!

Imperia Invest and Chinese Whispers…

Have you ever played the game where a group of people get together and two people sidle up together, one whispers something in the others ear. Then that person turns to the next one in the group and spy-like passes on the message.

As each person in turn has their go there’s a palpable rise in tension whilst they wait to see how the original message has changed on its way round the group.

Almost without exception as the last person calls out the message they heard it’s completely different from the one that started out. And that’s the fun of the whole thing!

With Imperia Invest things aren’t so funny.

Lots of people have been hanging on patiently until the middle of July expecting that cards would start to be delivered.

And yet when you look back at the last update from May that isn’t what is said. What they said was that the banking solution would be made available by mid July. It hasn’t. But is that really such a terrible thing?

We all know that the world of banking is extremely fickle and even the smallest hiccup can slow things down. So we need to give them time to react.

The update also said that cards were being tested until the end of July so it follows that until those tests are complete any bulk issue is on hold. What if they find problems? That may again create further delay.

I know I’m sounding like something of a cheerleader here and that really isn’t my intent. I know many people are upset and angry and whilst I sympathise given that we’ve had no update from Imperia let’s not start to rant and rave just yet.

As has been said many times before if these programmes pay out then all this angst would have been wasted energy, if they don’t then we all knew the risks going in and we shouldn’t spend valuable time searching endlessly for answers that may never appear.

In essence all this speculation is online Chinese Whispers and we all do well to remember that.

Imperia Invest continue to frustrate members with wall of silence…

One of the most commented posts I’ve had is to do with Imperia Invest. It seems that many people have an opinion on just what the situation is with this particular opportunity.

Even today one comment suggested that those people who signed in to their account and see a green band next to their debit card purchase would soon be happy as their cards are on the way. Those showing a yellow line would still need to wait (and yes mine is still yellow).

On the other hand there are comments still being received that the whole thing is a scam and people are wasting their money.

Of course there is very little real evidence either way for people to grab on to as arguments for both cases could still be valid.

The information void is being caused by lack of updates from Imperia Invest as the last one was published on April 20.

It does seem that some members are receiving replies from enquiries to the support desk that indicate a new update will be published in the not too distant future so it may be that some of the speculation may be addressed.

Let’s hope an update is forthcoming and that it provides a clear path forward as to when cards and ultimately payments will be available.

Daisy chain of funding to get Imperia Invest debit cards…

There are increasing numbers of people who are struggling to get funds to the Imperia Invest depot account in order to purchase a debit card package.

Imperia has de-activated funding through Liberty Reserve and Perfect Money and are only accepting Procurrex at the current time (that is when their site is up of course).

In essence members are being left to find ways to fund their Procurrex account in time to purchase before the end of April.

I’ve read several reports where the main exchangers SwapGold and Topex24 are struggling to provide an effective and efficient way to convert Liberty Reserve funds to Procurrex.

Looking at the SwapGold site I notice that they are encouraging purchase of Procurrex via Bank Wire so that is another avenue you might try if you can’t exchange your LR.

Another way I’ve seen reported is to exchange LR to either cgold or Global Digital Pay via WM Center. From there use SwapGold to change the cgold or GDP to Procurrex. Rather tortuous I know and you’ll need to allow for the additional fees but it does appear to be a workable option.

What about other people out there? Have you found a way to obtain Procurrex that is both economical and affordable. Let’s help each other make sure that anyone who wants to purchase an Imperia debit card has the best chance of doing so before the time limit runs out.

Results are in for Imperia Invest poll…

A few days ago I asked readers to take part in a quick poll to see how many TEP policies people had invested in with Imperia Invest. Well, now the results are in.

Before we look at the results in detail let me just show you what they are in summary:

Virtually half of those who voted have between 2 and 10 policies. This means that their return will certainly be of significance and some prudent financial planning will be needed.

I was somewhat taken aback by the number who have between 101 and 200 policies as these members will need a very robust strategy for managing these funds.

Interestingly it seems that for higher numbers of policies people took the view that if you want over 50 then you might as well go for 100+, let’s hope that they receive all they are entitled to.

A reasonable number of respondents are taking the seriously cautious approach and only investing in one policy. Perhaps the silver debit card package would be ideal for this group.

I’ll admit that this poll was highly unscientific but it does at least give an idea of the sort of distribution of Imperia policies in the wider world.

If you have not yet applied for a debit card package as yet I’m sure you may be feeling fairly frustrated right now as the site has been down for several days. Given that purchases have to be completed by April 30th you will need to keep a weather eye on just when the site will be back.

Let’s hope we get some greater clarity on just how things stand in the not too distant future as debate and speculation are really getting out of hand currently.

Imperia Invest raise the lid a little on more details…

Once again the Imperia Invest website is up and members can login. A news update is now available and I’d recommend that all investors login to find out more.

In brief there is some clarification on how the iBanking service is being rolled out and a short explanation as to why they have to take the site offline on a regular basis. Reading the update it all seems perfectly plausible to me so if you are yet to make a purchase for your payment solution I would suggest that you get things actioned sooner rather than later.

The update does make the point that you cannot change your choice of service once purchased so you should read closely the pdf’s that describe what is on offer.

Unfortunately Imperia are not that precise about timings but at least there is an indication that once you purchase a card and your identification can be verified then your account will be funded just two weeks later.

Let’s hope that members will now be in a better position to make a decision as to whether to purchase a debit card or not. Note that if you have an account and decide not to purchase one of the debit card packages on offer your funds will be dispersed between existing account holders who have made a purchase.

Imperia Invest debate spans the extremes…

I don’t think that any online investment has sparked such fierce debate as Imperia Invest. Of all the posts I’ve penned the subject of Imperia Invest has created the fiercest debate.

On one extreme we have those who have a wholehearted befief that Imperia is genuine and will faithfully pay to the other where whatever is said they are convinced that Imperia is a scam.

So, who is right? Well, from everything I’ve seen neither camp provides conclusive proof one way or the other. From the supporters we’re told that some mebers have already received their cards and their funds are available. My problem of course is that I have not yet seen verifiable evidence that this is true.

On the other hand those who proclaim Imperia a scam put forward arguments about lack of evidence of offices being where they say they are and insufficient information about the new debit card provider. Again I’m not convinced because any astute financial organisation would be very wary about providing too much information regarding their whereabouts and even more so about another financial organisation.

Of course I expect this debate to continue raging until we have conclusive proof one way or the other as to whether Imperia will pay out. Personally, I’m not spending an awful lot of time worrying about this as we have a published timetable to follow and admittedly infrequent updates but at least they do communicate.

I’m keen that the debate continues but I will start to be harder on comments made unless there is specific evidence to back them up.

Imperia Invest head into the eye of the storm…

If only we could rub that crystal ball and forsee the future life would be so much more stress free. And yet I don’t think too many people were surprised when Imperia Invest posted their latest news about how members can get access to their funds. Unfortunately, as predicted, there is a cost for this service and many people are questioning just why this is the case. Most comments I’ve seen run along the lines that Imperia Invest are just squeezing the pips a little harder before disappearing off into the sunset.

Where’s that crystal ball when you need it? Admittedly there are arguments that could be put forward which would justify a charge as many other opportunities have done this in the past. No financial institution would send out a debit or credit card without charging on the basis that they would get paid when the programme paid out.

Given that the news has only been available for a couple of days it hasn’t been possible for many people to access the Imperia Invest website to find out what all the fuss is about. There are 3 pdf files that give some details of what you will be able to obtain. Briefly, there are 3 options:

1. Silver package – $145 with a maximum monthly withdrawal of $5,000 per month
2. Gold package – $230 with a maximum monthly withdrawal of $10,000 per month
3. Platinum package – $450 with a maximum monthly withdrawal of $50,000 plus an offshore bank account

From what I can surmise most people are taking the view that they would purchase the Silver option for $145 and then once they get paid would upgrade to the full package. A big caveat here is that this strategy has not been tested with Imperia so it may not be possible to achieve. The other thing to bear in mind is that you have to make a purchase by 01 May. If you don’t do this you will not get paid. However, the payments will not start until June so we can’t even let others buy a package and see if they get paid.

So plenty to wrestle with over the next few weeks. When I look into my crystal ball I see people hanging on and hanging on and then in the last week making a desperate attempt to get a package as they would never forgive themselves if Imperia turned out to be genuine and they had convinced themselves otherwise. Like everyone else I am undecided at this moment and am hoping that over the next couple of weeks some of the questions being bandied about receive up front answers so that our concerns can be reduced.

If you would like a copy of each of the pdf’s please send an email to imperia @ onlineinvestingguru.com (remove the spaces before and after the @ symbol).

Imperia Invest push back schedule and indicate details on payments…

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.

Imperia Invest closes for contract purchases on 01 February…

As things start to settle down in this New Year I wanted to remind everyone that Imperia Invest will close purchase of new contracts on February 01 which is just over three weeks away.

I know how quickly time passes and before you know it January will be over and there won’t be another chance to invest at Imperia.

As a reminder Imperia Invest are trading in Traded Endowment Policies (TEP) and for a very reasonable investment you receive a generous return. You should note that TEP’s have to be ‘in trade’ for 6 months so if you purchase between now and the end of January you wouldn’t receive the payout until July.

Another point to note is that Imperia have had various problems with payment processors and now recommend Procurrex. Given that you would need to open an account here and fund it you might want to act soon to ensure you have enough time to purchase contracts.

Like any online investment you should do research before making an investment. Whilst the sum involved here is not that great you should be aware that it does carry risk. There are many people who are happy to accept this risk as they can see that the return is significant, however there is also a chance that payouts won’t happen so please think carefully before parting with funds.