WHAT'S THE ISSUE?
Many experts had worried that the markets for alternative investments (art, for example) might be devastated by the pandemic. But the sale of a portrait by Botticelli in January for a record $92 million seems to have proved the doubters wrong.
In fact, the markets for alternative investments seems only to be growing, and one area that's providing great returns is the world of wine.
As Dominic Brennan from Noble Rot Fine Wine explains to The Agenda's Stephen Cole, there are many reasons why wine is exactly where we should be looking to invest in uncertain times.
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MEET THE EXPERT
Dominic Brennan is a manager at FineWineInvestment.com, part of Noble Rot Fine Wine. He advises potential clients as they look to build successful fine wine investment portfolios.
He also holds a level 3 qualification with distinction from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust.
WHAT DOES BRENNAN SAY?
"Wine is a physical asset and a hedge against inflation," Brennan tells Cole. "In uncertain times it helps to secure against market volatility.
"Each producer only makes a certain number of bottles every year of each wine. And over time, some of those bottles are drunk, broken or damaged. There's only a finite supply of that wine… so, over time, wine is one of the few assets that improves with age."
And if you're wondering about returns, Brennan explains that, for example, the Vintage Champagne Index has risen by around 9 percent per annum over the past 16 years. Cheers to that…
WHAT'S NEXT?
The wine market is continuing to grow – but potential investors need to be aware it may take a while to see a decent return.
"Fine wine is certainly a medium- to long-term investment," Brennan says. "So it's not something you would flip and return in, say, half a year or a year."
ALSO ON THE AGENDA
Moira O'Neill, head of personal finance at Interactive Investor, explains why ethical investment is a trend that's here to stay and which sectors we should be expecting a decent return from in a post-COVID world.
Arturo Bris, professor of finance at Geneva's International Institute of Management Development, joins Cole to discuss GameStop, Reddit and Robin Hood – and whether this year's David and Goliath battle between the little people and the hedge funds is likely to change the face of investment as we know it.
Of course bricks and mortar has always been something of a safe-haven play – but is that still the case in 2021? Uma Rajah, CEO and co-founder of property investment firm CapitalRise, gives us an insider's view.