« Bank Account Reporting Requirements Revisited | Home | How to Get Started Offshore »
Investing in Currency ETFs
By admin | September 10, 2008
Investing in Currency ETFs
by Peter Macfarlane
I’ve frequently recommended multi-currency bank accounts, for the convenience they offer – usually allowing you to hold different currencies within the same offshore bank account, and switch between currencies online. (Note: for a full definition of multi-currency accounts and the difference between them and holding multiple currency accounts, see The Q Practical Offshore Banking Guide 2008 which is available in the members section)
In their most basic form, multi-currency accounts are a way to diversify risk – for example, out of the US dollar. If you wish to leverage multi-currency accounts to the full, you can usually borrow in one currency, then invest the funds in a currency which pays higher interest, profiting from the interest rate diferential as well as a possible exchange rate gain (or loss)
But there is an alternative way of holding funds in different currencies, that also holds some interesting advantages – especially for the more adventerous amongst you. That is currency ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds, that you can buy and sell on the stock market just like shares)
For example, you could use “CurrencyShares”. They have seven CurrencyShares ETFs that track the:
Australian dollar (NYSEArca:FXA)
British pound (NYSEArca:FXB )
Canadian dollar (NYSEArca:FXC )
Mexican peso (NYSEArca:FXM)
Swedish krona (NYSEArca:FXS )
Swiss franc (NYSEArca:FXF )
Japanese yen (NYSEArca:FXY)
The idea is simple. Each share represents ownership in one of trusts set up for each currency. The trust holds a bank account in one currency. Each share represents a partial ownership of the interest and money in the account. The share is worth the price of the share as if it were a position in the foreign currency it represents.
All fees are (hopefully) paid for with the interest earned. The remainder of the interest goes into the fund’s asset value.
This way of holding currencies is particularly useful for US citizens and residents, since they can be bought using any discount brokerage and there are no issues with having to report foreign holdings, set up companies and trusts yourself etc. (Then again, of course, any gains will be taxable)
London is also becoming something of a market for ETFs and similar products are available there, with Barclays Global Investors (iShares) leading the way.
There are three features that makes these shares more exciting than a plain vanilla bank account, but still a lot less risky than forex trading:
1. you can sell them short
2. you can buy these shares on margin
3. you can place limit and stop loss orders
“CurrencyShares” will soon be launching too in four new emerging market currencies: Russian rouble, South African rand, Hong Kong dollar and Singapore dollar.
Note: Peter Macfarlane is currently on holiday until the end of September. If you would like to arrange an in-person or e-mail consultation on personal tax matters, please contact his assistant via info@petermacfarlane.net Peter will also be talking about multi-currency accounts, currency ETFs and more in November, the week after the US election, at Recipes for Success in Panama. Click here for more details.
Sphere: Related ContentNo related posts.
Topics: Banks and banking offshore, Currencies and Cash | No Comments »
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.