Although life insurance is often used for providing needed funds to surviving family members in the event of a breadwinner’s death, it is also used as a means for paying off debt. This may include payment of the deceased’s final expenses such as funeral costs and any unpaid medical bills, as well as paying down the mortgage on the family home for the policy holder’s survivors. Other advantages for life insurance proceeds can include the funding of future education expenses fo

The investment team and part of the management team were delighted to attend the recent event in Manila organized by Fund Selector Asia and Last Word Media. It was great to see an event like this in Manila and also an excellent turnout. The Astra Investment Team have been busy this last quarter attending events like this and also in Hong Kong. These events help to give us clarity on what is happening around the world which helps us to better manage client investments. During

As the world gets smaller, more people choose to leave their home country either for work, retirement, a better environment or to follow their partner. Not surprisingly many of those who go down this route struggle to get good advice, as it is hard to know who is qualified to help them. The ability to find a suitable advisor is further hindered as most of us expect that, as the world develops, the ability for business and consultancy to cross ‘International Borders’ should be

Astra in conjunction with one of our business partners is now able to help clients secure an ‘American Express Card’. For expats and International business people who often struggle to get credit cards in various countries, this is a great offer and will help clients better manage their business trips and holidays by giving them the security of access to their funds. Often for expats in Asia, it can be difficult to get credit cards and access to good banking and investment pr

Most Expats will know the benefits of having Life Insurance and understand that as an Expat there is perhaps a greater need for this kind of cover. This will likely be because once you move away from your home country family ties will weaken so having an independent provision in place to provide for your family becomes even more important. While most people don’t like the idea of discussing the benefits of life insurance, there is certainly an important place for it in one’s

In a recent HSBC global survey, the difference between the aspirations of many and the reality was amazingly stark. Of those surveyed who were over 45, 81% of them said they would be unable to retire when they wanted due to financial constraints. The survey also found out that over 18% of people believed they would never be able to retire and this figure has almost doubled in the last few years. Reasons given for the inability to retire when desired fell into three categories

The Astra Investment Manager went to HK last week to catch up with key partners and participated in the FundForum Asia and Inside ETFs Asia event at the JW Marriott Hong Kong. Despite the ongoing problems in HK it remains a major player in the Investment world and provides Don with a great opportunity to meet and shake hands with the key decision-makers in the region. Attending events like this gives us an insight into what fund managers are thinking and the opportunity to ch

There are probably very few of us who would consider ourselves to be an ‘orphan client’ but the reality is there are millions of orphan clients around. What is an ‘Orphan Client’ An orphan client is someone who has previously bought or inherited a financial product through past employment or through a company or advisor who is no longer looking after their interests. Examples: Someone who paid into or was provided with a company pension scheme and they have left the company a

Great as ever to meet Cameron Knox and wonderful to also have the opportunity to listen to James Klempster who manages the Harmony fund range in the UK. It is rare to have the opportunity to meet with people like James Klempster in Manila and shows the commitment Harmony have to both clients and advisors in the region. Currently, there is a ‘lot of noise’ politically around the world which impacts the global economy and peoples life and investments. James was able to help us

Astra were pleased to welcome Joe Palmer of Guinness to our Prague office. Astra have been working closely with Guinness to bring extra diversification to clients from a fund manager who has a great long term track record. #AstraGroup #Guinness #funds #investing #financialservices #businessrelationship