7 min read
How to Evaluate an Investment Product
Mandate, manager, fees, liquidity, custody, regulation. Five questions before a single naira moves.
What is the mandate? A product should say, in plain language, what it may hold and what it will not. Vague stories are not mandates.
Who is the manager, and are they licensed for this activity in the relevant jurisdiction? HI Investments Africa is not itself a licensed fund manager, broker, portfolio manager or securities dealer.
What are the fees, in actual percentages, and when are they taken? Ask for a worked example on ₦120,000 over a year.
How do you get your money out, how long does it take, and what are the penalties? Liquidity is part of risk.
Where is the money held (custody), who audits it, and which regulator oversees the vehicle? If the answer is "trust us," the answer is no.
Only after those questions should you look at past performance — and even then, as history, not as a forecast.