“Even though the number of dollars in the world are real and finite, the value we assign to those dollars is completely arbitrary. It changes all the time.” ~ Sean Edwards, author, speaker, political thinker.

So the answer to the question is a quick no, it doesn’t exist. Money is something we made up in order to create a standard value for controlling barter and trade. And without it, life would become very complicated.

If you’re a shoemaker and need clothing, then you might trade shoes with a shepherd for wool. However, if the shepherd doesn’t need shoes but dog whistles, then you have to find someone who makes dog whistles who is needing shoes – all before you can get the clothes you need.

So because trading one product for another would became cumbersome, we invented a tool of exchange which could easily represent an agreed value, and be used as an acceptable leverage for moving goods around.

Whether you have just set up your independent practice or have already established a solid track record in the fields of financial and investment management, you will find that your most difficult area of administration will be the compliance obligations and onerous recordkeeping required in today’s current business and regulatory environment.

The pressure to observe all constraints in a timeous, detailed and accurate manner is both time-consuming and tedious. In tandem with this increase in paperwork and application are a number of issues which add to the stress:

• clients’ expectations have grown as an ever-growing spectrum of investment opportunities become available
• the investment environment is becoming increasingly complex and therefore more difficult to manage
• fees and commissions are constantly under pressure.