Monday, 27 October 2014

AT Partnerships review

AT Partnerships review

I feel compelled to write a review of AT Partnerships, or at least their offer process.

While it is unknown whether their trading packages will perform as well as they claim they have performed in the past, meaning that it may or may not be a good investment, I am concerned that they may use pressure tactics to persuade people to buy their packages without letting them knowing full well what they are getting in to.

The information and opinions shared here are mine alone and it is not financial advice. I highly recommend you to seek the advice of your accountant or solicitor before signing anything. AT Partnerships even suggest you seek independent advice on their Agreement.

My concern is their method of operation and links to other companies that came before them. It is possible that they may have a product that works, but the track record means that a fair amount of caution should be followed.

How were you contacted? Did they cold call you?
Have you had the presentation and was there any pressure to sign up at the end of it? 
Was there a discount offered as an incentive to sign up quicker than you would like?
Did they show you any kind of documentation for proof of results, risk disclosure, product disclosure, guarantee or audited results? 
If not you should ask for them, and study them closely.
Also ask for full names of anyone you deal with at the company.
Ask for a Statement of Agreement, Audit , Product Disclosure Statement, Guarantee.
 
They are linked back to companies: The ATP Australia, The Association of Trading Professionals, Global Income Solutions, and Winchester Securities. Winchester went into liquidation earlier this year. I'm worried these companies do not hang around. Also TradingIT is selling pretty much the same packages through Jade Capital )the AFSL licencee) and running from the same floor as AT Partnerships in Bundall. 
I'm wondering what happened to the clients who signed up with The Atp or The Association of Trading Professionals. The ATP do not appear to be answering their phones any more. The Association of Trading Professionals website is down as is Global Income Solutions. They were all offering trading packages in Gold, Crude Oil, and Forex just like AT Partnerships. There are suggestions on some online forums that those companies didn't perform too well. In TradingIT's case, they may have just changed service provider rather than their name.

Perhaps their new systems can work. You'll be risking several thousands to find out. 
A far better option, in my opinion, would be if they offered a monthly subscription and no upfront licence fee. That would be fair to everyone. Just share profits if there are any. There is no really good reason that I can see for the substantial up fornt fee to be charged, especially if it is non-refundable.


There should be no pressure to sign up. If it is a good investment today, it will still be a good investment later.
Remember, the sales staff earn commission from signing you up. They may not have your best interests at heart. See this job advertisment they had in CareerOne. Note the 'Huge Commission' and 'Strong Closers'.