Wow - How do these people sleep at night? - Monex Atlas Account

vpr

I love money too, but I certainly wouldn't be able to enjoy any of it knowing that my actions caused a 70 year old retiree to be forced to live on $229 per month. You know, people are oh so surprised when they find out that I'm a cynic. When I read stories like this, it just makes me even more cynical!


It's an old article, but still!
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/nov/20/business/la-fi-hiltzik-20101121

vpr

If there's any advice you can give folks you know, just tell them never ever trust a financial adviser. In most cases, they have serious conflicts of interest. A lot of them make money by selling you products. Even if their compensation were based on returns, they have every incentive to put you in high-risk investments because that gives them a shot at making a lot of money for themselves. Worst case, you lose everything and they will just reel in new clients. Do your homework and don't sign anything without reading the entire contract. The best thing you can do for your financial future is to learn about the markets. It isn't that hard! Just takes some time.

Weiss

I got a Monex Atlas account when I was 13. True story. I was a metal hound back in the day. I wrote for information, filled out the form, and they issued me a card with a $20,000(?) credit limit. This would have been the mid-1980s.

RGJohn

<< <i>.......
never ever trust a financial adviser. In most cases, they have serious conflicts of interest. A lot of them make money by selling you products. Even if their compensation were based on returns, they have every incentive to put you in high-risk investments because that gives them a shot at making a lot of money for themselves. Worst case, you lose everything and they will just reel in new clients. ......... >>



Spot on advice. I agree completely.
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'Advisors', aka 'experts', represent themselves as symbiotic entities that will increase the health of your financial corpus. In reality
they are parasitic and will only keep you alive as long as they can continue to extract their sustenence from you.
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Nobody loves your money more than you do.
Learn. Make your own mistakes. At least one receives the education instead of just paying for it.
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While some other outfits may seem more polished and professional ( tha is, they perform better theater) than this bunch, the underlying activity is identical. The 'banksters', et al don't actually steal, it is gifted to them. That's why they rarely go to jail; you can't be imprisoned for accepting a gift.

bronco2078

Without a fiat currency system would any of what financial advisers do even be needed?


The whole need for any of the complex investments is caused by the baked in inflation of a fiat currency + fractional reserve system.


In a rigid gold backed currency standard 99% of these scumbags would be out of work . They would have to go to law school or sell used cars

drwstr123

Is it any great surprise? I tell people, simply ask yourself, whose table would a financial adviser put food on first, yours or his?

tincup

Financial advisors are no different than any other profession, whether it be doctors, dentists, lawyers, accountants, etc. Don't they all also rely on your money? So would you practice dentistry on your self because after all, the dentist is only after your money??

In any profession, there are very good and honest ones... and there are scumbags. The trick is to find the right ones. There are financial advisors that are very honest and serve their clients well.

bronco2078

Without the deliberate inflation would we need any of their services?

If I save by squirreling away gold and gold is money then it all goes away. If theres no 5% inflation then I don't need 10% yield which the advisor carves a fee out of then the government taxes me on that then hopefully lets me break even. take away the deliberate inflation then these people need to get real jobs .




Doctors are needed a lot more than bankers are , we rarely need a banker for anything urgent . Peoples health represents the only need for a doctors service and if the doctor kills the person he doesnt get any more work.

The only way you can compare the financial class to doctors is if doctors were first poisoning us then charging us for treatment to fix the effects of the poison

UNLVino

Any commission based "advisor" will only advise on those "investments" that are either being pushed by corporate or pay the highest commission. Those folks are salespeople, plain and simple.

The only real financial advisors are fee based advisors - you pay them for their advice, their only motivation is the fee. If a fee based financial advisor wants to keep making money, they better give good advice.

vpr

I agree that you might luck out with fee based advisors and find a really good one, but research shows that on average you are better off just investing passively in low cost index funds over the long run than any financial advisors. This is contrary to what most folks on here believe in, including me. We're all here because we think we can beat the general market by investing in precious metals. Still, you're better off trying to beat the market on your own using a discount broker. Unless you have a lot of money and can't spend time managing your own money, there is really no reason to get a financial advisor.

Back to Monex, here is link to their contract for the Atlas account. http://www.monex.com/special/docs/atlas.pdf
No way I would expect an average person to understand the commission structure, margin calls, leverage etc. And apparently, no one regulates them. They're operating as a leveraged futures boiler room.

OPA

<< <i>Without a fiat currency system would any of what financial advisers do even be needed?


The whole need for any of the complex investments is caused by the baked in inflation of a fiat currency + fractional reserve system.


In a rigid gold backed currency standard 99% of these scumbags would be out of work . They would have to go to law school or sell used cars >>



Very unlikely. If there is a "buck" to be made, especially owning Physical PM's, advisers would be inundating the internet with no "loose" sales or SHTF scenarios. No change, just different singers. BTW our existing PM "advisers" would not have to change anything. There are enough brainwashed sheeple around who will follow them to their graves.

bronco2078

There would be no need for PM advisors if they were money. Everyone would have them .

OPA

<< <i>There would be no need for PM advisors if they were money. Everyone would have them . >>



Now you're dreaming. Everyone has money, but yet there are tons of advisers. Some one would be there telling you the "proper way of spending it."

WhiteTornado

Fee-based advisers aren't necessarily a panacea. We used one a couple of years ago. She seemed overly reliant on some online software package to provide the numbers. I had never heard of it, although perhaps it is well-known in that industry. We were given a login for it so we could play with it and try out different numbers and scenarios.

In less than a year, the adviser had changed professions and our access to the software was summarily cut off. I doubt I'd use an adviser again. It did not seem worth it to us.

RGJohn

<< <i>Financial advisors are no different than any other profession, whether it be doctors, dentists, lawyers, accountants, etc. Don't they all also rely on your money? So would you practice dentistry on your self because after all, the dentist is only after your money??

In any profession, there are very good and honest ones... and there are scumbags. The trick is to find the right ones. There are financial advisors that are very honest and serve their clients well. >>



I appreciate your thoughtful reply. And I offer my response:
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"Financial advisors are no different than any other profession".
I disagree with this statement. There are meaningful differences IMO.
Dentists do not promise to increase the number nor the health of my teeth were I to allow them 10% of the bounty. They cannot give me 3 sets of my own natural teeth and were they so able, I'd have no place to put them. Financial advisors DO promise such heavens. That is a difference and a significant one IMO. Just because somebody chooses to call such under the same umbrealla of 'professions' does not make them all equal. After all, what is called the world's oldest profession? Are we to equate lawyers with prostitution? well OK, I'll concede that one, how about: 'Are we too equate accounting with prostitution?'
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" Don't they all also rely on your money?"....Yes they do. So does the grocer, auto mechanic and anybody else ( especially including our BST here). BUT, these others do not presume to manage, attempt to control or direct my investments. My expenditures upon them represent a loss to me. I pay ( but receive an equally valuable item or service in return). The advisor is tempting me to believe that they are going to generate a net GAIN to me. That is (again IMO) rather unlikely. I feel that way because they situate themselves so as to receive the benefits of any gain while insulating themselves against any possible loss. And if they really "knew something", why are they offering it to me for a fraction of a penny upon the dollar when they could be as wealthy as Bill Gates married to King Midas' only daughter if only they were exploiting this glorious opportunity for themselves rather than handing it to me for a pittance? Why?
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So I am reduced to putting up ALL the money and either:
1. Through the superior understanding/knowledge/personal connection to Bernie Madoff/name-UR-scam
reaping an astronomical profit unforseen by any human except that sanctified expert (one of a very large multitude) with whom I had the good fortune to do business, or
2. Use my own judgement, invest the money, and reap the benefit or endure the loss by myself.
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What is the function of this professional kibitzer? What does s/he do for me? I well understand what I and others similarly situated do for them but what do they do for me? Prey upon my insecurities? Doesn't seem to me that that is a service which is legitimately compensible.
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My personal choice is closer to #2.
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Again, I do very much appreciate your intelligent and cogent remarks. I hope you won't feel that my spirited response is in any way unkindly intended. It is not.
Regards and Happy Memorial Day,
John