How To Invest Your Christmas Bonus Wisely

The calendar finally turning to December brings with it a lot of things, most especially the one thing many people have been waiting all year for the 13th-month pay and Christmas bonus. The yearly windfall often leads people to buy things they want and need.

But while you do deserve to treat yourself after a long year, you might also want to consider trying something different. What if, instead of spending your bonus right away, you decided to grow it and get more money in return?

This is definitely something you can do now with various investment products made available to you by banks. “Now that you have received your bonus, is actually the best time to start investing in financial instruments that will generate value for your money and are suitable to your personal risk appetite and profile,” said Raul Victor de Guzman, EastWest FVP and Head of Securities, Derivatives, and FX Distribution and Sales.

Here are three financial products you may want to consider availing of with your Christmas bonuses:

Time Deposit

A Time Deposit account is a good place to start, as it is one of the simplest investments you can avail yourself of with your money. It’s a deposit account with a specific maturity period, and you make money through an interest rate that is higher than a basic savings account, depending on the term and placement amount.

EastWest is offering bonus rates if you book a Peso or US Dollar Time Deposit account via EastWest Mobile or Online.

Bonds

Bonds are investment securities, like stocks, that can be bought or sold in the secondary market. These are basically debts and obligations of companies or governments sold to investors. These companies and/or governments, called bond issuers, pay the investors regular coupon interest payments on the amount invested. Bonds typically pay higher interest than traditional time deposits. The minimum investment depends on the terms of the bond you choose.

Should you choose to buy bonds, banks can help you by assessing your risk profile (i.e. conservative, balanced or aggressive) and suggest bonds for your consideration that are suitable and consistent with your risk profile. EastWest has top bond picks to choose from to make investment easier. These top picks range from government securities to high grade corporate bonds which are medium- to long-term investments with a steady payout schedule.

UITF

A Unit Investment Trust Fund or UITF is a pooled fund that gives you access to financial markets generally of stocks and fixed income instruments.  EastWest offers three types of UITFs to cater to the different risk profiles and investment objectives of the clients. There are different types of UITFs to choose from:

• Money Market Funds are for clients who have conservative risk profiles and short-term liquidity needs.  The funds aim to provide its investors liquidity and stable income derived from diversified portfolio of fixed income instruments. These funds have a portfolio duration of 1 year or less.
• Bond funds are for clients who have moderate risk profiles and medium-term liquidity needs.  The funds aim to provide potential returns higher than traditional bank deposits by investing in diversified mixed portfolio of fixed income instruments.  These funds have a portfolio duration of more than 1 year.
• Equity Funds are for clients who have aggressive risk profiles.  Funds are invested in equities which are highly volatile.  The funds aim to provide higher potential returns by investing in a diversified portfolio of equities.

The minimum investment for EW Peso UITFs is P10,000 except for EW Peso Long-Term Bond Fund whose minimum investment is P50,000.

You may choose the UITF to invest in based on your risk appetite (which the bank can assess and help you with) and you make money from the fund’s appreciation and/or income and dividends earned by the funds.

In fact, equipped with this information, you can now make a good plan for your future by investing that bonus. You might not see the results right away, but you’ll be glad you did one day! Head to your nearest EastWest store or contact EastWest Bank’s SEDEX officers at 0919-0621226 / 0919-0621218.  You may also e-mail  #SEDEX-RetailSalesDivision@eastwestbanker.com to know how you can get started!

To find out more about investing and investment products EastWest has to offer, visit the EastWest website at eastwestbanker.com, and follow the official Facebook page at facebook.com/eastwestbanker.