Does it bring you joy?

14 February 201914 February 2019 Lauren Franze

If you haven’t been swept up in Netflix’s cult hit Tidying Up with Marie Kondo aka the KonMari method, then you’ve probably heard of her or at least noticed overflowing charity bins outside your local grocery store.

Vinnies has never had it so good!

What is alarming about the Netflix series is the consumerism and how much stuff these people are sending to landfill. When I say these people, I sadly have to include myself.

The series shows that very little of the stuff we buy brings real joy. Quite the opposite, wondering where your money goes is painful when all you’ve got to show are matching Sheridan towels.

If you’ve taken Marie Kondo into your heart and home it might be time to Marie Kondo your finances.
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What are the best Global Share ETFs?

12 February 201917 February 2019 Chris Brycki

International share ETFs and U.S. share ETFs have had a huge increase in popularity for individual and SMSF investors in Australia.

As of 2019 there is over $17 billion invested in ETFs tracking global shares on the ASX. The largest and most popular track either a broad global index or the U.S. share market which is considered to be a proxy for global shares.

Each year we compare all 175+ ETFs in our ETF Report. Here we road test 12 popular Global share ETFs, comparing them across 5 factors, as well as summarising our favourites.
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Performance update – January 2019

4 February 201912 February 2019 Chris Brycki

2018 was a down year for investment returns across the board.

In US dollar terms, every major asset class apart from cash fell in value. That’s an even larger percentage of assets falling than the financial crisis in 2008! If you didn’t lose money as an investor in 2018, you’ve done very well.

The Australian dollar also got hit, falling 9.7% during the year. The falling dollar had a silver lining since it helped to boost returns for Australians investing overseas who had not hedged the currency.
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How to kick start your money mojo in 2019

16 January 201918 January 2019 Lauren Franze

January is upon us and so are the myriad of ‘how to keep your new year resolution’ articles, often slightly preachy, annoying and unrealistic.

Finding your money mojo isn’t about being able to buy lots of things. It’s about having more freedom and security over your future. Money in the bank and a diversified investment portfolio is knowing you have the freedom to do what you want to do.

Here are some not too preachy ways to find your money mojo in 2019, minus the obvious cliches about reducing your spend on coffee or to go grocery shopping on a full stomach.
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How I’d fix default super

14 January 201914 January 2019 Chris Brycki

If you’re someone who has selected your own super fund or set up a Self Managed Super Fund (SMSF), it might surprise you to find out that you’re an exception.

The majority of Aussies just take the fund they’re ‘defaulted’ into by their employer when they start work. These default super funds make up about 80% of all super accounts.

Most people in default super take little to no interest in their fund and they tend not to switch regardless of performance.

Because of this, default super funds don’t face the kind of price-based competition they would in other industries where customers demand value-for-money.
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Market predictions for 2019

8 January 201914 January 2019 Chris Brycki

The start of the new year is a popular time to make predictions about the market.

A lineup of experts will confidently tell you which shares to buy, if property is going up or down, whether the RBA will raise or cut rates, where the Aussie dollar is heading and if the stock market will crash.

Expert market forecasts have been a pet peeve of mine for a long time. I’ve never understood why they’re so popular (to give or receive) in light of how terrible forecasters track records are.
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The best podcasts for 2019

3 January 20194 January 2019 Lauren Franze

Over the past few years podcasts have evolved from slightly daggy, amateur passion projects to professional, high quality productions.

Apple Podcasts reckon they have over 500,000 active podcasts in 100+ languages on their platform and there’s no sign of this slowing in the near future. Podcasts are a fantastic format for learning and entertainment while travelling, exercising or just relaxing at home.

Here are some of our team’s favorite podcasts. From current affairs, long-form interviews to pure entertainment here’s what we’ve been listening to over summer. We hope it helps you discover something new for 2019.
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What I learnt at the ASX Investor Day

14 December 201817 December 2018 Chris Brycki

I recently presented at the ASX Investor Day in Sydney, which I was thrilled to be asked to do since the ASX has featured heavily in my life.

First winning the ASX share game as a school student, then as the work experience kid and more recently as the CEO of Stockspot.

The topic the ASX gave me was: ‘Why invest on the ASX? How to pick the best investments’.

I really enjoyed the opportunity to present to 300+ eager investors and hopefully provide some useful tips to help make them better investors.
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Savings accounts are broken. So we decided to fix them

10 December 20183 January 2019 Chris Brycki

Tired of low interest rates on your savings?

So are we! That’s why we have created a better way to save money.

What is Stockspot Savings?

Stockspot Savings is an alternative to a high-interest savings account and ideal for cash savings you don’t want to invest. Rather than deposit money with a bank, Stockspot Savings will place your money into a high interest cash ETF. You get access to the best interest rates from the big banks without having to lock away your savings for months or years.
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People & Perspectives: Scott Pape, The Barefoot Investor

29 November 201830 November 2018 Lauren Franze

Scott Pape’s The Barefoot Investor for Families is the fastest-selling nonfiction Australian title ever. Straight talking, practical and above all wise, Pape’s Barefoot Investor program for families is part money manual and part good life lessons.

I admit when the book came across my desk I was a little sceptical. However like thousands before me, his approach to money struck a chord. And I don’t even have kids! Scott kindly took some time out of his busy schedule to chat with me about his books and thoughts on money.
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Index investing succeeds in down markets too

23 November 201829 November 2018 Chris Brycki

Whenever markets fall, funds who use active stock picking or market timing strategies fire up their sales engines. Their pitch? That if you put your trust in their active strategy you won’t have to withstand the down periods that come with a ‘buy and hold’ strategy.

It’s a tempting story! Why go through the emotional roller-coaster of down markets if that part of investing is optional…
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Dunning-Kruger Effect: You know less than you think

19 November 201814 December 2018 Chris Brycki

A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

The ‘Dunning-Kruger Effect’ is a cognitive bias which causes people of low ability within a field to have the illusion of skill and mistakenly assess their own ability as greater than it is.
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How to build an awesome investment portfolio

9 November 20189 November 2018 Chris Brycki

Clients sometimes ask us how we built the Stockspot portfolios, and why we selected 5 assets to invest in rather than 2, 3 or 10!

It comes down to the purpose of the Stockspot portfolios which is to maximise returns for each level of risk. Five assets allows us to give clients the best possible combination of returns, risk and costs.

To do this we leverage the benefits of diversification. Diversification simply means that by combining investments with different characteristics you can improve the quality of returns in your portfolio.

Quality of returns is measured by how much risk you need to take to earn a certain return. Since all investing involves taking some risk, the aim is to minimise the risk you need to take to earn the return you want. Diversification across assets enables you to take less risk to earn better returns.
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How to pick the best super fund

31 October 201831 October 2018 Chris Brycki

Stockspot’s Fat Cat Funds Report 2018 has once again found that fees make all the difference when it comes to your retirement savings. If your super funds charges you high fees, chances are you could be $250,000 worse off when you retire.

The Fat Cat Funds report looks at the performance of Australia’s largest superannuation funds. It names the funds that take advantage of Australians unwittingly paying away their retirement funds in superannuation fees.
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Bank rip-offs that won’t exist in 2020

26 October 201830 October 2018 Chris Brycki

When you take a step back, you may be surprised at how many bank fees, charges and costs we take for granted.

As a result of their cosy oligopoly, Australian banks have become the most profitable in the world, collecting $31.5 billion in profit this year. That’s after bank CEOs take $30 million a year in salaries and bonuses. But have you ever wondered why some fees exist at all – or what could be done to get rid of them?
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Five Money Lessons I’ll Teach My Nieces

16 October 201816 October 2018 Sarah King

October marks the UN’s International Day of The Girl and the theme is ‘Skilled Girlforce’. A year-long campaign to support girls to get the skills they need to enter the workforce.

Every time I see my two young nieces, I’m reminded of what perfect, untouched little souls they are. They’re so lucky to have been born in a country where girls do have the opportunity (theoretically) to do whatever they aspire to.

Yet I often worry when will the influence of social media and unconscious gender bias take hold? According to the UN by the age of 6 girls already consider boys better suited to ‘really, really smart’ activities!
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How to make the most of market dips

12 October 201823 October 2018 Chris Brycki Leave a comment

Financial markets can be quite scary at times. Headlines like ‘$50 billion wiped from the ASX’ can make it difficult to stay the course and remain invested when shares are going up and down like a yo-yo.

First-time investors tend to sell when the market falls out of a fear it will continue to go down and never return.

Research shows people feel the pain of losses twice as much than the enjoyment of profits. It’s our fight-or-flight response, the amygdala part of our brain kicking into overdrive to avoid the potential for loss.

People don’t like uncertainty and will avoid risks if possible.
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Client focus – How Stockspot is helping Guy save

11 October 201812 October 2018 Lauren Franze

Our client Guy Bane, recently spoke to the Daily Telegraph about his Stockspot investing experience.

He kindly shared why he invests his savings with us and helped to spread the Stockspot message. We love Guy’s clear headed approach to managing his wealth, so we’re sharing his story here for those who didn’t see it.

Guy has been a Stockspot client for over two years. He’s 29 years old, lives in Sydney and works as an accountant at a fintech startup. He’s a busy young professional, so doesn’t have a lot of time left over for deep market analysis and managing investments.
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The Paradox of Skill: Why active funds disappoint every year

5 October 201823 October 2018 Chris Brycki

The latest data for active fund returns to mid 2018 doesn’t bode well for traditional active fund managers.

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) SPIVA report for mid 2018 reveals that over 80% of Australian fund managers have underperformed the index over 15 years. The results are even worse in the US where 92% have delivered lower returns than the S&P 500 index.
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Personal finance basics that can change your life

28 September 201823 October 2018 Dean Batcheldor

Everyone learns trigonometry at school but very few people actually need to understand the angles in triangles.

On the other hand, the basic maths of money is something that can radically improve your life for the better.

With that in mind, here’s five basic financial lessons we think everyone should understand because they can have an enormous impact on your wealth, freedom and family.
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People & Perspectives: Paridhi Jain, Founder of SkilledSmart

18 September 201821 September 2018 Lauren Franze

Paridhi Jain believes that getting good with money shouldn’t be hard, scary, or boring.

We couldn’t agree more!

Paridhi is the founder of SkilledSmart, an education program she calls ‘money school for adults’. Whip-smart and passionate about helping Australians better understand their finances, we caught up with Paridhi to discuss why adults need money lessons and how her early career speaking to people in financial stress planted the seed that led to SkilledSmart.

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The best ETFs in a boom year

12 September 201812 September 2018 Chris Brycki

This article originally appeared in the ASX September 2018 newsletter.

Phenomenal ETF market growth of 70% over the past two years in Australia.

The growth of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) continues to be the biggest trend in asset management of recent decades. Their prominence has grown as the sector has matured and investors seek better diversification for their portfolios.
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Three investment blogs worth reading

5 September 20186 September 2018 Chris Brycki

There’s no shortage of investment websites and blogs out there.

Here are 3 of the best investment blogs that I love learning from each week and that I think should be high on every investors reading list.
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Top five things to do before you invest

30 August 201831 August 2018 Chris Brycki

Investing is the best way to create long-term wealth and financial independence.

If you’re just starting out no doubt you’ve figured out that it can be confusing at first. There are lots of decisions to make so it’s important to make sure you’re prepared to give yourself the greatest chance of success.

With this in mind, here’s the five things we think everyone should consider before investing.
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People & Perspectives: Stephanie Bendixsen, Gamer and TV Presenter

20 August 201820 August 2018 Lauren Franze

Stephanie Bendixsen is one of Australia’s most well-known personalities in the video game industry.

She began her career in 2009 when she joined the ABC’s popular gaming show ‘Good Game’ as its first full-time female presenter. She has since gone on to present a long list of gaming shows and documentaries, while also finding the time to author a series of children’s books: Pixel Raiders. She is now in production with National Geographic on a new exploratory show that seeks to unearth fascinating discoveries about Australia’s science and history.

We were lucky to grab some of Steph’s time to dig into her career, discuss female representation in tech and gaming, and importantly: how she moneys!

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