Anthony Luzio looks at three businesses that were once regarded as decent investments , but have been wiped out in the time it took for a Child Trust Fund to mature
The way of the dodo
For any parent about to invest in their child ’ s Junior ISA ( JISA ), it is worth remembering that 18 years is a long time horizon ; while it offers the potential for returns to compound into a significant nest egg , it also means there is plenty of time for things to go wrong . If you are considering allocating some of your child ’ s JISA into a single stock , you may feel confident you are backing a solid business with exciting growth prospects and a bright future ahead of it . But first it would be useful to cast your mind not forward , but back 18 years and have a think about the companies that were ubiquitous in 2003 , but no longer exist . Back then , before JISAs replaced Child Trust Funds , the following three businesses wouldn ’ t have looked out of place in a savvy investor ’ s portfolio . They ended up going the way of the dodo .