Economics from a people first point-of-view
May 3rd, 2010 — Investing
Along with investment banks, large insurance companies are major providers of 401k and 403b funds for employee retirement plans. Perhaps you have a plan with one of them.
A few years ago, I discovered a shocking secret about the mutual funds offered in insurers’ retirement plans. They are not mutual funds at all. They are proprietary derivatives based on mutual funds. I learned I’d been investing in derivatives!
April 25th, 2010 — Investing
(part 3 of 3)
Last time we looked at the list of fees within the “Fees and Expenses” section of a prospectus. There’s another misleading chart in this part of the prospectus. It’s the ten year fee table that purports to show the expenses on a $10,000 investment. You’ll find it in all mutual fund prospectuses. This is what happens in a chart called “Expenses on a $10,000 Investment.”
April 20th, 2010 — Investing
(part 2 of 3)
This post is about a pit I fell into and stayed in for many years! I overlooked it because fee charts in prospectuses deceive by omission. Not until I attended a financial workshop in 2006 over in San Francisco, did I realize my mistake.