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The Virtus View is a weekly to bi-weekly e-mail publication that Brian authors in order to keep you updated on the current market situation.
VIRTUS VIEW 10.01.08
10/1/2008
This communication is intended to add value to your life by helping you separate the real news from the white noise, understand the critical economic events that you read about every day and outlining alternative investments which might be advantageous to you in these times. We send this weekly e-mail to both clients as well as individuals we hope become future clients. Thus, to my valued clients, since we use many alternative investments in your portfolio currently, some of the e-mails might discuss assets that you already understand. It never hurts to review your knowledge of those investments.
Please feel free to forward these e-mails to any friends you have who you believe will benefit from learning more about finances and investments.
Obviously, there has been a lot of press regarding bank and investment firm financial issues recently. It is a scary time for all and uncertainty is not usually desired in any circumstance, but especially not in the financial markets. There is a lot to be concerned about in our current situation (concern but not panic). However, the security of your accounts should not be one of them. I want to discuss with you today the security measures in place on your accounts.
The securities industry in the United States is among the most heavily regulated in the world to help ensure that brokerage accounts are a safe and accessible place for people to place money they wish to invest. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is the securities industry’s primary regulatory body.
A cornerstone of protection of client assets in brokerage firms is the segregation of assets; that is, client assets are held separately from the assets of the brokerage firm. Regulations state that all fully paid client securities must be held in separately from the brokerage firm’s own assets and are not available for firm use. The rules ensure that if a brokerage firm experiences losses, the investor assets are not affected. These protections do not apply to margin accounts, which can only be established under a written agreement by you. If you do not have a margin account or if you have a margin account with no margin balance, all securities held by our custodian (First Clearing Corp) will be segregated as required by the SEC.
In the event that a brokerage firm fails, investors benefit from additional layers of protection. SIPC helps protect clients against the risk of any member brokerage firm becoming insolvent. SIPC protects each client’s securities and cash held in a client’s brokerage account by replacing missing securities and cash up to $500,000 per account, including $100,000 for claims for cash. This coverage does not protect against losses from failure of a security or a decline in the market value of investments.
Above the SIPC coverage Wachovia Securities, being the parent company too First Clearing Corp, has obtained, at no cost to clients, unlimited protection for any cash and securities in brokerage accounts above the $500,000 SIPC threshold. The additional protection is provided through Customer Asset Protection Company (CAPCO), which Wachovia Securities and 13 other security firms formed in 2003. This additional protection from CAPCO also does not insure against losses from fluctuating market value for the securities held in the accounts.
Finally, uninvested cash balance in the bank sweep program, including principal and interest, are covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) up to $100,000 ($250,000 in IRA accounts) per depositor per bank in accordance with the rules of the FDIC. These balances are not covered by either SIPC or CAPCO coverage mentioned previously.
As I said above, these are difficult times, with no one having the answer to what lies ahead. I have no doubt we will come out of this better than most people believe at this point. We have had crises before and in all but one instance (the great depression) came out of them to prosper again relatively soon after. But please don’t let anyone scare you into thinking a depression is on the way. The above mentioned levels of protection on your bank and brokerage accounts were not in place in the era of the great depression.
I hope you found this Virtus View informative.
Please feel free to contact me if I can be of any assistance.
Best Regards,
Brian Tillotson
Wealth Manager
Virtus Wealth Management
2435 E. Southlake Blvd
Suite 120
Southlake, TX 76092
817-717-3812
866-407-4320
Fax: 817-416-6585
www.virtuswealth.com
Securities and Advisory Services offered through VSR Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA / SIPC
To opt out of this weekly e-mail, please just reply to this e-mail with “Opt Out” in the subject line.
Please feel free to forward this to any friends you believe will benefit from this information.
To learn more about Virtus Wealth Management and how we may be able to help you, please visit our website or give us a call. http://virtuswealth.com
THE VIRTUS VIEW
Good afternoon to all.
This is the second installment of “The Virtus View,” a weekly e-mail sent to you for informational purposes.This communication is intended to add value to your life by helping you separate the real news from the white noise, understand the critical economic events that you read about every day and outlining alternative investments which might be advantageous to you in these times. We send this weekly e-mail to both clients as well as individuals we hope become future clients. Thus, to my valued clients, since we use many alternative investments in your portfolio currently, some of the e-mails might discuss assets that you already understand. It never hurts to review your knowledge of those investments.
Please feel free to forward these e-mails to any friends you have who you believe will benefit from learning more about finances and investments.
Obviously, there has been a lot of press regarding bank and investment firm financial issues recently. It is a scary time for all and uncertainty is not usually desired in any circumstance, but especially not in the financial markets. There is a lot to be concerned about in our current situation (concern but not panic). However, the security of your accounts should not be one of them. I want to discuss with you today the security measures in place on your accounts.
The securities industry in the United States is among the most heavily regulated in the world to help ensure that brokerage accounts are a safe and accessible place for people to place money they wish to invest. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is the securities industry’s primary regulatory body.
A cornerstone of protection of client assets in brokerage firms is the segregation of assets; that is, client assets are held separately from the assets of the brokerage firm. Regulations state that all fully paid client securities must be held in separately from the brokerage firm’s own assets and are not available for firm use. The rules ensure that if a brokerage firm experiences losses, the investor assets are not affected. These protections do not apply to margin accounts, which can only be established under a written agreement by you. If you do not have a margin account or if you have a margin account with no margin balance, all securities held by our custodian (First Clearing Corp) will be segregated as required by the SEC.
In the event that a brokerage firm fails, investors benefit from additional layers of protection. SIPC helps protect clients against the risk of any member brokerage firm becoming insolvent. SIPC protects each client’s securities and cash held in a client’s brokerage account by replacing missing securities and cash up to $500,000 per account, including $100,000 for claims for cash. This coverage does not protect against losses from failure of a security or a decline in the market value of investments.
Above the SIPC coverage Wachovia Securities, being the parent company too First Clearing Corp, has obtained, at no cost to clients, unlimited protection for any cash and securities in brokerage accounts above the $500,000 SIPC threshold. The additional protection is provided through Customer Asset Protection Company (CAPCO), which Wachovia Securities and 13 other security firms formed in 2003. This additional protection from CAPCO also does not insure against losses from fluctuating market value for the securities held in the accounts.
Finally, uninvested cash balance in the bank sweep program, including principal and interest, are covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) up to $100,000 ($250,000 in IRA accounts) per depositor per bank in accordance with the rules of the FDIC. These balances are not covered by either SIPC or CAPCO coverage mentioned previously.
As I said above, these are difficult times, with no one having the answer to what lies ahead. I have no doubt we will come out of this better than most people believe at this point. We have had crises before and in all but one instance (the great depression) came out of them to prosper again relatively soon after. But please don’t let anyone scare you into thinking a depression is on the way. The above mentioned levels of protection on your bank and brokerage accounts were not in place in the era of the great depression.
I hope you found this Virtus View informative.
Please feel free to contact me if I can be of any assistance.
Best Regards,
Brian Tillotson
Wealth Manager
Virtus Wealth Management
2435 E. Southlake Blvd
Suite 120
Southlake, TX 76092
817-717-3812
866-407-4320
Fax: 817-416-6585
www.virtuswealth.com
Securities and Advisory Services offered through VSR Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA / SIPC
To opt out of this weekly e-mail, please just reply to this e-mail with “Opt Out” in the subject line.
Please feel free to forward this to any friends you believe will benefit from this information.
To learn more about Virtus Wealth Management and how we may be able to help you, please visit our website or give us a call. http://virtuswealth.com
CONTACT US: 2435 E. Southlake Blvd • Suite 120, Southlake, TX 76092 • (817) 717-3812
Toll Free (866) 407-4320 • Fax (817) 416-6585 • BTillotson@VirtusWealth.com
Toll Free (866) 407-4320 • Fax (817) 416-6585 • BTillotson@VirtusWealth.com
Securities & Advisory services offered through VSR Financial Services, Inc., a Registered Investment
Adviser and Member FINRA & SIPC. Virtus Wealth Management is independent of VSR.
Adviser and Member FINRA & SIPC. Virtus Wealth Management is independent of VSR.
