Before you accept any loan offer, whether you need fast personal loans or a business finance loan, there are three fundamental things you need to look at. These are interest rates, loan duration and flexible payment terms.
The key to building financial resilience is to invest your money in a secure investment instrument. You need to make your money work for you, rather than standing idle, as its value erodes over time due to inflation and fluctuation exchange rates.
So here are three investments vehicles where you can grow the value of your money.
Open a Savings Account
A savings account is the basic way of accumulating money and earning interest on your finances. The actual interest you’ll accrue depends on the interest rate that your bank or financial institution offers, and how long your money remains in your savings account. You’ll have a certain flexibility in the amount of money you need to save at a time, and when you can make withdrawals. In addition to earning interest on your savings, you’ll also meet the requirements of some banks that you have an open savings account for at least three months before you can get personal loans.
Consider Fixed Deposits
Fixed deposit investments attract some of the best interest rates. The typical investment periods that most banks and institutions offer are six months, 12 months, and longer-term, and you earn interest fixed interest rate in line with the duration you choose.
Thus, the longer you keep your money in your fixed deposit account, the more interest you’ll earn. You can also use your fixed deposit as security against personal loans or business loans.
Buy Treasury Bills
Treasury bills come at fixed interest rates, unlike fixed deposits at private financial institutions. They’re issued on behalf of the government by Kenya’s central bank. You can currently buy 91-day and 182-day treasury bills.
Between fixed deposits, savings accounts and treasury bills, you can find some of the best interest rates using these investment instruments. Just make sure to invest with a regulated financial institution, and resist the urge to fall for advertised interest rates that are too good to be true – they usually are exactly that.