Hi all,

New here, however I was wondering whether anyone had any ideas or experiences in alternative investments?

Stocks, shares, bonds and structured products are the 'traditional' investments, but does anyone have any innovative or wacky ideas?

For example - investing in whisky, orange juice, renewable energy, the sun, anything!!

You could have a look at lospandosvineyard . com. I did put a posting out under Fixed Term Loan Agreements as that is essentially what it boils down to.

I was also looking for some ideas / thoughts from other people but although 64 people have viewed it no one has sent me a response.

Let me know what you think.

The only other thing that i am looking at is Carbon Credits, but from a reforestation point of view.

Hi there, new to this forum here. Well there are many alternatives to get involved in, there is gold and silver and there is this so-called liquid gold; wine. If you are looking for something that can ensure you at least your expected percentage of profits then the above mentioned are the way to go. Like wine for example, due to its limited and diminishing supply, prices are sure to go up and for investors like yourself, this is something you would be looking at. =) Cheers

Hmmm... Actually just a thought - I know this is not an investment in the traditional sense, but how about matched betting?

For information, matched betting is based on a simple mathematical concept and has nothing to do with gambling.

There are three steps which is based around the concept that bookmakers offer free incentives.

If you Wikipedia 'matched betting', there's a page with an explanation on how it works.

But basically three steps:

Minimise the loss on your first bet to qualify for the free bet (less than 10% of the offer value)
Maximise your profits on the second bet and as it's not your own cash, you make a profit much bigger that will cover your loss (over 60% of the offer value)
Cash out!

Therefore, if you're doing a £25 offer and your money with the betting exchange is £35, you're effectively investing £35 + £25 and getting £76.25 back (27% return on investment)

That sure beats most structured funds and bonds (and it's much quicker than having to wait around for 3 years!)

Hi knowiton,

Sounds like a catchy way to make a quick buck, is there some sort of minimum bet involved?

Sounds good but I am sure that if you look in the T&Cs of any betting site that you will have to roll that bet on a certain amount of times before you can withdraw the money. For example bet365 have an offer of 100% matching your deposit but you must roll the deposit and bonus 3 times before you can withdraw on it....ladbrooks is 6 times.

If it was that easy........

ive heard coloured diamonds are great way to secure and make money. Very similar to wine in every 100,000 carats that are mined 2-3 are coloured and of investment quality

Hello. I am new here. I was searching and i found this forum and looking i saw this post, fantastic!!

If anyone want an alternative investments i looking for investor/s... i am starting a business with part of the money i earn from the job, i also have a small investor that i use already the money and we will see the benefits in one month and 1/2.
I say is a business but i haven't any documents because i don't need from now.
I am writing a blog where you can read all what i done and what i am doing... is in spanish because i am spanish but i living in Surrey. You can read in English because is a translater in the blog.
The small investor put £2444... that was €3000 because was send it from Spain. That money i can double it.
What i am doing is buying and selling............ i don't go to say nothing of what i am doing here, if you are interesting, write me an email or a private messenge and i will reply with the address of the blog and all the information. Only i ask for confident because i don't want anyone more doing what i am doing.
I am looking for 4 numbers investors to be doing it for few months.
I spend many hours of my free time from the full time job doing this and for that all the secret.
Regards

PARIS— The idea of acquiring art as an investment is nothing new, but the commodification of artworks will reach a whole new level this month with the launch of Art Exchange by the French company A&F Markets. On the Exchange, investors will be able to buy and sell shares in works of art, starting at €10 ($13) for shares in pieces valued at over €100,000 ($134,000). Only works from the late 19th century onwards will be traded, emphasizing painting and sculpture. The first pieces for sale will include installations by Anselm Kiefer and Mike Kelley, as well as a 1998 painting by Sol LeWitt.
Headed by 26-year-old Pierre Naquin, A&F Markets is working with about six Paris galleries but hopes to expand across Europe, into Britain, and into China, the Guardian reports. It is also negotiating directly with French artist Richard Texier for one of his works. The company touts the originality of its approach, which it says will make the art market understandable and approachable for the average investor. However, it's worth noting that in China, at least, the French company already has company — in mid-2010, the Shenzhen Artvip Cultural Corporation launched a scheme to sell shares in works by contemporary artist Yang Peijiang on the Shenzhen Cultural Assets and Equity Exchange, a government-sponsored trading platform for cultural assets.
A&F Markets' prospectus emphasizes that art is "both a safe and a speculative" investment: safe over the long-term because its value is intrinsic and independent of volatile economic conditions, and speculative in the short-term because auction markets have seen soaring profits. French investors can also benefit from tax laws that exclude artworks from income calculations for the wealth tax.

The prospectus also intones that "the pleasure that the discovery and study of art can provide is real and should not be overlooked." However, since Art Exchange handles "all logistics and costs relating to the management of the works," investors aren't going to really have contact with the works in which they own shares — a reminder that "investor" doesn't really rhyme with "collector."

Absolutely right... if it were that easy then...

There's also Forex to consider...