Category: MARKET

There’s a story that was told many years ago (it may or may not be true…) about a Microsoft call-centre agent and their call with a deeply irate customer. Having recently purchased a computer that came pre-installed with Windows, the customer called to find out why his computer would not respond. It goes a little […]

The simple answer is: Yes, we all are! In a recent blog, we looked at five financial trip-wires and glanced over the term ‘mental accounting.’ Introduced in 1999, it’s a concept that refers to the different values we place on money. These values are often based on subjective criteria; sometimes, this subjectivity benefits us, and […]

“It’s not in the way that you hold me It’s not in the way you say you care It’s not in the way you’ve been treating my friends It’s not in the way that you stayed till the end It’s not in the way you look or the things that you say that you’ll do […]

If you’ve ever seen the mayhem from the middle of the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), you can be forgiven for thinking it’s a warzone! Whilst most stock exchanges around the world now trade electronically, having cleared out their trading floors, NYSE still hosts the traditional tussle of the floor traders’ […]

When it comes to financial planning, risk planning, estate planning and investing, many of us like to “set and forget”. Our lives are full of things to remember, for work, family and the communities in which we’re involved – often, the last thing we want to review is our financial portfolio. As a result, it’s […]

Money isn’t real. It’s just an agreed-upon system of exchange. Have you ever heard that?  This is the realisation that many reach when feeling frustrated with tax systems, witnessing social injustice or experiencing the unfairness of life. While money and currency systems may not be real, they represent value and help us form and communicate […]

A few short decades ago, we lived in a world that seemed to have far more security and certainty. The rate of change was slower, and many assumed that if you stuck to the system, the system would look after you. Social security, income security and good health were taken for granted in developed countries. […]

“… your money deserves to go places,” Ninety One (dual-listed on both the South African and London Stock Exchanges). Many people who choose to stay in a country feel a sense of pride and patriotism for their local residence. Whether it’s a native birth-right or an adopted sense of nationalism, buying, supporting and investing local […]

“If only I’d bought into Bitcoin in 2008…” “But, it’s not regulated…” “But, the bubble…” “Bitcoin – I don’t want to miss out…” Before engaging in any blog about Bitcoin, it HAS to be stated that Bitcoin is an incredibly risky investment that may or may not pay off. Bitcoin is a decentralised digital currency, […]

No matter how hard we try, we never seem to get it all right… all the time! We were taught as kids that practice makes perfect, and this phrase set us up for unrealistic expectations. At some point in our future, we figured we would get it perfect. All we needed to do was keep […]

Passive investing has become the most popular investing strategy, globally. Simply put, it’s the strategy of buying the whole market (a diversified reach of stock allocations, ETFs and the like), and continually contributing to your portfolio. The long-term goal is to achieve the average market return. This strategy avoids buying and selling regularly (like with […]

The first thing to remember when approaching investing is that the best approach is dependent almost wholly on the investor and their desired investment outcomes. While this may sound simple, working out desired outcomes hinges on many factors and conversations and ultimately works out best when a trusted financial adviser guides the investor. In a […]

Recent times have been life-altering for so many, from emotional and health traumas to relational and financial traumas. We’ve all had to encounter a considerable onslaught of ‘stuff’ to process and deal with. It may just be life, but it’s still hard. Divorce is one such trauma that so many have to work through. It […]

Nothing is certain in life, except for death and taxes. Benjamin Franklin said this almost 300 years ago, and it still rings of truth. The economic and political landscapes are now even more complex and connected than they were in the early days of American politics and free-market exploration. Making money has never been easier, […]

In the world of investing there are myriad ways to create wealth. These systems are complex, integrated and offer just enough certainty to attract our attention, but not enough to be a sure-thing. Two investable options that are talked about daily are stocks and shares. They sound and look very similar, but are in separate […]

Times of festivities and celebrations are often paradoxical in that we want to see friends and family, but we find that when we’re with the ones we don’t often see (only for big occasions and end-of-year-bashes), they have opinions that challenge our own and they’re all too willing to offer advice that we haven’t asked […]

There are three things we should never discuss around the dinner table: money, politics and religion. Ironically, the three things we normally always talk about around the dinner table… are money, politics and religion! One reason for this is because they’re all connected, and they’re all HEAVILY influenced by you, me and everyone that we […]

Every holiday season, the search begins for gifts that keep on giving. From music to cooking classes and other hobby-related courses – scores of us try to find a gift that won’t be tossed onto the pile of unwanted, unused and under-appreciated thingy-me-bobs. We look for things that are ‘cool’ or ‘trendy’ – but ultimately, […]

Anyone with a mediocre knowledge of investing will be familiar with the term “stock”.  But few people are aware that there common stocks and preferred stocks. And they’re fundamentally different. Stocks have been traded for over 400 years – the first common stocks were made available in 1602 through the Dutch East India Company. They […]

What do you do when a bear attacks? For many of us, we don’t live near any bears, so we’re likely to be unprepared. When it comes to a bear market, the situation is not too different. No one can predict a bear market, and for some it’s not even easy to recognise when a […]