Types Of Life Insurance Products

Types Of Life Insurance Products:Based on the benefit patterns the traditional Life Insurance products can be categorised into the following types:Term Insurance,Whole Life Insurance, Endowment Insurance,Annuities
Whole of Life Assurance:As the name suggests, the whole life insurance policies are intended to provide Life Insurance protection over one's lifetime. The essence of whole life insurance is that it provides for payment of the assured amount upon the insured's death regardless of when it occurs. Under these policies, the payment of the assured sum is a certainty in contrast to the term insurance contracts. Only the time of payment of the assured sum is an uncertainty.

Whole life policies can be either participating type or non-participating type. Participating type policies are those which are entitled to a share in the distributable surplus (profits) of the Life Insurance company, whereby the cash value of the policy can go up, with the announcement of bonus / dividend. Non-participating policies have the same benefit throughout the life of the policy.


Endowment Assurance:These are the most commonly sold policies. These policies assure that the benefits under the policy will be paid on the death of the life insured during the selected term or on his survival to the end of the term. Hence the assured benefits are payable either on the date of maturity or on death of the life insured, if earlier.Endowment policies assist in providing for the payment of a lump sum amount for a specific purpose, say, provision for retirement, meeting the needs of the child etc. The money required for the purpose will be built up whether the person is alive till that date or not. Like whole life insurance policies, endowment policies can also be of participating and non-participating types.



Annuities:An annuity is a series of periodic payments. An annuity contract is an insurance policy, under which the annuity provider (insurer) agrees to pay the purchaser of annuity (annuitant)a series of regular periodical payments for a fixed period or during someone's life time.

Non Traditional Covers:Universal Life Insurance (ULI) is another non-traditional type of Life Insurance introduced in the United States in the year 1979, which had an adjustable face value (insurance coverage), floating interest rates based on market conditions and unbundling of savings and protection elements of Life Insurance. After paying an initial minimum premium, policy owners may thereafter pay whatever amount and at whatever times they wish, or even skip premium payments, provided the cash value will cover policy charges. Similarly they had the option to raise or reduce the face value of the Insurance policy. For increasing the insurance coverage proof of continued insurability was insisted.
Under this type of policy (ULI), the policyholder pays an initial premium, which should not be less than a minimum for the given face value and the attained age of the Life to be Insured. From this premium payment, the mortality charge for the first period and the expenses charges will be deducted and the balance will be the policy's cash value. To this cash value a certain interest (depending upon the rate of interest prevailing in the market) will be credited at the end of the period

financial products is the market forces of demand and supply

The financial market in India at present is more advanced than many other sectors as it became organized as early as the 19th century with the securities exchanges in Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Kolkata. In the early 1960s, the number of securities exchanges in India became eight - including Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Kolkata. Apart from these three exchanges, there was the Madras, Kanpur, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune exchanges as well. Today there are 23 regional securities exchanges in India.The Indian stock markets till date have remained stagnant due to the rigid economic controls. It was only in 1991, after the liberalization process that the India securities market witnessed a flurry of IPOs serially. The market saw many new companies spanning across different industry segments and business began to flourish.The launch of the NSE and the OTCEI in the mid 1990s helped in regulating a smooth and transparent form of securities trading.The regulatory body for the Indian capital markets was the SEBI . The capital markets in India experienced turbulence after which the SEBI came into prominence. The market loopholes had to be bridged by taking drastic measures.

Potential of the India Financial Market -
India Financial Market helps in promoting the savings of the economy - helping to adopt an effective channel to transmit various financial policies. The Indian financial sector is well-developed, competitive, efficient and integrated to face all shocks. In the India financial market there are various types of financial products whose prices are determined by the numerous buyers and sellers in the market. The other determinant factor of the prices of the financial products is the market forces of demand and supply. The various other types of Indian markets help in the functioning of the wide India financial sector.

some of the good financial products

ICICI Bank has launched New financial products name `Global Indian Credit Card' for NRIs. It is an international credit card denominated in Indian rupees and will cater to NRIs visiting India. It can be issued in both India and overseas. The card is available in two variants — Silver with maximum credit limit of Rs 1,00,000 and Gold with maximum credit limit of Rs 3,00,000. The cards also provide insurance, which includes household insurance, baggage insurance and hospitalisation benefits for both primary and add-on cards up to Rs 20 lakh. The card will be accepted at 22 million merchant establishments and the re-payment for purchases can be made through an automatic debit of the customer's savings account.

Bank of Rajasthan (BoR) has launched New financial products like international credit card operations in December 2005. Bank has joined hands with Visa International to facilitate real-time transaction through Visa gateway. Bank of Rajasthan will offer three types of international credit cards - Silver Card, Gold Card and Platinum card. Their features include hospitalisation expenses covered up to Rs 50,000, baggage insurance expenses up to Rs 30,000, purchase protection up to Rs 40,000 and 30 per cent credit limit against cash advance. It has also tied up with Electra Card Services provide complete back-end support for the bank’s credit card business.

New insurence product for indian farmers

The ICICI Lombard has come up with a very good insurance product for Indian farmers who are the most important and yet the most neglected segment of our society. Lombard Insurance along with Weather Risk Management Services has come up with hybrid weather cum satellite imagery based insurance product for farmers in India. Although weather based crop insurance products are not new to Indian agriculture but the distinctive feature of this product is that it uses satellite based imagery to assess crop yields. With the help of this product farmers would take relatively lesser time to estimate the yield of an area by conducting crop cutting experiments. This new product would also help crop monitoring and predicting more accurate food grain production, thus benefitting the farmers tremendously to plan their sales and also the government to avert the possibility of any shortage in food grain production.

Finance Jobs

Finance Jobs extremely lucrative and promising. No Doubt about it. Having opened its doors to banks, financial institutions and investment banks from across the world. International & Local Financial Companies these days are offering:

• Retail Banking Solutions Companies have set up shop across the length and breadth, to take care of consumer banking needs.
• Similarly, taking advantage of people's needs to invest for their future, and given the vibrancy and dynamism of the Stock Exchanges in the region, several Investment Banks and Financial Advisory firms have started operations. These offer a gamut of investment options and advice for many products such as Mutual Funds, Real Estate, Stocks, Futures, Commodities, Debentures, Bonds, and Oil.
• Corporate Banking Solutions are offered by several Banks to large and medium sized companies operating out of India, in the Middle East and North African region (MENA).
• Accounting is required by every small, medium and large company for various purposes like profit and loss statement of accounts, payroll processing, payments and collections, tax calculations, loan payment calculations and benefits and perks calculations.

This activity has led to the creation of hitherto non-existent careers & opportunities in sectors such as Investment Management, Banking & Accountancy. Job Positions like:

• Investment Advisor, Commodities Broker, Foreign Exchange Broker, Equities Trader, Platform Consultant, Investment Analyst, Investment Marketer, Investment Fund Manager, etc. have become hot considering the earnings potential in investment products.
• In the same way different finance jobs like Banker, Teller, Corporate Financier, Credit Analyst, Financial Adviser, Corporate Sales Representatives, Product Manager, and many more have become much wanted in the Banking sector.
• Accounting Technician, Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certified Accountant, Chartered Management Accountant, Chartered Public Finance Accountant have come into their own due to many new companies establishing base in Dubai.

Career as a Personal Financial Adviser

Both financial analysts and advisers are responsible for providing financial information to clients so that they can make appropriate business and investment decisions. The job responsibilities of both professionals will vary due to their investor relationships.

Securities analysts will usually work for banks and insurance companies, making investment decisions and determining company values in order to estimate future earnings for shareholders. Some analysts are responsible for selling shares for a company, often called institutional investors, and others are responsible for selling securities for their clients.

Most financial analysts will specialise in a particular type of security instrument, such as commodities or municipal bonds. They will have to keep abreast of any latest changes in company ratings or global situations that will affect companies share price and investment holdings.

Financial advisers and quantitative analysts are responsible for helping individuals invest their money wisely, often planning for both short and long-term goals. Some planners may help the clients with retirement, while others will provide tax advice or information on estate management.

Wealth managers are responsible for helping clients who have a lot of money to invest, managing the portfolios of very rich individuals such as billionaires.

The working conditions for financial advisor jobs can be fairly stressful, as they often involve long hours and travel. Most analysts will work overtime in order to meet the needs of their clients, although personal finance advisors usually have more regular hours.

Most analysts and advisers must have a bachelor's degree in order to gain employment with a financial institution, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is responsible for licensing agents.

Careers In Finance

The finance industry is concerned with how individuals and institutions handle their financial resources -- how they raise their money, where they allocate it and how they use it -- and assesses the risks involved in these activities as well as recommends ways to manage these risks.

There are a number of exciting and rewarding jobs in the field of finance. What follows are just a few examples.

The commercial banking sector employs more people than any other facet of the financial services industry. Banks offer individuals the opportunity to interact with a broad spectrum of people and the chance to develop a clientele. People in banking usually start out as tellers and shift to other bank services such as leasing, credit card banking, trade credit and international finance.

As the name indicates, a career in corporate finance means you will work in a corporation and are mainly concerned with sourcing money for the company -- money that will be used to develop the business, make acquisitions and ensure the company's future. In a corporation, you are likely to start as a financial officer.

As a financial planner, you may also work for a corporation but will mainly be concerned with only one aspect of finances -- planning for the future. You have to have a firm grasp of investments, estate planning as well as taxes. Or you may serve as a consultant who provides financial planning for individuals, e.g., planning their retirement needs or how they can put their kids through college.

With annual revenues surpassing the trillion-dollar mark, the insurance industry looms as one of the most attractive areas for a career in finance. In 2005, there were an estimated 2.5 million people in the US who were employed in the insurance field, which is mainly considered with the business of managing risk and anticipating problem areas. Possible jobs in insurance include working as an underwriter, sales representative, customer service rep, asset manager or an actuary.

A career in investment banking means you will be concerned with issuing securing and helping investors buy, manage or trade financial assets. As a bonus, you get the chance to work on Wall Street in a leading investment banks such as Merrill Lynch, Salomon Smith Barney, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Goldman Sachs.

Financial Planning Career - Know the Finance Industry

Starting a career in financial planning will take a lot of hard work and dedication to be successful. A financial planner specialises in the planning aspect of finances, usually finance planners focus on the aspect of personal finance rather than investments and insurance. This is an extremely lucrative career because of the increase in college graduates who need help after graduation forming a budget to pay back loans. A financial planning career requires extensive knowledge in the finance sector, ability to set and help assist in clients sustaining financial goals and helping clients build financial security.

Knowing the finance industry is a must for any financial planning professional. This career requires substantial knowledge in finance because it directly affects an individual's spending and saving habits. A bachelor's degree in finance is a very effective way to showcase your knowledge in the field. Having a 4 year degree will allow you to find the necessary experience with jobs and connections with other successful financial planners. This will only add to your credentials when you officially decide to go into a financial planning career. A finance concentration is offered at universities across the country and they will provide you with the necessary knowledge to success as a professional financial planner.

Once your education and experience reflect that of a successful financial planning career then you can start accessing your abilities to further advance your career. It is important that you understand the process of setting financial goals for your client. This includes potential budget concerns and strategizing spending habits for a certain period of time. Your main priority it to ensure that your client will meet all possible financial goals they desire without losing money in the mean time. A financial planning career can become demanding so it important that you and your client have a significant trust in each other.

The next step to a successful financial planning career once you have set a strategy for your client is to build their future. Financial planning does not stop when the goals are met. This career allows you the ability to help individuals or business owners to find some financial security once they choose to move on to retirement. Also, this step will help with creating college funds for your children and ridding the worries of healthcare. A financial planning career is rewarding for the simple reason that you have the chance to help people secure their future.

Financial planning is a multi-step process that will allow you to access your client's particular financial situation and make the best decisions to help them. A Financial planner career will take a lot of work and research but if you are up for the challenge it can be a very powerful career to pursue. Finances are a major part of society and it sometimes takes professional help for you to handle it correctly. The growth of risk takers seems to continue to increase everyday and with risk takers there will always be a need for financial advice.

Why finding new job in finance is easy?

Entry level finance jobs can be easy to come by if you know where and how to look. You are probably fresh out of college, and you are seeking a job in an entry level finance position. A common question many fresh graduates have is "How long would it take you to find a job, considering there are so many other people out there looking for the same job that I am looking for?"

Nowadays, it isn't as difficult to seek a job as it used to be, despite what the economy is going through. We have the Internet, and there are so many sites available on there where employers advertise to look for people like you. There are many websites that can assist you in your search.

Unfortunately, because the Internet has gotten so popular, a majority of the people you are competing with are most likely going to do the same thing as you. The first thing they are probably going to do is get on
the Internet and visit those website where they know they can find some job openings in the entry level finance field. So far, you're doing everything your competition is doing. You'll probably look for job openings, email the employers, and wait for the employers to contact you back to possibly set up an interview. Pretty basic stuff.

Well, the good news is, not a lot of your competitors will go above and beyond like you will. If you are really serious about getting yourself a well paying entry level finance job, you will go above and beyond in order to beat all your other competitors.

First, you will seek for the job openings in finance field. You are going to email the employer your resume and cover letter, then, you will not just wait for the company to contact you. You are going to have to call them and let them get to know about you, that way, you are already in their minds. If possible, you can even visit their office and introduce yourself. This process can take a little bit of time and effort, especially if the company you are applying for is a very busy company and has a lot going on, but you are going to have to be patient and understand that this is a part of getting yourself ahead in the game. Remember, employers like to hire aggressive and people skilled employees like you and they are not going to know what's so different about you and your skill set just by sending them an email.

Once you get yourself an interview, it's time for you to shine even more! Be professional, yet friendly. Be aggressive, yet cool. Employers don't like to hire robots. They like to hire people who have great personalities and know how to take initiative and can make good decisions. Let them know that you are very interested in an entry level finance position and sell them the skill set what you bring to the table.

With this knowledge, not only will you advance in looking for a entry level finance job, but you will also build a lot more confidence during your interview, knowing that you have reached that far in the game. Good luck in finding your position in entry level finance.

Why finding new job in finance is easy?

Entry level finance jobs can be easy to come by if you know where and how to look. You are probably fresh out of college, and you are seeking a job in an entry level finance position. A common question many fresh graduates have is "How long would it take you to find a job, considering there are so many other people out there looking for the same job that I am looking for?"

Nowadays, it isn't as difficult to seek a job as it used to be, despite what the economy is going through. We have the Internet, and there are so many sites available on there where employers advertise to look for people like you. There are many websites that can assist you in your search.

Unfortunately, because the Internet has gotten so popular, a majority of the people you are competing with are most likely going to do the same thing as you. The first thing they are probably going to do is get on
the Internet and visit those website where they know they can find some job openings in the entry level finance field. So far, you're doing everything your competition is doing. You'll probably look for job openings, email the employers, and wait for the employers to contact you back to possibly set up an interview. Pretty basic stuff.

Well, the good news is, not a lot of your competitors will go above and beyond like you will. If you are really serious about getting yourself a well paying entry level finance job, you will go above and beyond in order to beat all your other competitors.

First, you will seek for the job openings in finance field. You are going to email the employer your resume and cover letter, then, you will not just wait for the company to contact you. You are going to have to call them and let them get to know about you, that way, you are already in their minds. If possible, you can even visit their office and introduce yourself. This process can take a little bit of time and effort, especially if the company you are applying for is a very busy company and has a lot going on, but you are going to have to be patient and understand that this is a part of getting yourself ahead in the game. Remember, employers like to hire aggressive and people skilled employees like you and they are not going to know what's so different about you and your skill set just by sending them an email.

Once you get yourself an interview, it's time for you to shine even more! Be professional, yet friendly. Be aggressive, yet cool. Employers don't like to hire robots. They like to hire people who have great personalities and know how to take initiative and can make good decisions. Let them know that you are very interested in an entry level finance position and sell them the skill set what you bring to the table.

With this knowledge, not only will you advance in looking for a entry level finance job, but you will also build a lot more confidence during your interview, knowing that you have reached that far in the game. Good luck in finding your position in entry level finance.

Different Options in Finance Jobs

Looking for a job in finance has a variety of different opportunities from you to choose form. Some of the opportunities for someone interested in a finance job include, real estate, money management, investing banking, insurance, commercial banking job, corporate finance, financial planning and private equity. Remember these are just a few that you can do.

Real Estate Job Opportunities

Here is a short explanation of some of these so you can understand a little more on the job opportunities for them. It has a wide varieties in itself for you to look into. There is an agent or broker in residential parts, or sales in commercial. Another is a real estate appraisal, you will give an estimated amount on a property's value as well as the quality. Maybe you would like to manage property. Top owners of real estate need professional managers. If you wish to later go in the real estate business yourself this can be helpful. This is just a small portion of what is available in real estate.

Finance Job In Insurance

Insurance is a finance job that is in demand. In the United States insurance is a trillion dollar industry. If you are interested in helping businesses and individuals to understand and explain their insurance needs to protect them this job can be rewarding. The largest areas of insurance is health, auto, life, and property and casualty insurance.

Commercial Banking Job Information

Commercial banking might be the career choice you are interested in. You might start as a teller on the branch level and move your way up the ladder to possibly trade credit or international finance. There is room to grow in this job opportunity. The commercial banks give service to large companies as well s small and to individuals. Right now in the industry of financial services, commercial banking has the largest amount of jobs.

Some Final Information

Before embarking on any career it is wise to do your homework. You should research each aspect of the career you have in mind. The internet opens up a wide range of information on any job you might be interested in.

Finance Blues supplies a variety of different article, reviews, and views for a number of different problems that are related. Please take some time and visit them on the web at financeblues.com for more information like finance jobs, corporate finance careers, banking job etc.

Best mutual funds to invest in 2010

Mutual funds need no introduction. They are one of the most popular investment vehicles in the country today. Mutual funds allow a group of investors to pool their money together and taste a broader range of stocks or bonds than they could if they were trying them on their own. There are many categories of mutual fund schemes available today and in each category there are 100s of mutual funds present akin to stars in a milky way. But depending upon the category of mutual fund scheme you invest in, the earnings from such investments can be in the form of regular income (dividend payouts) and/or capital appreciation. The taxation differs for different categories of mutual fund schemes. The characteristics of growth oriented mutual fund categories and the top funds under each category based on last 5 years' performance are :

Equity diversified Mfs - Equity diversified funds invest primarily in stocks across sectors and industries. Hence it minimises the risk of exposure to a single company or sector. These funds can be large cap, mid cap or small cap oriented depending on the fund manager's style and investment objective.

Exchange traded funds - ETFs are funds that track stock market indexes. The main difference between ETFs and other types of index funds is that ETFs don't try to outperform their corresponding index, but simply replicate its performance. ETFs are highly valued for their low cost in terms of expense ratios. Since they don't have managers actively buying and selling investments within the funds, the costs to run them are significantly lower.

Balanced funds – Balanced Funds (also called hybrid funds) provide investors with a single mutual fund that combines both growth (equity) and income (debt), by investing in both stocks and bonds. Such diversification ensures that the funds will manage downside of the stock market fluctuations without too much of a loss; the flip side is that balanced funds will usually give returns less than an all-equity fund during a bull market.

Top Tax saving Mutual Fund Schemes in 2010

Choosing a good mutual fund is a tricky business, especially when many factors such as the your timing, the fund manager, his mandate, the investment style, the track record etc affect their performance. Even if you invest now there is no guarantee of getting a great return after the 3 yrs lock-in as per 80C.

Well things have changed from last year in terms of stock market performance and it’s right time to review which tax saving or ELSS (Equity linked saving schemes) should we invest in. Its time to change our approach towards mutual funds investments.Earlier, I used to analyze ELSS based on performance over a 5 year and 3 Year time frame. Though we normally look at a Three year return for determining which fund to invest in for tax saving purposes, I would suggest that we give some weightage to 1 year return also this time around. Because, this year had a good mix interms of both sharp upside moves and sharp downside moves. we will have an idea of how the fund was able to withstand bouts of volatility.


Top Tax saving Mutual Fund Schemes:

1) Birla Sun Life Tax Relief 96
2) Principal Personal TaxSaver
3) SBI Magnum Tax gain
4) HDFC Tax Saver
5) Canara Robeco Equity Tax Saver
6) Fidelity Tax Advantage
7) DSP Blackrock Tax Saver
8) Kotak Tax Saver