As the Swinger generation starts to feel the effects of the credit crunch, a new poll says there is a way to stay stylish and solvent. Saving and investing money once used as weekend money has become chic.
A companion poll showed that the fastest growing activity amongst the swinger generation is Internet gaming. It seems that many are seeking involvement in a hitherto unknown phenomenon known as sports arbitrage. With the use of new software, anyone can scan prices globally in seconds and uncover risk-free betting opportunities which provide guaranteed returns of as much as 12% per month. Using software called ArbAlarm, ordinary people can now easily profit from this unique method of investment. Aware of this trend, the UK government recently announced through the Treasury that the profits made from sports arbitrage trading will continue to remain free of all tax. This includes income tax and capital gains tax on all profits.
In an interview, former City trader Rajeev Shah, the author of ‘Sports-Arbitrage – How To Place Riskless Bets & Create Tax-Free Investments’ explained that an arbitrage occurs when different bookmakers’ prices on the same events overlap. In these cases, it is possible to bet on all of the outcomes in that event in such a way as to be guaranteed a total return which is greater than the total outlay. The mathematics of this type of trade are precise & the resultant profits are free of all risk.
There are many types of investments that are being used. Experts say the poll results, though surprising at first glance, actually makes sense.
“Hey, I like to go online, and I like Internet gaming, so I might as well make money off it.”
Besides investing, the main poll had some interesting data regarding the changes in spending habits of the swinging generation. Jane Everett is like many young women: more interested in shoes and parties than savings and pensions. Although she has a well-paid job working in the fashion business in London, she admits that the lion’s share of her pay is spent on enjoying herself today, rather than saving for tomorrow. She is not alone. According to research from Friends Provident, the Sex and the City generation – women between 25 and 40 – are more likely to have 30 pairs of shoes than a retirement plan. But with the economy taking a turn for the worse, many of them are now being forced to tighten their designer belts for the first time.
Research from Alliance & Leicester shows that 80 per cent of women have recently changed their spending habits in order to splurge less and save more – a far larger proportion than among their male counterparts. And women are also far more pessimistic about the economy. Almost one in three thinks we are facing recession, compared with just a quarter of men.
Jane agrees that the credit crunch has made her nervous, and she is thinking about saving for the first time. But like many, she finds long-term investments daunting, and is unsure where to start. Should she be looking to get on to the housing ladder, or – with property prices falling – should she pay off her credit cards or get started on a pension instead?
“It can be a bit overwhelming,” she says, “so the temptation is to enjoy life now, blow the money on beauty treatments or eating out and worry about such things tomorrow.”
Julia Whittle, a financial adviser with Punter Southall, says that this attitude is typical. “Women tend to be divided into clear groups,” she explains. “They either don’t think about their finances at all, and feel in some miraculous way that it will all work out; or they are very sensible and serious budgeters and savers. This is unlike men, who in general tend to sit somewhere in between.”