Michelle Morris, ContributorTHIS YEAR will continue to be a year of focusing on wealth building and wealth creation through prudent saving and investment. We have been systematically educating our members about money management and of the range of products and services available to them at COK.
As a result, many of our members -- empowered with information -- many are now diversifying their investments according to goals and time frame.
We counsel our members to think of investment as a lifetime activity which they should plan according to the life cycle. In keeping with our mantra COK for Life, we have products for various time-frames and for each stage of the life cycle.
Here are some ideal products for wealth building:
COK Fixed Deposit:
Interest rates of between 10 and 13.75 per cent on investments of between 30 days to one year.
COK Golden Harvest Account:
Ideal for medium to long term planning
Earns 13 per cent on investments of between one and 10 years.
An insurance component which covers your saving target up to four million dollars.
COK Wealth Maximiser
Five-year, tax-free savings plan that currently offers 14 per cent. Interest rates on the Wealth Maximiser are reviewed semi-annually.
These rates have been among the most competitive in the market, and we have managed to maintain them for at least the past year. We therefore encourage you to capitalise on the current high rates by investing now where possible.
We continue to be very strong in the area of loans and anticipate an increase in business loans in 2006. Our loans help to build wealth and facilitate other investments, such as capital investment in the start up of businesses, gearing i.e. borrowing to invest.
Our 'Loan Within Deposit' facility allows members to borrow using their savings as collateral. This way, our members keep their money and continue to earn interest at competitive rates while repaying loans.
Michelle Morris is deputy general manager for Finance and Investment at COK Cooperative Credit Union.
