The clock is ticking to get your money out of the Euro-zone

The dust is slowing settling on the dramatic events that led to the Cyprus economic crisis earlier this year in spring. Subsequently, we consider it a poignant moment to remind the all PT's that the clock is ticking to get your money and assets out of the EU.

What happened in Cyprus?

In essence, 2 formally arrogant Cypriot banks in collusion with the Cyprus Government committed what is best described as a bank robbery in broad daylight earlier this year. Moreover, the EU feels that its got away with it! Many Cypriots and foreigners alike trusted the banks and the Cyprus Government with their hard earned money as it was an EU country and in many cases it amounted to peoples entire life savings.

Yet few of the powers that be on the island of Cyprus or across the continent did anything significant to protect the rights of people. Cypriot politicians simply made agreements with the Troika and IMF regardless and in some cases, a few families in the know transferred millions before the banks were closed. The President who signed for the original shameful haircut blamed the Finance Minister and still holds power.

In balance, the Government of Cyprus was basically given 2 options by the IMF and the EU

1. Confiscate money from private bank accounts in breach of the European Court of Human Rights.
2. Leave the eurozone and face political instability.

Seemingly, the so called proposal was presented as a "take it or leave it" proposition, and many objective observers are using the word "blackmail" to describe what happened.

Only Nigel Farage (captioned in the video above) had the courage and common sense to speak for the people of the EU on the right platform.

The Cyprus Beta Test
Unfortunately, the Cyprus case has set an ominous precedent for the future in the EU and it will likely generate ripple effects far beyond the small Island nation of Cyprus.

The EU appear eager to gauge if the rest of the world will let them get away with it. Cyprus was most likely selected as a "Crash Test Nation" because it's very small (least potential for a strong reaction) and because there is a lot of foreign (such as Russian) money is deposited there. The IMF and the Troika could have very easily bailed out Cyprus without issue, but they coldly calculated not to do that. Instead, the goal was to test the notion of a "Wealth Tax".

Now that the precedent has been set with money taken from bank accounts in Cyprus, plans are afoot to start doing it everywhere. The EU are reasonably pleased with the success of this modern day "Bank Robbery", hence it's only be a matter of time before depositors in other EU nations such as Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal will be expected to loser their fortunes.

Cyprus is a very small nation, so the volume of money involved is not too significant. However, the reason why this whole affair is all so concerning is that the "Wealth Tax" experiment part 2 will likely shatter confidence in the European banking system overall.

So as eloquently as Nigel Farage articulates what will happen to the EU, we remind all PT's across the EU to take action now before it's too late. Get out of the Euro now!

By: Progress On 16:23

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The Top 3 current investments of our time

We live in uncertain times and naturally even in the best of economic climates there is always an element of risk to making investments.

There are however some interesting options for Perpetual Travellers that refrain from putting their heads in the sand.

Here below are 3 top suggestions to investigate further on, but remember if you do invest the risk is all yours.

1. Shale Gas
This new form of energy has made a massive difference (as much as 50%) to reduce fuel costs in the US.

The process is called fracking and it involves deep drilling (10,000 feet) into the earth to reach a thin layer of rock called shale. A pump shoots literally millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals to generate small explosions. This in turns splits rock and releases gas. The gas is transported through a pipe to the surface.

China, India and the UK all have plans to exploit this form of energy. So Cuadrilla is the only company in the UK with the permission to drill. French firm Total are also getting into the business.

The downside of this investment is that there are big risks attached which are linked to potential earthquake tremors at the level of 0.5. Fears that fracking causes chemicals to contaminate the water supply are also widely reported though not properly substantiated. There are also concerns that the process will turn huge areas of terrain into wasteland.

2. Budget Airlines in Africa
We have all seen the rise (and collapse in some cases) of Budget Airlines in the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia.

Now its the turn of Africa! The key players seeing super growth are Fastjet from Tanzania (backed by EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou), Fly540 from Kenya (tripled. Revenues since 2007), Comair and Mango both from South Africa.

The skill here is to pick the new EasyJet and avoid the Zoom, Excel Airways and Fly Globespan etc as there are usually winners and losers in this game. For example Velvet Sky opened for business in 2011 in South Africa and went bust in 2012.

3. Chinese Baby Milk
This you may think is a more surprising suggestion. However look at the facts: 5 years ago 6 babies in China died and literally hundreds of thousands became very sick due to contaminated milk.

The researcher "euro monitor" expects that demand for Baby Formula will double by 2017. There estimated to be around 85 million under-5 year olds in China and fewer than 1 third are breast-fed! Wow that's an opportunity.

On the whole international brands are now trusted in China more than home grown alternatives. Danone (makers of Aptamil) and Cow and Gate (Baby Milk Powder) are expected to have the best prospects.

There you have it, 3 top investments to consider if you are willing to face the risks.

Be courageous when the masses are afraid!

By: Progress On 11:06

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