A separate product for beginners makes a lot of sense. Perhaps it could only offer ETFs which track an index such as the S&P500. This would remove the possibility of stock picking.
1 Like
Agreed. This should be taken with a pinch of salt though as the majority of people in here are just starting their journeys.
It is understandable that whilst it is a new experience, people act in this way. I know I did. Eventually people will settle into it and check their holdings every few weeks or they will burn out and decide this is not for them!
There is always an event effecting the market in some way. Trump v China will eventually be a thing of the past. China is a key player in the world stage and has a lot more to give on a number of areas (closely following POSSIBLE Xiaomi IPO)!
On a side note, I like Trump 
#controversy 
I disagree. Those are the wrong products, with the wrong fees IMO. There is a gap in the market here for something in the style of freetrade with a focus on long term investing, and low flat fees, and it’s a perfect fit for the freetrade ethos (IMHO).
I see what you’re saying I think - there is no free lunch and you can’t guarantee returns, but it is not impossible to guarantee statistically over a long time frame with an indeterminate end (i.e. your lifetime) that you will make money, the trick is that it’s a long time frame, and you are willing to accept volatility (of both income and value) and never removing funds. If that is the case you can make more money.
Yes this, but also a different UI that presents projections of long term growth and long term past growth, my ideal UI for a world tracker simply would not have a way to look at daily fluctuations, because they are meaningless for a long term investor. Even dropping by 30% in a day should not worry you, in fact it’d be better for most people if they didn’t know.
I am sorry but I completely disagree. It is impossible to guarantee that one will make money when they invest in the market. Unless you have some sort of crystal ball, it is impossible to guarantee. It is incredibly likely that you will over a long enough time period, but not a guarantee. I think promising people guaranteed gains is very dangerous, they should absolutely be using a cash ISA if they want zero risk.
2 Likes
A cash ISA is not zero risk, in fact it generates negative real returns at the moment, so losing money is guaranteed! More seriously there is a non-zero risk of inflation rendering your cash savings worthless in the long term. Presenting it as zero risk in the long term is therefore incorrect in my view. Cash is low risk in the short term (months) but very high risk in the long term. Government policy is to reach 2% inflation, which makes assets a better long term investment.
Clearly there is some risk to any investment (mostly extrinsic - e.g. risk of war, hyperinflation, expropriation etc). The risk of the stock market not providing absolute returns over a lifetime is I think so small as to be negligible, discounting such risks (which can also render your cash ISA worthless in a very short time), I think we’re both saying similar things, I could include a disclaimer (if your country is not obliterated by war and the sun does not go nova) but it seems pointless to me.
1 Like
I think we are going to have to agree to disagree. If you open a cash ISA there is no way you will have a smaller amount of £s in the account at any point following on from opening. With the markets, you could. I’m not talking about inflation, that is a completely different issue. If you sold an investment in the market as a guaranteed return you would simply be lying.
2 Likes
I believe this is a reasonable way to put it.
The following however doesn’t seem like a reasonable way to put it:
We must not forget inflation. Inflation may have a positive impact when someone is, say, borrowing money to buy a house. But it will slowly eat the money kept in a cash ISA.
There are, however, periods of negative inflation. But when we add up the historical records inflation have been positive on average. And the interest paid on a cash ISA are on average below the average inflation rate.
The way to handle the markets must start and end with education I believe
2 Likes
You’re totally right. I wasn’t really discussing inflation, only that I perceive it dangerous to sell someone an investment in the markets as zero risk and an investment in the market at all without that proper education.
1 Like
If you’re talking about long term investment, you should be.
That’s not what I said. You’re arguing against a straw man. The words zero risk are yours and miss out all the qualifications.
1 Like
Impossible to guarantee, but the probability of someone making money in the long term is quite high with particular investing methods 
People are almost certainly aware of the risks. if there was no risk, everyone would invest in the markets. Then again, if people truly understood investment and the importance of patience it would be more widely accepted.
The original post you were quoting maybe did not select the best phrasing. If you are able to invest long term (over 10 years at least), the markets will almost certainly provide you with a better return than cash savings 
Completely agree with all this. I was originally disagreeing with the idea that you could sell a fund of ETFs etc as a method for beginners to “put your money in one end and after a few years of saving profit comes out the other end, and never stops, especially when compounded.” because fundamentally you cannot guarantee returns (even though they’re very very very likely). Anyway this has gone rather off topic 
I think I have gotten slightly out of sync with @kenny and that we’re basically saying the same things.
1 Like
I’m under the impression this is something rather ordinary. We write small posts. In small posts we can’t address all the details, and then someone comes and says something complementary and we may end up in opposite sides of a barricade that, often, doesn’t exist
3 Likes
Anyone believe this is national security and not trade war? 
2 Likes
2 Likes
Google bans Huawei
2 Likes
This has been coming for some time. Thank God I am Xiaomi user 
Huawei cannot seem to shake this 5G spygate issue. A shame, they produce some good tech, but there must be some substance in the claims.
To be honest, I think some are naive if they think our data is not being collected by a number of parties, not just the Chinese. It is believed that some of the worst culprits for spying in Britain are it’s closest allies!
On a side note, Chinese tech will only continue to grow. I am closely watching companies like mobvoi who have recently received a cash injection from Google. One to watch when they IPO (which is coming).
Does it dissuade me from buying Chinese tech, nah! Will it stop me from making investments in Chinese companies, nope!
Trump at it again buy the dips my portfolio doesn’t look good this morning buying opportunity or just the start of a bigger dip
1 Like
Nah I don’t think it’ll be worse. I think trumps using this to push the fed into more aggressive rate cuts. Funny how he tweets just after the disappointment with 0.25% cut. Hey at least my PINS shares are set to rise in my folio this afternoon up 17% 