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16.05.2020, 16:53
| Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Baselland
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| | Abbey Wealth
I have been contacted by Abbey Wealth, Spain and was wondering if anyone on the forum has experience with dealing with them?
On their site they advertise themselves as: "Abbey Wealth Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and around the world remains acutely focused on the provision of first class financial advice and support services to expatriates globally." | 
16.05.2020, 16:59
|  | Moderately Dutch | | Join Date: May 2011 Location: Zurich
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth | Quote: | |  | | | I have been contacted by Abbey Wealth, Spain and was wondering if anyone on the forum has experience with dealing with them?
On their site they advertise themselves as: "Abbey Wealth Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and around the world remains acutely focused on the provision of first class financial advice and support services to expatriates globally." | | | | | Run.
I would never work with someone who contacts me out of the blue.
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16.05.2020, 19:41
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Kt. Bern
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth | Quote: | |  | | | I have been contacted by Abbey Wealth, Spain and was wondering if anyone on the forum has experience with dealing with them?
On their site they advertise themselves as: "Abbey Wealth Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and around the world remains acutely focused on the provision of first class financial advice and support services to expatriates globally." | | | | | Their site says: | Quote: |  | | | After completing the regulatory requirements in 2016 AFS Wealth Management & Insurance Advisers Limited, trading as Abbey Wealth, is now regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. | | | | | Which is true, unto a point, except they are registered as: insurance, reinsurance or ancillary insurance intermediary providers, not financial advisers or similar...
Best avoided.
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16.05.2020, 19:56
| | Re: Abbey Wealth
Rule of thumb in Switzerland: If people contact you for insurances and financials just throw the phone down instantly without saying goodbye.
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16.05.2020, 20:29
| Forum Legend | | Join Date: Oct 2014 Location: Nyon
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth
I searched for Abbey Wealth and got over a page worth of hits from their website. Halfway down the second page I found this that explains what insurance advisors do. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...-billions.html
No mention of Abbey Wealth, but it does mention our favourite Swiss culprit.
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17.05.2020, 13:26
| Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Mies
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth
If you get cold-called by anyone trying to offer financial advice, hang-up at once. Unless you are happy to string them along and waste their time.
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17.05.2020, 16:47
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth | Quote: | |  | | | If you get cold-called by anyone trying to offer financial advice, hang-up at once. Unless you are happy to string them along and waste their time. | | | | | That's more or less what I have done to now. That said I was interested in what they knew about UK tax domicile and they sent me a pdf on the subject. Naturally they would also like to help me 're-structure' my investments. But don't worry I wont be signing up for anything. | 
17.05.2020, 17:32
|  | Forum Legend | | Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: NL & sometimes ZH
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth | Quote: | |  | | | That's more or less what I have done to now. That said I was interested in what they knew about UK tax domicile and they sent me a pdf on the subject. Naturally they would also like to help me 're-structure' my investments. But don't worry I wont be signing up for anything.  | | | | | They will know next to nothing. Most of the people working for these companies are 2nd hand car salesmen in shiny suits selling financial products with massive commission for them and the company.
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17.05.2020, 20:32
| Forum Veteran | | Join Date: Jan 2017 Location: Zürich
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth
Depends how much money you have to invest, and how active you want to be yourself there are different solutions available, but NEVER let someone who cold call you "take care" of it, because that will clearly be the worst possibility.
I'm not going to "publicly" advertise for one or another solution, but if you want to invest some money into the stock market but have "professionals" doing the picks, there are well-known, low commission solutions available from serious banks.
The best way, if you're in for long-term, is probably to buy some stocks which you'd expect to perform reasonably well in mid-to-long term and also have decent dividends. If not buying/selling, you'd usually not even have to pay anything to simply hold the stock with a proper broker. You won't become a millionaire over night with that strategy, but it's definitely a better approach than to have your money sitting around. You must be willing to accept that not every year will be a net positive, though.
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18.05.2020, 17:31
| Forum Veteran | | Join Date: May 2007 Location: Geneva
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| | Re: Abbey Wealth
They're named here: Costa Scam: The Cost of "Advice" in Spain (Link found in a comment on RepDigger.)
It seems that they used to be known or are possibly still also known as Abbey Financial Solutions (mentioned on their website).
- Article from 2014: Victor France joins Abbey Financial Solutions
- UK Pension Ombudsman's decision on a complaint from someone advised by Abbey Financial Solutions, although the complaint wasn't about Abbey Financial Solutions
- Discussion about Abbey Financial Solutions from 2014/2015, including this comment: | Quote: |  | | | I took out a plan recommended through Abbey FS in 2009. To date I have invested £13,700, but the plan is only worth £10,500 - A big loss bearing in mind the financial markets recovery since then.
I believe I was mis-sold the policy (a Generali Vision plan) as I was told it was flexible - increase and decrease monthly deposits as suits me over the 25 year (!!!) plan.
What the Abbey FS IFA failed to highlight was that fees (based on deposits) remain fixed based on the original monthly payment amount, even if I decrease my deposits. If I increase my deposits, the fee increases. So in fact, reducing my deposits has increased the fees to nearly 8% - a cost that capital growth will never replace and hence I am just losing money.
The clincher here is that to get out of the plan, I will forfeit around 90% of the capital (around £12k!).
Screwed! Do not touch these guys with a barge pole! | | | | |
Last edited by Reb77Br; 18.05.2020 at 17:54.
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