1) Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson

If a Stock is Not Working for You Anymore, Get Out.

While this sounds subjective, it has several important meanings such as: If a company has reduced your dividends and you do not see upside stock potential where your stock has lost 8% or more recently, then maybe you can get out of the position and cut your losses. See: Johnson, S. (1998) Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life, London: Random House.

2) The Way to Wealth by Benjamin Franklin

Make Use of Your Investments

. As Ben Franklin said, ” We are taxed twice as much by our idleness, three times as much by our pride, and four times as much by our folly, and from these taxes the commissioners cannot ease or deliver us by allowing an abatement.”

See: Franklin, B. (1993) “The Way to Wealth” in Benjamin Franklin: Autobiography and Other Writings, O. Seavey (ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press.

3) The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles.

Convey the Impression of Increase to Your Customers.

Look for the value in your investments. If you can clearly see how the company’s services or products are providing solutions; then, you have isolated the ability of the company or stock to increase the lives of others. If you have not read this 100+ year old book, do it. It is quite an astounding piece of prosperity writing from the turn of the century, and the book is concise. See: Wattles, W.D. (1976). Financial Success through the Power of Thought [The Science of Getting Rich]. Rochester, Vermont: Destiny Books. (Written originally around 1910). or How to Promote Yourself by Wattles – Lulu Press ISBN-10: 0615223494

4) Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

Getting Your Assets to Work For You 24/7 is the Key to Cash Flow

Kiyosaki famously stated, ““Rule one. You must know the difference between an asset and a liability, and buy assets. If you want to be rich, this is all you need to know.”

See: Kiyosaki, R. with Lechter, S. (1997) Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids about Money… That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! London: Time Warner.

5) Buffett – The Making of an American Capitalist by Roger Lowenstein

There is No Income Tax Due While Holding Great Growth Stocks.

While this may sound like old news, holding great stocks is the oldest form of owning a deferred tax growth investment. Further, growth with dividends is the greatest way to have cash flow and potential upside. See: Lowenstein, R. (1995) Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist, London: Orion.

Any of these writers and their books will boost your mind-set and consciousness of investment savvy. From time to time it takes a book like the ones listed above to shock our consciousness to make progress in life. There are dozens of great financial planning books, yet sometimes practical wisdom is the most welcomed kind.

For the benefit of the readers, here are some stocks and an ETF with strong dividend income yield along with growth potential.

1. WalMart (NYSE: WMT)

2. AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

3. Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

4. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

5. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

6. Utilities SPDR (ETF) (NYSEARCA:XLU)

Lawyer and Counselor George Mentz, JD, MBA, CILS, CWM is a world recognized wealth management commentator and award winning professor who has authored several revolutionary books. Prof. Mentz, an international attorney, has been a keynote speaker globally in Asia, Arabia, USA, Mexico, Switzerland, and in the West Indies. Mentz can be contacted for speaking engagements at http://www.gmentz.com or http://www.managementconsultant.us *No counseling, tax investment or legal advice provided herein. Please consult with a licensed professional in your jurisdiction before making any important career, financial or legal decision. All rights reserved by George Mentz, Esq.

High Net-worth House Holds in India:

Total number: If we consider a household with a minimum net worth of Rs 250 million, there are more than 81,000 ultra HNHs in India as of 2011-12. Although, this number represents a miniscule 0.03 per cent of the total households in India, it is poised to more than triple to over 286,000 households by 2016-17. The report suggests that the total net worth of Indian ultra high-net worth households (ultra HNHs) will reach Rs 318 trillion in 2016-17, a nearly five-fold increase from around Rs 65 trillion in 2011-12. This growth in net worth will be driven predominantly by growth in the number of ultra HNHs and the returns on wealth.

Where are they Found?

Cities: It is clear from the numbers above that the spending potential of this class is enormous and is showing sustained growth. And these wealthy spenders will not be limited to just a few cities. Over half of the ultra HNHs in the country are in the four metros. The other top 6 cities account for around 13 per cent and the next 40 cities are home to about 15 per cent. The rest are spread across the country.

Sources of wealth: *Inheritance, entrepreneurship *Entrepreneurship

Motives of wealth creation: *Wealth preservation *Self-recognition *Self-actualization *Work benefits

Drivers of spending *Maintaining luxurious living *Attaining luxurious living *Value and showing to the society that he has attained the status of HNI.

Attitude to perpetuation of wealth

*Wealth needs to remain within the extended family

*Wealth is unconditionally for immediate family

*Wealth is for family, but they must strive to merit wealth

Approach to investing *Organized *Informal *Professional

Education background:  Father versus self

 *Graduate: 67.7/49.3

*Post-grad: 13.5/36.2

*Professional: 9/11.6

*Others: 9.8/2.9

Spending: Downturn? What downturn!” The report suggests that this was the common, response elicited from nearly a quarter of the respondents to the query on whether their high-end lifestyle had suffered due to the subdued economic climate both globally and domestically. The remaining respondents too did not give the subject much importance; some, in fact, dismissed the suggestion outright.

Charity: The report found that the Professional is acutely conscious of the environment he comes from and is far more inclined towards charity than the others. The report found last year that quite distinct from his regular/occasional spend, the Professional bequeaths nearly 10 per cent of his income towards noble causes, markedly higher than 6 per cent for the Inheritor and around 4 per cent for the Self-made. This empathy of the Professional towards charity stood out in a difficult year such as the one just past. Unlike both the Inheritor and the Self- made, who did not eat into their savings to buttress the rise in spending, the Professional’s savings shrank nearly 3 per cent even as his contribution to charity or philanthropy rose by 5 per cent.

Shopping:  The survey found that the biggest impact of the slowdown was on jewellery and precious stones, with purchases hit by nearly 28 percent, compared with around 11-19 per cent for the other categories like home décor, holiday packages and luxury writing instruments. One interesting feature of the responses compared with last year was the increase in the number of people who said they preferred to shop in India, even for high-end global brands. “Everything is available in India, so we don’t plan for shopping abroad. Whatever is bought abroad is just when we like something but is surely not pre-planned,” one ultra HNI stated.

Wedding: In Indian society, weddings have always been an ostentatious occasion, with the degree of splendour and glitz only varying slightly from region to region. But increasingly, some suggest, destination weddings too are becoming passé. “Destination weddings have become very common and these days not just the upper class but everyone is opting for it–it is no longer a novelty,” an ultra HNI said. The most famous event destinations within the country are places such as Goa, Jaipur, Pune and farmhouses in smaller towns. Internationally, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Dubai are favoured, perhaps because of their ideal location, in terms of distance to travel, for a 2-3 day event.

Cars: By that yardstick, the survey this year was revealing: BMW, Audi and Mercedes are the top three aspired cars, in that order. In fact, all three appear to have become mass luxury cars, with Audi growing the fastest in recent times. Don’t be surprised if you don’t see a Bentley or a Bugatti in that list. That is because an aspired car here means a car that the ultra HNI knows that he can realistically purchase in the immediate future. BMW: 18 per cent Audi: 14.8 per cent Mercedes: 12.5 per cent Toyota: 7.8 per cent Honda: 6.3 per cent Ford: 5.5 per cent Ferrari: 4.7 per cent Skoda: 4.7 per cent Others: <4 per cent.

Vacation: Among overseas destinations, Europe, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa were touted as favourite vacation destinations. Europe, primarily Spain, Italy, Switzerland and New Zealand are popular vacation spots for adventure sports, while South Africa tops the list for wild life or safari experiences. Amongst beaches, Mauritius emerged as the most popular destination. Interestingly, many ultra HNIs said that they were as keen to visit tourist destinations in India as those abroad. Other exotic locations becoming increasingly popular are destinations like Machu Picchu, Bora Bora island etc. Vacation: Beach locations: 31.3 per cent Shopping destinations: 15.7 per cent Mountain treks: 15.3 per cent Religious/ spiritual destinations: 10 per cent Medieval locations: 9.5 per cent Spa vacations: 7.8 per cent Gambling destinations: 5.7 per cent Theme locations: 4.3 per cent Others: 0.4 per cent

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• Fat cats getting fatter: Present wealth of India’s uber rich stands at $1.2TRILLION (but number of households with net worth of Rs25cr rises 30 per cent in a year) (dailymail.co.uk)
• World’s richest see wealth slip (cbc.ca)

All NPV, IRR, MIRR, XIRR and XMIRR are used to analyze investments and to choose between 2 investments. These measures allow an investor to find out the rate of return he is earning on his investment.

NPV is a number and all the others are rate of returns in percentage.

IRR is the rate of return at which NPV is zero or actual return of an investment.

MIRR is the actual IRR when the reinvestment rate is not equal to IRR

XIRR is the IRR when the periodicity between cash flows is not equal

XMIRR is the MIRR when periodicity between cash flows is not equal

Net Present Value (NPV)

Net Present Value is the current value of a future series of payments and receipts and a way to measure the time value of money. Basically, money today is worth more than money tomorrow. And future money is discounted by the interest rate you specify.

Assuming cash flows occur at the end of each period, an NPV with a 10% discount rate would divide the cash flow of period 1 by (1 + 10%) then add the cash flow in period 2 divided by (1 + 10%) ^2, etc. The NPV calculation ends with the last cash flow. The formula for NPV is:

where N is the number of periods, n is a specific period, C is the cash flow for a particular period and r is the discount rate for each period.

So in NPV we find the present value off all cash outflows i.e. all the money invested and then we find the present value of all cash inflows i.e. returns generated by an investment. The we subtract cash outflows from cash inflows. The resultant answer is called as NPV or Net Present Value.  The rate used to find the present value is called as the ‘Discount Rate’ and it is the opportunity cost the return which would be generated if this investment is not chosen.

Suppose for an investment is Rs. 1500 at 10% discount rate this means that after generating a return of 10% the money remaining is Rs. 1500 i.e. the return is more than 10%.

Please remember to set the Discount Rate to Your Time Interval

The discount rate you enter must correspond to the period of time between each cash flow. For periodic cash flow analysis, Total Access Statistics does not have date information on when the events occur.

If it’s monthly, you should use 1/12th of your annual rate, for quarterly one-fourth, etc. For most accurate results, take the nth root of your annual discount rate to capture the compounding effect.

Internal Rate of Return (IRR)

The Internal Rate of Return is used to measure an investment’s attractiveness. It is the interest rate that makes the NPV equal to zero for the series of cash flows. At least one negative payment and one positive receipt are required to calculate IRR. If this doesn’t exist, the result is null.

IRR is sometimes called the discounted cash flow rate of return, rate of return, and effective interest rate. The “internal” term signifies the rate is independent of outside interest rates.

Depending on the number of cash flows and their values, IRR can require many iterations to generate an accurate result. Microsoft Excel stops after 20 tries.

Suppose for an investment @ 12.24% discount rate the NPV is zero it means after generating 12.24% return no money remains that means that actual return  is 12.24% this actual return is called IRR.

IRR is based on the following assumptions:

1. The investment is held till maturity.
2. All intermediate cash flows are re-invested at IRR
3. The cash flows should be periodic i.e. the time interval between two cash flows are equal.

How to calculate?

Enter your Investments (amount which you paid) in each row (you have to put “-” before each value)

Enter the Amount you Received at the end (put “+” after that amount)

Formula: =IRR(values)( place your values put the range of cells which contains values)  see below:

Things to NOTE

The values need to be a set of Positive and Negative Values

The last value is the amount you receive

Any amount Invested will be Negative so if you invest Rs 10000, put -10000

Any amount you Receive will be Positive so if you get Rs 5000, put +5000

All the payment or receiving of money are equidistant, Like 1st of every month OR May 15th Every year

All the payments are assumed to be yearly by default.

If its’ some other time frame like monthly or quarterly use XIRR and put specific dates.

XIRR IRR when periodicity of cash flow is not equal

What is XIRR and How to Calculate it?

IRR does not solve one problem and that is when the payments are at Irregular interval. In that case we use XIRR. So in a Spreadsheet we put the date and the value both. See the example below:

How to Calculate

Put Date and Value for each row

At the last row put the Date and amount you received

Put the formula as: =XIRR(values, dates), values and dates are the cell ranges

Use this Spreadsheet to calculate XIRR for yourself

In the above example the CAGR Return was 38.96% (I have multiplied the return by 100 the actual value will be .3896)

Real Life scenario when you can use it:

Scenario 1:

Suppose you Invest in a Mutual Funds per month on your own , you invest on 15th of every month in year 2006

June 15 you invested 5000

July 15 you invested 6000

Aug 15 you invested 3000

Sep 15 you receive 5000 (dividend)

Oct 15 you invested 4000

Nov 15 you invested 12000

Dec 15 you Sell everything and Receive 35000

You can use IRR in this case and calculate your returns , the values you will be -5000 , -6000 , -3000 , +5000 , -4000 , +12000 , Calculate the IRR and put it as comments , lets see if you are correct or not ?

Scenario 2

You can also compare two business ideas using the XIRR , and decide which one is better than other . In any business concept you have to invest money and you get back some return , but these returns can be irregular and different amount every time , In that case you can use XIRR and compare the returns of both business and decide the one which has better XIRR

Note: the formula can give answers in a but different ways on Excel , OpenOffice spreadsheet , google docs or Zoho Spread sheet . Use this Spreadsheet to calculate IRR and XIRR for yourself . The spreadsheet is shared , so please dont make any changes other than “values” and “dates” .

Modified Internal Rate of Return (MIRR)

Modified Internal Rate of Return is used to measure an investment’s attractiveness. MIRR is a modification of the IRR calculation and resolves some problems with the IRR.

IRR assumes that positive cash flows are reinvested at the same rate of return as that of the investment. This is unlikely as funds are reinvested at a rate closer to the organization’s cost of capital or return on cash. The IRR therefore often gives an overly optimistic rate of the cash flows. For comparing projects more accurately, the cost of capital should be used for reinvesting the interim cash flows.

Additionally, for projects with alternating positive and negative cash flows, more than one IRR may be found, which may lead to confusion.

To use MIRR, provide the two interest rates:

1. Finance Rate: the cost of capital
2. Reinvestment Rate: the interest received for cash investments

Similar to the discount rate provided for NPV, these rates should be the rate for each period and not the annual rates if your periods are not yearly.

The formula for MIRR is:

where n is the number of equal periods at the end of which the cash flows occur (not the number of cash flows), PV is present value (at the beginning of the first period), FV is future value (at the end of the last period).

MIRR sums the discounted negative cash flows to the starting time, and sums the positive cash flows to the final period adjusting for the reinvestment rate. By dividing and taking the nth root, it determines the rate of return for the positive and negative cash flows.

Note that in Excel or VBA, the MIRR function always assumes the cash flows are at the beginning of the period. If you want to use the End of period option in Total Access Statistics and compare it to Excel, add an extra cash flow of zero to the beginning of the Excel data set.

Modified  X Internal Rate of Return (XMIRR)

MIRR is a modification of the IRR calculation and is a more accurate reflection of the true rate of return for a series of cash flows. MIRR where dates are taken into account is called XMIRR.

To calculate XMIRR, provide the two interest rates:

1. Finance Rate: the cost of capital
2. Reinvestment Rate: the interest received for cash investments

AND

The date of cash flow

So if we calculate modified IRR for a irregular cash flow then it become XMIRR.

Unlike periodic cash flows, the rates for irregular cash flows are always the annual rate.

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CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGER CONTENT

The program contains 2 Levels comprising of 10 Units in each level.
Level – 1 – Foundation Level
Unit 1 Overview of Indian and Global Financial System
Unit 2 Concept of Wealth Management
Unit 3 Measuring Investment Returns in Wealth Management
Unit 4 Life Cycle Management
Unit 5 Investment Vehicles of Wealth Management
Unit 6 Managing Investment Risk in Wealth Management
Unit 7 Investment Strategies of a Wealth Manager
Unit 8 Intergenerational Wealth Transfer & Tax Planning
Unit 9 Role of Wealth Management in Banking
Unit 10 Legalities in Wealth Management
Level – 2 Advanced Level
Unit 1 Advanced Concept in Wealth Management
Unit 2 Relationship Management by a Wealth Manager
Unit 3 Use of Behavioral Finance in Wealth Management
Unit 4 Wealth Management Planning
Unit 5 Equity Analysis
Unit 6 Portfolio Management Strategies
Unit 7 Loan & Debt Management
Unit 8 Use of Alternative Products in Wealth anagement
Unit 9 Real Estate Valuation and Analysis
Unit 10 International Taxation and Trust Planning

There are 2 Exams one for level 1 and the second for level 2

For more details visit the website:
http://www.aafmindia.co.in
and fill the contact us form there.

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Wealth (Photo credit: Patrick Streule)

Wealth preservation is one of the most sought after and value added segments of family office services, as retention of net worth is paramount in most family priorities. Wealth preservation is the holistic approach adopted by family advisors to achieve the common goals of asset protection, manageable structure, minimization of risk, and magnification and eventual transition of wealth.

While most families begin their foray into the business world with the goal of amassing as much net worth as possible, many are surprised that upon reaching a level of success that it can often be more difficult to hold on to wealth than it was to earn it. With the increasing complexity of wealth, and the need to coordinate professional activities, the family office has evolved as the central advisory source.

An important subset of wealth preservation is the field of asset protection. Due to its popularity, other planning areas have begun to use the phrase, sometimes distorting its definition. Some use “asset protection” to sell casualty insurance, lower risk investments, prenuptial agreements, wills, and many more tangentially related areas.

At its core, asset protection is the use of legal entities, structures, and strategies to make assets difficult or impossible for a potential creditor to reach.  Asset protection planning often has strong estate planning benefits but does not involve a specific product, insurance, or tax ideas. The aim of asset protection is to mitigate the risk to family net worth posed by creditors, predators and divorce and works best when coordinated with a comprehensive wealth preservation strategy.

Sources of Liability

Preserving net worth is not new. The topic is at the forefront of many family’s planning goals as litigation in the United States has dramatically expanded. Liability stems from areas where the family and advisors may not have known an issue was developing. Some of the fastest growing areas of litigation are less obvious – social liability (parties, events, guests), employment practices (discrimination, harassment, noncompliance), empowerment (actions which “aided” the actual wrongdoer), management (director, officer, advisor). Many are left wondering how the court system and jury allow seemingly tenuous cases to produce seven figure judgments. Lawsuits typically follow asset ownership rather than actual wrongdoing as every plaintiff seeks “deep pockets” at the table. Asset protection aims to remove the deep pocket target and make one unattractive to a creditor.

Timing and Effectiveness

Managing risk occurs before a claim is made. Asset protection is effective against future creditors and can be penetrated by an existing creditor one knows of or reasonably should have known of. Insulation can still often be achieved after the fact, but is limited in application and becomes significantly more complicated.

Integration

The most effective planning involves integration of overlapping areas that affect a family net worth; estate planning (incapacity, death disposition, reduction of probate, reduction of death taxes, guardianship, managing inheritances), tax planning (leverage, income tax shifting, maximum use of transfer credits, coordination of federal/state death taxes), business planning (exit strategy, key person retention, company structure, perpetuation), insurances (shifting risk, funding tax burdens), asset titling, entities, etc. to be arranged and implemented in an easy to live with fashion.

Concepts that are familiar in investment planning are integral in asset protection as well; segregation and diversification. Few manage assets in one investment house or in one class of assets. Similarly, asset protection is not one technique or one entity, rather it is the use of combinations of strategies to achieve insulation, tax efficiency, and control.

Risk Shifting

The way we own and manage assets is directly related to the ability of a court and plaintiff to attach them.  We often see families shift asset ownership to a spouse (who perhaps does not work or has a lower risk profession), children, or other family members. In effect this is not reducing risk in as much as it shifts risk. The non-working spouse owning the home shifts the risk to the social events, household help, and guests of the home. There are still the car accidents, libel, divorce, and other potential actions against that family member. If there is a difference of opinion, the asset earner does not have direct control, which often creates family rifts.

Corporations

Corporations have been popular for a long period of time but serve a very limited purpose. The common perception is that corporate assets are insulated. To a large extent this is not the case. A corporation’s assets are fully reachable by a plaintiff with a claim against the corporation. A corporate entity is intended to shield shareholders from personal liability, however, many times the corporate veil can be pierced and personal liability attaches. There are more powerful and flexible choices for a company.

Insurance

Liability insurance is a common tool and a useful one. However, despite the many items the agent advises it covers, the list of risks it does not cover is far longer (i.e. divorce, employment practices, acts of adult children, intentional torts, business disputes). Diversification becomes apparent “liability coverage is a component – but should not be seen as the only defence.

American Academy of Financial Management, AAFM, offers the Chartered Wealth Manager , CWM (R) ,Designation program in Wealth Management including Private Banking, Asset Management and Family Office Management. Visit www.aafmindia.co.in for more details.

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Press Coverage of AAFM launch of Chartered Wealth Manager Designation in India.

For more details visit http://www.aafmindia.co.in

The objective of private bankers is to provide a more personalized level of service to wealthy clients than is available to typical customers at a commercial bank. The business has always catered to the world’s wealthiest people. Over the last several years, as the ranks of the wealthy have steadily expanded, many banks have refined their offerings to serve three distinct gradations of wealth. The main role of a private banker is to help clients manage their money. Traditionally, this involves helping them invest wisely while avoiding risks that might reduce the value of their assets. Private bankers also offer tax planning and pension advice, help clients develop a strategy for philanthropy, and advise them on estate planning. In one subset of the sector known as “Family Offices,” the bankers also perform tasks that range from screening solicitations for charitable contributions to making sure the client’s bills are paid on time.

Key Responsibilities:

• Sustaining healthy relations with the HNWI clients.

• Managing marketing of Private Banking Products/ Services and ensuring attainment of business targets.

• Providing advisory support to clients on:

– Complete home office and Trust/ Foundation structures.

– Range of products like Equity (Direct/ Options), Alternate Investment Products (Swaps, DCI’s, NDF’s, etc.), Debt Products (Bonds), Hedge Funds, ETF’s, Mutual Funds as well as Currency Strategies.

– Specific market directions with regard to specific geographies, as per their business interests.

-Suggesting suitable investment opportunities to the clients.

• Providing vital updates with regard to KYC on clients and furnishing detailed reports to Credit/ Compliance Teams

• Driving the set up of the Private Banking initiative including institutionalization of processes for the cross sell initiative with Retail Banking & Corporate Banking.

• Providing advisory support to clients on direct equity, debt and structured products. Liaising with large corporate clients for debt syndication and structured equity advisory (IPO, QIP and Private Equity).

• Expanding the customer base and achieving product sales & revenue targets for private banking and investments.

• Building investments proposition for consumer banking domain and creating a financial planning platform for investment advisory services.

• Generating leads from existing clients for GB (Global Banking). Providing appropriate solutions to clients for helping them meet their corporate finance/ structured finance requirements.

Traits of a Good Private Banker:

A successful private banker needs an outgoing, service-oriented personality, plus the ability to carefully listen to clients. It’s a role best-suited to people who can observe other individuals and come to understand their needs. Their real talent is connecting with people who may have a lot of their wealth tied up in a fairly narrow activity, such as a successful family business, or who can be very demanding. In short, good people skills help.

As the array of potential investment products widens, the job of a private banker is becoming increasingly complex. So, private bankers need an understanding of financial products from basic stocks and bonds to financial derivatives, private equity and hedge funds. In most cases, the lead banker – who manages the direct relationship with a wealthy client – will be supported by a staff of experts who can address specific questions or needs as required.

 Key Skills & Qualities required to be a good Private Banker

• Discretion and trustworthiness

• The ability to build strong relationships with discerning clients

• Knowledge and understanding of financial markets

 Roles & Career Paths of a Private Banker

If you work as a private banker, you can expect to focus in one of three areas: investing for existing clients, building relationships, or managing back office functions such as human resources and accounting. People working on the investment side either invest their clients’ money or offer detailed advice to help clients make their own decisions. They are typically product specialists who are expert in a particular asset class. People working on the relationship side are essentially salespeople who spend their time building connections with clients and selling the bank’s services. This can involve a lot of traveling and close contact with interesting, unusual, and demanding people. When a relationship banker has established a client’s needs, investment specialists are brought in to put more detailed solutions together. For clients who are very wealthy, the relationships are often entrusted only to experienced executives.

A decade ago, most private bankers combined the investor and relationship role. In some organizations, they still do. But in most banks, investors and relationship managers are now separate – another sign of the industry’s growing complexity. Firms such as Goldman Sachs, HSBC and UBS run graduate training programs for private bankers. If you don’t find a place in one of those, it’s often possible to move into private banking if you have a background in corporate finance or, more particularly, fund management.

Having an MBA or majoring in business isn’t considered critical for a private banker. In fact, a diverse background can be an asset, because clients can differ considerably in their needs and personalities. Certifications like “Chartered Wealth Manager®” (CWM®) help in acquiring skills and attitude necessary to succeed in this enticing field with lot of career opportunities.

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Strong GDP growth, a promising economic outlook, high savings rate and a relatively young and rapidly-increasing population of wealthy Indians, both in terms of absolute numbers and geographic diversity, will provide the fuel for the dream-run of the wealth management sector in India.

Wealth Management is both about wealth preservation and creation. In the future, Wealth Managers must be more dedicated to wealth structuring and wealth planning. Many private banks have already laid the foundation in working toward that goal, but it is a journey requiring significant commitment and innovative thinking. In a fast-growth environment where regulatory reforms continue to open up new investment opportunities and investors become more sophisticated in terms of capital markets knowledge, successful private banks will be those that are at the forefront of new product trends, have invested in asset allocation and portfolio management technology and have invested in their people.

A successful wealth management professional will be the one who quickly equips himself with the right qualification and invests his time on self-grooming to be able to make the most out of the opportunity in private wealth management which is unleashing now.

To cater to the growing HNI, UHNI, Expatriate & NRI population, India currently needs close to 1,00,000 qualified wealth managers. In other words, a student or a professionals aspiring for a career in private banking and wealth management has 1,00,000 reasons to join a premier certification program like Chartered Wealth Manager (CWM®). The biggest challenge confronting the Indian wealth management industry is people. As a nascent industry there is a restricted resource pool. At the same time the opportunities in India are luring ever-more wealth management organisations, therefore increasing the demand for people with relevant qualification. This bodes very well for the young professionals who are aspiring for a career in wealth management, especially in the light of most of the financial services companies scaling up their wealth management verticals. Graduates with a professional certification in wealth management like Chartered Wealth Manager (CWM®) and preferably with some relevant experience through a regular job or internship are well-placed to bag coveted jobs in this sector.

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Our First Date (Photo credit: Scott Barlow)

 After five years of marriage, life happened and my friend found herself single again. When some friends set her up on a date, it was thrilling. Suddenly she became aware of everyday occurrences that she had completely lost sight of for years.For example, did you know that sometimes when people walk down the street, they make eye contact with strangers they find attractive.she had totally forgotten!

She also forgot about all the complications associated with dating, including the dreaded who-pays-on-a-first-date conundrum. But when this time last year a perfectly pleasant round of beers wrapped up with Kevin (or was his name Sean? I forget), it seemed obvious who would pay the bill.

It’s the classic little dance: The woman makes a perfunctory offer to pay, knowing full well that the man will get the check. Instead, Sean (or was his name Kevin?) casually suggested we split the tab, and that’s what they did.

And she was miffed! , unless she misread something, She thought “I’m pretty sure you found me to be smart and charming. So pick up the bill, Kevin/Sean/whatever your name was”!

But I hesitate to share that thought here. After all, I fall into the ranks of educated, professional urbanite, left-leaning and moderately feminist. In other words, I make my own money and am looking for a guy who digs my mind and wit. So where do I get off expecting chivalry based on the assumption of my economic inferiority and need to be cared for? (Thanks a lot, Mom!)

Despite plenty of logical explanations of why I should buy my own drink, I still couldn’t shake the notion that the guy pays for the first date. So I decided to find out what’s going on in the dating world—and why we pay (or don’t) the way we do.

First stop: the numbers

A recent Glamour magazine online poll of nearly 3,000 women found that 23 percent of respondents let the guy pay outright, 13 percent let him pay but take care of the tip, and 45 percent do “the reach” (my personal favorite). The remaining either treated the guy, or insisted on splitting the bill.

In the U.K., 25 percent of women thought men should pay on the first date, and 58 percent expect to split the bill, according to a survey by an online bank. Of men, 55 percent expect to pick up the tab, and 29 percent presume they’ll split the tab. But I don’t really identify with most Glamour readers, and I’m not really clear on how my life parallels that of my sisters across the pond, so I asked my friends and a few experts.

What the experts say

The handful of therapists and relationship journalists all said the same thing: Guys should pay for the first date and probably a few dates after that. The reason (feel free to skip ahead if you’ve taken a women’s studies class in the past 40 years) is that since the dawn of time, men were responsible for satisfying the material goods for the family, and women were responsible for creating a nurturing nest for the family. We’re hardwired that way, so it is best to just accept these roles and make them work, these folks say.

The most insightful expert conversation was with Dr. Carole Lieberman, a Los Angeles– based psychiatrist who wrote Bad Boys: Why We Love Them, How to Live With Them, and When to Leave Them and most recently, Bad Girls: Why Men Love Them & How Good Girls Can Learn Their Secrets. Lieberman’s position on why men should treat on the first date: “The same reason men have different physical characteristics,” she says. “There are certain psychological and biological factors that have created long-standing traditions, and those are the natural way the sexes should treat each other. The man should be the knight, and the woman should be the princess. People say that sounds quaint and old-fashioned, but fairy tales come from the collective unconscious of society.”

That point pained me in a special soft spot—that spot where I fail to understand why my 4-year-old is among the legions of little girls obsessed with Rapunzel, Snow White, and Ariel despite her mother’s thinly veiled, vitriolic loathing of all things princess. But I digress.

Lieberman went so far as to suggest that men who do not pick up the tab are telling their date that they are not only uninterested in them, but that they are emotionally cheap. “If he pays on the first date, that is a good indication he will be generous with his love and attention in a relationship,” she says. And I can tell you as someone who writes and thinks about personal finances all the time, there’s a direct link between how each of us treats money and the depths of our souls.

So I wondered, “What do everyday people think about the matter?” I informally asked people I know and conducted a scientifically precise Facebook survey (otherwise known as a discussion) on the topic.

What you say

Most everyone agreed that the guy should pay on the first date, but women were quick to point out that the asker pays—and that it’s polite to do “the reach” for the bill, feigning an attempt to pay despite zero intention to do so. The guys all agreed they should pay.

“Any guy who doesn’t at least offer to pay for a first date has no class in my book,” says my former newspaper colleague Ray who has been married for a bunch of years to a progressive, professionally successful woman. “Any girl who insists on paying for both her and the guy on a first date would probably also demand that he only pee sitting down.”

Ray added that guys have a financial obligation to pick up first-date tabs since men continue to make on average more money than women. “Women are not likely to become totally equal with men in earnings until men start having and nursing babies, too,” he says.

Can’t argue with that. Yet one guy I went out with later told me he found a whole lot wrong with that. After being married for nearly 30 years, Larry divorced and found himself going on lots of dates—all of which involved the conventional expectation that he cover the tab. “I was horrified to find that every woman expected me to pay for dinner,” Larry says. “In this day and age of feminism, when women are making their own money, where the hell does the sense of entitlement come from that, ‘I’m not responsible for paying for what I just ate’? I was especially horrified, since 95 percent of the time, I’m sure I never want to see this person again.” His indignity mimicked my doubts about my own conventional leanings on the matter.

What evolution has to do with it

But it looks as if Larry wins that argument, according Robert Glover, a Seattle-based family therapist, dating coach to men, and author of No More Mr. Nice Guy: A Proven Plan for Getting What You Want in Love, Sex and Life. “The storyline of women having to be selective about partners and choosing the best one, and men having to have wealth and status to get the most desirable women, would have only come into play in the last 10,000 years since the beginning of agriculture when people began to own stuff like land, cattle, crops and slaves.”

Glover made another excellent, if obvious, point in favor of guys discreetly handing the server an AmEx at the end of a meal. “Men don’t often think of this, but women tend to spend more money, time, and effort than men in preparing to go on the date,” he says. I dare anyone to argue.

Perhaps the best point of all came from Mike, 43, who lives in New York City but was raised in Alabama. “Guys often complain that it’s not fair to have to always pay for dates,” Mike says. “It’s also not fair that a 60-year-old male CEO can date a 30-year-old female model, but a 60-year-old woman would be very unlikely to get a date with a 30-year-old male model. Accept reality and be a gentleman.”

My conclusion

After concluding my research, I feel confident in my position that women are totally justified in expecting to be treated on the first date. Men seem to appreciate “the reach,” but most of them really do prefer to pay. After you’ve been dating awhile, by all means, work out a way of divvying the cost of dates that makes sense for both parties’ finances and preferences. And guys? Choose a first date that you can afford. THEN PICK UP THE BILL.

As for Larry, he did pay for our wine and burgers on that date after I made a feeble reach, though I sensed a bit of begrudgery on his part. When we proceeded to a bar that night, I paid the tab, and that he didn’t argue irritated me a little. That was six months ago. And though he doesn’t want you to know this, he’s very graciously insisted on picking up most of the checks since.