In light of the realities of today’s investment environment, investors need all the information they can get to build portfolios that will not only withstand the volatility of the market but also help reach investment goals.
During the maiden edition of our monthly webinar series, The Investment Playbook (TIP), our investment advisers were able to share deep insights and practicable strategies for investing today.
This post is a recap of the answers provided to the questions asked by participants during the webinar.
Q: Please can you offer examples of safe-haven assets?
Afrinvest Income Portfolio and Plutus Fund.
Q: Which portfolios are strategic and which ones are not?
All our funds are strategically managed.
Q: Please is the investors’ fund guaranteed? With the trust deed now allowing you to invest in higher yield security, I perceive higher risk?
We guarantee investors funds in only our Afrinvest Income portfolio (AIP).
Q: Do you allow cash deposit as a means of investment into the Dollar Fund? I mean, can I buy FX from the parallel market and invest it in the Afrinvest Dollar Fund?
Due to current regulatory policies, all investors in Afrinvest Dollar Fund (ADF) are expected to source their dollars and transfer into ADF custodian account for investment purpose as we no longer accept cash deposits.
Q: What are your thoughts on Agricultural investments?
Agricultural investments are a good source of divestment for your portfolio, however, investors must ensure that due diligence is done before investing.
Q: Which of your investment products is likely to outperform inflation given current sticky inflation rates in the country?
Last year, NIDF outperformed the inflation rate with an impressive performance of 28.46%.
Given that we have adopted a more active portfolio management strategy this year, we strongly believe it could outperform the inflation rate again this year.
But please note that past performance does not guarantee future performance.
Q: How are you valuing crypto assets in your investment playbook and what is your end of year valuation level for bitcoin?
We currently do not have a model to value crypto assets as they are highly volatile. However, we are only observing the market and trends.
Q: Can I as retail investor invest in equity markets of another African country directly?
We currently do not have any retail product that exposes clients to other African countries.
Q: Can you throw more light on SSA & Middle East Eurobonds. How different is it from other Eurobonds?
SSA and Middle East Eurobonds are market classifications on the regions where these bond are issued.
Q: How does one invest in US housing / REITs?
We currently do not have a product that exposes our clients to US hosing/REITs. However, upon request, these assets can be purchased on your behalf.
Q: How can someone invest in US equities through your firm?
We currently do not have a product that exposes our client to US Equities. However, upon request, these assets can be purchased on your behalf.
Q: Given the current inflationary trend and the need to protect assets against diminution in value, is there any specific product that can be recommended for, say a conservative investor?
Yes. We will recommend our Afrinvest Income Portfolio (AIP) because interest and principal are guaranteed.
Q: With the surprise move by the CBN increasing OMO rates sharply in an attempt to lure FPIs, how do you think the locals will respond in the NTB & Bond markets? What are the likely implications for the Domestic Equities market?
We attempted to project the direction of yields in 2021 using the demand and supply dynamics for bonds. Our model suggests that we still expect demand in excess of supply for the first four months of the year 2021.
Hence, despite the uncertainties in the market, we anticipate yields to trend downwards over the next 3 months as most investors are currently long on cash, seeking opportunities to deploy funds into.
We expect the equities market to return 18.5% in 2021.
Q: What are your expectations for equities this year, considering the fact NSE ASI is trading close to 42,000 point — a resistant level. In 2022, the political risk for 2023 election builds up and local assets decline. What is your perspective?
We expect the equities market to return 18.5% in 2021 mostly driven by the low yield environment, expected financial performances from listed companies, vaccine distribution and domestic retail investors.
Q: Going forward, what is your opinion about a possible uptick in the yield of NTB especially in H2 of 2021.
We expect yields to remain flat at their current levels for NTB. However, a slight uptick in H2, 2021.
Q: What are your current Agric investment products?
Kindly reach us on aaml@afrinvest.com for more details.
Q: Can I open an account online and start investing?
Yes, you can. Kindly reach us on aaml@afrinvest.com.
Q: You made mention of an impending bubble to burst in the US stock market. Kindly explain what is informing your comment.
The US markets have consistently hit record-high valuations. We expect a market correction in the medium term.
Q: What is the e-mail to contact again for further question after the webinar?
Kindly reach us on aaml@afrinvest.com for more details.
Q: What sector of the NSE has upside potential considering the rally in 2020?
Oil & Gas (Seplat) and Banking (GTBank and Zenith).
Q: What is your opinion on Bond yield in the Short to Medium-term, say 3months to 6 months?
We expect yields to trend downwards in 3–6 months. While in the medium term H2, 2021 we expect a slight increase in yields to levels seen today.
Q: Who is the custodian of the dollar fund?
The custodian is UBA PLC.
If you missed The Investment Playbook (TIP) webinar — or you’d like to relive it — you can click here to catch up.
