In these crazy economic times, don’t put all of your  financial eggs in one basket. Diversify!  For example, one of our esteemed American financial institutions played a big part in wrecking havoc with Britains’ economy.  Londoners lost their high paying financial jobs which trickled down to other parts of society.  Some experienced London  investment advisors did not do what they preached.  When they received bonuses, they took it in stock options and other bank plans, instead of putting their money in other types of investments in different venues.  These people lost their retirement investments and life savings in one blow, along with their jobs. Pick more than one financial institution for your investments.  I have done well recently in intermediate bonds.  I also keep some money in my bank, for easy access.  I am investing in a plan which has a multitude of stocks, to minimize risks, although less of my money is here.  I was shocked that one local bank only offers .10% on savings accounts, almost nothing.  Look to see if a bank now owns an investment house that you are considering for investments.  One bank that I loathe, bought out the one I was with, so I withdrew my money and found a much safer, higher paying  venue.  Another way to diversify, is with real estate.  It’s a buyer’s market now.  If you have the money to purchase an extra, smaller house, you can rent it out for years and enjoy the income.  Your house would eventually appreciate and you can sell it at a much later date.