Brazil: The Country of The Future
In 2008, the world changed and so did the world’s population’s perspective, there was a strange, silent, almost undetected polar shift in popular understanding of the investment world around them…what was it? For many, both the risks and reward potential of investing in the “Western” versus “emerging” worlds were turned on their heads! Previously, the US, Europe and UK was viewed by most as the safest environment to keep your money. You were unlikely to get a double digit return, but not wanting to risk ones life savings, these were viewed as the most assured way to maintain your wealth, hard earned money that you had battled for. What happened? What changed? In short, the unthinkable! Basic economics had eluded virtually all, distracted by perceived prosperity…very few had dared to ask the pertinent questions regarding how much money was being borrowed, what percentage liquidity did banks hold etc? 2008 and the fall of Lehman Brothers was the beginning of the awakening! The unthinkable had indeed happened, the cycle started to grind to a stop. Prosperity for many was coming to an unceremonious end!
Essentially, since 2008, we have experienced a “Credit Crunch” which in layman’s terms means “debt, that cannot be repaid”. Suddenly, the world came to see first hand what happens when you lend too much money to people that don’t have the means to repay their loans. The world quickly realised that “Credit” is “Debt” and always will be, no matter what name you give it! The “Never, never” became the “Never, ever”! We in the “West” have all seen the effects of this “Financial Crisis” first hand and are continuing to see the effects day by day…the US and Europe have exited the “Age of Prosperity” and entered the “Age of Austerity”. The news headlines centre on budget cuts, taxation, capital control measures, everyday there appears to be yet another plan to bail out the industries and more and more “Quantitive Easing” (printing more money). This is when the polar shift occurred, many investors realised that in order to maintain their wealth, they needed to open their minds to new ideas, pastures previously ignored in our own ignorance and flawed perception of risk. One such entrepreneur, had a unique skill set that he had never realised would aid him diversify his savings and those of his clients… Anthony Archer, is a young entrepreneur that was born in the South of England in the 1970s, however, his parents moved his family to Portugal in the early 1980s, little did he or the family know that this would offer Anthony a wonderful opportunity and a huge advantage in his business life several decades later…with the world seeking a safe haven from the tumultuous, uncertain “Western” world, heads were turning to a previously largely ignored sleeping giant, the country once termed “The country of the future and always will be” by Analysts at Goldman Sachs, BRAZIL.
Could there be more to this giant country than bikini clad ladies dancing samba at carnivals? Could this be a country emerging into a political and economic super heavy weight while the more established markets take a beating? A suitable destination to not only safeguard our wealth, but also create a prosperous future? If so, how and why?
Irony leads the way
For decades, Brazil has been held back by the wealthy minority’s greed. Why did the analysts at Goldman Sachs regard Brazil as “The country of the future and always will be”? Nobody can argue with the abundance of natural resources that Brazil has; fertile land, gem stones, rainforests and oil are just some of the wealth that this country boasts, after all, Brazil by itself makes up 50% of the total land mass that is South America! It could and should have a very bright future and indeed be the country of the future…so why “and it always will be”? This term was accusingly saying that Brazil would never fulfil its potential, WHY? Because the Brazilian wealthy minority didn’t educated or lend money to their own people. Without education it is rare for an individual to come up with an idea which can be cultivated to success and even if a person had such an idea, if they were not of the wealthy minority “high society”, they would not have the means to bring such an idea to fruition, the idea would die along with the dreams and aspirations of the originator.
Ironic then, that this very reluctance to lend money, propelled Brazil to the cash rich envy of the world that it is today! As the Brazilian banks had been notoriously adverse to lending money, when the rest of the world were experiencing a “Credit Crunch”, Brazil had virtually nothing to crunch. Brazil found itself in such a fortunate position born out of the irresponsibility of the “Western” world, rather than a well planned strategy of their’ own making. Emboldened by the odds being stacked in its favour, would Brazil step out of the shadows and seize the opportunity to prove the doubters wrong? The answer so far has been a resounding yes! The middle class (at 53%) has become the majority populous in the first time in Brazil’s history, mortgaging (although still in its infancy) has become more readily available, government incentivised financing has given entrepreneurs the means to develop their ideas and personal lending has boosted consumerism to an all time high and growing by the day.
Appreciating the demand from International investor’s appetites to remove past preconceptions regarding this enormous country and get amongst the many exciting asset classes on offer in Brazil, Anthony Archer and his business partner Andrew Goodman set up an office in Fortaleza, Ceara, north east Brazil in Feb 2009. The time for the unusually skilled, Portuguese speaking investment specialist had come. Emboldened by a truly British “Carpe Diem” (seize the day) attitude, Anthony set about building relationships with some of the most influential business minds and political figures in the region. This groundwork has proven successful in enabling predominantly north American and British individual and institutional investors enter this rapidly expanding market.
Double digit yielding investment alternative to typical real estate
It is difficult to find double digit returns these days, with real estate prices stagnant at best throughout much of the globe, where can you turn? Is the stock market, with all of its associated risks the only place to turn for a potential double-digit return or is there an alternative?
Double-digit yields from a turn key Agri-Investment
Double-digit yields are scarce these days and sometimes they are achieved through some surprising products! When Anthony Archer was searching for a unique investment to offer his client base back in 2009, the aim was to build wealth, fulfil our moral obligation to aid our planet and to diversify savings away from falling currencies, a “Green Investment”, something sustainable, moral, that would aid our great grandmother “mother nature” and earn a profit away from Western markets with its uncertain currencies and imposing new capital control measures…Anthony was as surprised as anyone to find this from a humble Coconut! Specifically, coconut plantations in North East Brazil.
Having spent over 12 months setting up a suitable structure to offer foreign investors and having invested personally along with his business partner, the first plantation offering was launched and sold out within 5 weeks. Anthony quickly put together a second offering, after purchasing a neighbouring piece of land, which has also proven very successful. In total Anthony and his partners now have over 2,500 acres of land. The plan is for Anthony and his partners to retain ownership of 20% of the plantation and to remain co-investors along with their clients. The largest coconut farming expertise company in Brazil are on board to manage the farm and much of the needed farm infrastructure such as tractor houses, staff accommodation, road network and the purchasing of machinery is already in place and being expanded by the day.
