Imagine a trustworthy world of money - imagine blockchain and crypto-currency

Imagine a world where everyone was perfectly honest and trustworthy when it came to money.  This is where banks arose to help trusted intermediaries to able to protect and transact with money. Now, imagine a world with a single, universal, absolutely trustworthy and completely indestructible financial ledger. This is where blockchain is arising. It is to create a simplified, single ledger for transfer of value.

Jacoline Loewen at the Blockchain and Crypto-Currency Event, 2017

With these points in mind, I put together an event discussing these themes and how blockchain is gaining in achieving this lofty vision. Crypto-currencies and blockchain technologies are attracting tremendous interest from new and traditional participants across all sectors, and banks are at the forefront of understanding the potential applications of these technologies - which will change how banks operate at an organizational level, not just at a technology level.
Efforts like UBS's Blockchain and Innovation Lab in London, UK will drive innovation through unique partnerships with fintechs and other large banks as blockchain technologies are better understood by regulators and clients and industry standards emerge.
In 2015, UBS started a pathfinding journey to explore, harness and share the potential of blockchain. As a leading financial organization, it is our duty to understand the technology and its implications, to share the knowledge and benefits with clients, the financial industry and the wider society, and become ready for blockchain in production in 2018.Thank you to our expert speaker, Peter Stephens, Head of UBS Blockchain and Innovation Lab in London, UK. A special thank you to Andre Perey, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP (Blakes), who hosted the fireside chat with Peter. Andre is also a director on the board of UBS Bank (Canada).If you would like more information about the Exploring Blockchain and Crypto-Currencies event held by UBS Bank (Canada) in August, 2017, or for UBS reports on blockchain and cryptocurrencies, please contact me for details.


Jacoline Loewen: 416-332-7012
You can follow me on Twitter @jacolineloewen

The Atmospheric Fund Board

I was pleased to be invited to serve for a third term on the board of directors of The Atmospheric Fund.
Being on the Investment Committee means real input into private equity investing and sustainable investing.

TAF is governed by a 12-member board. Five of these members are City Councillors and seven are citizen members appointed through the City of Toronto’s public appointments process. TAF has been fortunate to have attracted a wide range of experience and expertise to our board, including investment specialists, energy experts and community engagement professionals. The board meets five times a year and board meetings are open to the public (but may include in-camera sessions).

Investment Committee

The Investment Committee oversees both management of TAF’s endowment and mandate-related investments (loans and equity investments in enterprises that can deliver emission reductions). The committee members have a wealth of investment and legal expertise and provide recommendations to the TAF board on all investment decisions.

Members:

• Rob A. Roberti (Chair), Principal at Verde Finance
• John Campbell, City Councillor
• Bill Crossland, President and CEO at Thermal Energy International Inc.
• Jason Kotler, Entrepreneur
• Hyewon Kong, Associate Portfolio Manager at AGF Investments Inc.
• Matthew Z. Leibowitz, Partner at Plazacorp Ventures
• Jacoline Loewen, Director at UBS Bank (Canada) Wealth Management
• Graham McBride, Independent Investor and Strategist
• Bill Tapscott, Managing Director at Era2 Productions Inc.
• Terry Vaughan, Senior Consultant at Prime Quadrant

The committee’s responsibilities include:

• Selecting the investment manager(s) and any other agents or advisors needed to prudently manage the endowment
• Formulating and amending when necessary the Statement of Investment Objectives and Principles (SIOP), with consideration to TAF’s mandate and purpose of advancing solutions to climate change and air pollution, and reviewing the SIOP at least once per year
• Preparing and maintaining a Prohibited Securities List of companies whose securities cannot be held in the portfolio in keeping with the mandate and beliefs expressed in the SIOP
• Monitoring the investment manager(s) and any other agents or advisors with respect to investment performance and compliance with the SIOP
• Reviewing and advising on impact/direct investments and providing recommendations on those investments to the board
• Providing quarterly reports to the board on the performance of the endowment and any other aspects of asset management, which the Investment Committee deems appropriate or as requested by the board

How to build wealth fast

We all know that automating a monthly deposit to our nest egg bank account is a proven method to build wealth. It's fairly painless as you do not notice the withdrawals and you rapidly adjust your lifestyle. Pretty quickly, your wealth does grow, particularly if you choose lower risk investments with a decent interest rate?
How about something more specific?
I like the table below that shows monthly savings rate with interest earned. It is over a 25 year period which my not serve your needs but will be good to show your adult children to inspire them to at least start with the automatic monthly savings to their TFSA.

Toronto Triathlon Festival 2017

The UBS Bank (Canada) team showed their true grit at the Toronto Triathlon Festival 2017.
It was a great experience to be with my team on the weekend and to see the competitive spirit of all of them.

Thank you for the great day

Jacoline Loewen, Toronto Triathlon Festival

Do you know the 3 Ways Retirement Planning is changing?

For "complete" retirement planning, there is more required than the usual "meat and potatoes" approach of financial preparation. Recent research shows that the retirement planning needs are changing.

Pre-retirees report that they are more anxious about the emotional adjustment to retirement than they are about financial security. Once over that barrier, the retirees worry about health and long-term care, and not so much about having income to sustain their lifestyle.

Our findings confirm that the wealthy investors are focused on:

1) Liquidity: Wealthy pre-retirees want to reach a certain asset or dollar level before they retire. In contrast, age is the retirement trigger for pre-retirees with fewer assets.

2) Longevity: More than half of wealthy retirees feel unprepared for health issues and long-term care. This is an opportunity for Financial Advisors to add far more value to their clients.

3) Legacy: 51% of retirees plan to leave assets to heirs and charity. As a result, many maintain and even increase equity holdings after retirement. Retirees in their eighties, for example, have equity levels similar to investors in their fifties.