This is similar to the equity linked notes. They are usually marketed as Dual Currency Investments or Dual Currency Deposits.
They are created by financial institutions and usually take the following form - the capital is invested in a certain foreign currency. If the currency rate stay above a certain price X during the specified , the investor gets a specified interest rate, which is higher than fixed deposit rate.
If the currency rate fall below a certain price Y, the investors have to take delivery of the specified currency. The investors are told that they can keep the currency until it recovers in value. The investor think that it is all right to keep the currency.
This is how the investor can be cheated. If the specified currency goes up 10% during the holding period, the investor gets a certain interst rate, which is lower than the actual gain. The product issurer keeps the balance of the gain. If the currency drops by 10%, the investor has to bear the full paper loss.
There is no way for the retail investor to know if the terms of the transactions are fair. As the terms are determined by the product issuer, it is likely that the terms are created to make a profit for the issuer, at the expense of the investor.
Many people have lost a large proportion of their capital when the currency market goes against them. If the market goes in their favour, the received a higher interest rate, but they were not aware that this is much lower than the actual gain.
To make the matter worse, some financial institutions lend money to take five times of the risk of the invested capital. The retail investors were not aware that their risk has increased five times due to the leverage. If the currency drops 20%, they could lose their entire capital. They do not get a commensurate return if the share price moves in their favour!
Is this fair? Can it be considered as cheating?
Tan Kin Lian
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