Bonds are fixed-income securities. This means their primary function in an investment portfolio is to protect it from risks associated with more unpredictable instruments (e.g., stocks, where returns are harder to forecast). Therefore, when choosing which bonds to purchase, reliability and yield should be the decisive factors. What to look for when choosing reliable bonds? 1. Interest Rate The higher the yield, the riskier the investment, as a rule (the "Risk-Reward" concept). Therefore, if the interest on a bond is unrealistically high, be cautious. Interest rates on reliable bonds often align with deposit rates at large banks. Government bonds offer the lowest rates, large banks are slightly higher, and corporate bonds are the highest, starting from 14% per annum. For example, the yield on Japanese government bonds is 2%, the National Bank of Ukraine is approximately 10%, and ESKA Capital bonds yield 17%. The advantage of ESKA Capital bonds is that they offer high yields while remaining very reliable. This is because the company has been on the market for over 12 years, has a flawless credit history, and can afford a relatively high percentage due to consistently growing annual profits. Check the company's financial indicators here. 2. Maturity Date The longer the maturity period, the harder it is to predict what will happen to the company or the state you have lent money to. On average, a term of up to 3 years is considered quite reliable, but everything depends on the investment sector. 3. Liquidity Liquidity refers to how quickly and efficiently bonds can be bought or sold on the stock market. In other words, the smaller the "spread" between bid and ask prices, the higher the liquidity of the security. This depends on the number of market participants and the popularity of the bond among investors. Liquidity is measured by daily trading turnover. Traditionally, government bonds are the most liquid. Naturally, it is better to buy liquid bonds, as they are easy to sell if needed. ESKA Capital bonds are liquid and popular on both the primary and secondary markets. 4. Financial Stability We determine a company's financial position through its reporting. ESKA Capital has shown stable and high revenue growth since its founding — 12 years in a row. View the financial statements here. 5. Degree of Payment Uncertainty Preference should be given to securities that have a minimal degree of uncertainty regarding future coupon payments. Thus, we are interested in fixed-coupon issues. ESKA Capital pays fixed-amount coupons (14.10 UAH per 1 bond) every 30 days.