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Alternative Investment Strategies Seminar Very Enlightening

30 clients attended our first educational seminar of the year on Thursday, January 29th. Those in attendance heard from two great guest speakers about two timely and exciting alternative investment strategies which increase overall portfolio returns and have the ability to reduce risk.

Jeff Courtney

We were lucky to have Jeff Courtney, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager of the Vengrowth Advanced Life Sciences fund in town. He provided an overview of what venture capital investing is, how the expanding life science industry fits into this new area of investment, and the attractive government tax credits available. Jeff has an impressive background with more than 20 years of experience in the life sciences industry. He provided us with tremendous insight into why the life sciences sector will continue to be a great place for investors to make money over the years to come, and why the government is supporting investment in these companies through generous tax credits. He detailed the exciting outlook for the industry and provided several examples of companies in which Vengrowth are currently invested. One such company, Z-Tech, has a revolutionary product designed to detect breast cancer through electrical resistance as opposed to the traditional mammogram techniques. Traditional mammograms are not 100% effective and each test is very expensive. This new technique can be performed cost effectively in the doctor's office and has proven to catch all breast cancers very early in their development.

Our opinion is that Life Sciences is a very exciting area of the marketplace and that it has great potential to provide long term investors with attractive returns. The timing is right to invest in these companies at attractive valuation levels. We feel that those who want some exposure to these new opportunities should do so through venture capital investments and share there risk with the government through the tax credits available.

To learn more about this exciting area please give us a call and we can help you determine if this opportunity is a fit for you. For more information about the tax savings available visit our Library article on our website Reducing your tax bills through LSIF’s.

Ian Mauchan

Our second speaker featured Ian Mauchan from Tricycle Asset Management. Ian is a Vice President and one of the original members of the Tricycle Asset Management team.

Ian provided a great overview of how investors can achieve:

• True Diversification relative to equities and bonds
• Attractive Returns – historically 13.31% annual return
• Principal Protection by a Crown Corporation together with a minimum yield through investment in the new BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) Managed Future Notes.

An especially interesting point discussed is how managed futures when added to a balanced portfolio have historically increased investment returns while at the same time reducing overall risk. While managed futures have historically provided investors with attractive returns this new product is backed by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) which provides a guarantee for 100% return of capital PLUS a small minimum yield when held to maturity.

We feel that the BDC Managed Future Notes may very well provide you with diversification and the guarantees that will enhance the risk return prospects of larger long-term portfolios. Again, if you would like to learn more about this unique investment opportunity and whether this opportunity is appropriate for you please give us a call. You can also access a more detailed overview by reading our article titled Principle Protection / Guaranteed Min. Return under the WHAT'S NEW section of our Website, or by visiting Tricycle directly at www.3-wheeler.com.

As a reminder, our next event will be held April 24th and will provide an overview of how to plan your insurance needs and protect yourself with new types of critical illness and/or disability insurance. Mark April 24th on your calendar to learn how these new products can protect you against unexpected events.

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