Dubai, UAE – As inflation rises around the world and global populations grow concerned about economic prospects amid unstable markets and cost-of-living crises, many financial advisors are telling their clients to safeguard sufficient cash reserves in case of unexpected emergencies.

“While it is not quite a return to the days when cash was king, we highly recommend keeping at least six months’ worth of living expenses in a savings account, which is not invested into the markets, that can be accessed immediately,” said Damian Hitchen, CEO at Saxo Bank (MENA). “Such accounts are currently paying quite generous amounts of interest, which has not been the case for some time, so it makes sense to utilise these while the global socio-economic situation is unstable.”

“As with any financial investment or purchase of course, doing the research and shopping around is vital to secure the highest-yield accounts – what I can say though is that Saxo Bank is currently offering some of the best rates on the market for cash.”

Saxo Bank has been offering positive interest on uninvested cash since the turn of the year. Those with US dollar accounts can currently earn 2.59% per annum on deposit balances equivalent to more than €100,000 and 3.09% for VIP clients. If global Central Bank rates continue to increase, these increases will be reflected in higher rates on your cash. Importantly earned interest is calculated daily using Saxo Bank’s bid rate minus a fixed markdown, which is determined by deposit size. The result is the larger the deposit, the less the deduction thus a higher rate of interest. Also, there are no fixed lock-in periods meaning you are free to access your cash when you need it!

Yet Saxo Bank, which specialises in online trading and investment, says challenging global scenarios are pressurising stocks, which could mean those with enough cash reserves to cushion them in the short-to-medium term may want to look at equity investments, providing they are willing to take some risk. Investors concerned about recession risk should take advantage of higher interest rates by keeping a percentage of their portfolio in cash holdings, Hitchen added.

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About Saxo Bank Middle East

Founded in 1992, Saxo Bank was one of the first financial institutions to develop an online trading platform that provided private investors with the same tools and market access as professional traders, large institutions, and fund managers. It was also the first Scandinavian bank to establish a presence in the GCC when it launched a regional office in the Dubai International Financial Centre in May 2009. It opened an office in Abu Dhabi in 2014 and quicky saw its MENA region revenues triple.

Headquartered in Copenhagen, Saxo Bank combines an agile fintech mindset with close to 30 years of experience and a track record in global capital markets to deliver a state-of-the-art experience to clients. The Saxo Bank Group holds four banking licenses and is well regulated globally, including by the Central Bank of the UAE. Saxo Bank’s client assets worldwide total more than €75 billion and the company employs more than 2,000 financial and technology professionals in financial centres around the world including London, Singapore, Amsterdam, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Paris, Zurich, Tokyo, as well as Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

For more information, please visit: http://www.home.saxo/ME