Trading in financial markets can be exciting and rewarding, but it's also complex and requires careful navigation. Whether you're interested in stocks, forex, cryptocurrencies, or commodities, getting started can feel overwhelming. However, with the right approach and understanding, you can begin your journey into the world of trading with confidence. This beginner's guide aims to provide you with essential knowledge and tips to help you navigate this exciting realm.

Understanding the Basics

• What is Trading?

Trading involves buying and selling financial instruments at its core, to make a profit. These instruments can include stocks, bonds, currencies (forex), commodities (gold or oil, etc.), and derivatives like options and futures contracts.

• Types of Trading

There are various trading styles, including day trading, swing trading, and long-term investing. Day trading involves making multiple trades within a single day, while swing trading involves holding positions for several days or weeks. Long-term investing, on the other hand, focuses on buying and holding assets for extended periods, often years.

• Risk Management

Trading inherently involves risks, and it's crucial to manage these risks effectively. This includes setting stop-loss orders to limit potential losses, diversifying your portfolio, and only risking a small percentage on each trade.

Getting Started

• Education

Before diving into trading, it's essential to educate yourself about the financial markets and trading strategies. There are numerous resources available, including books, online courses, and educational websites. Take the time to learn about fundamental and technical analysis, market indicators, and risk management principles.

• Choosing a Broker

To trade in financial markets, you'll need to open an account with a brokerage firm. Look for a reputable broker that offers a user-friendly trading platform, competitive fees, and a wide range of tradable assets. Take the time to compare different brokers and choose one that suits your needs and preferences.

• Practise with a Demo Account

Handily, many brokers offer accounts that allow you to safely practise trading with virtual money in a simulated market environment. Take advantage of these accounts to familiarise yourself with the platform and ensure you test out different strategies without risking real capital. With a Coin Market Manager, you can have an automated journal for your trading to keep you on track at all times.

Developing a Trading Strategy

• Define Your Goals and Risk Tolerance

Before placing any trades, it's essential to define your trading goals and risk tolerance. Are you looking to generate supplemental income, build wealth over the long term, or actively trade for a living? Understanding your objectives thoroughly will help you develop a suitable trading strategy.

• Technical vs. Fundamental Analysis

Traders use two primary methods to analyse markets: technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis involves studying price charts and market patterns to predict future movements, while fundamental analysis focuses on analysing economic indicators, company financials, and geopolitical events.

• Building a Trading Plan

A trading plan outlines your approach to trading, including your entry and exit criteria, risk management rules, and position sizing strategy. Having a well-defined trading plan can help you remain disciplined.

Practising Discipline and Patience

• Emotions and Trading

Emotions such as fear and greed can cloud judgment and lead to irrational decision-making. You must remain disciplined and ensure you stick to your trading plan, even when faced with uncertainty or market volatility.

• Patience Pays Off

Successful trading requires patience and perseverance. Not every trade will be profitable, and there will inevitably be periods of losses. Stay focused on your long-term goals, whatever they may be, and be prepared to learn from your successes and failures along the way.

Conclusion

Navigating the world of trading as a beginner can be challenging, but it's also incredibly rewarding. By educating yourself, practising with a demo account, developing a trading strategy, and maintaining discipline and patience, you can effectively increase your chances of success in the financial markets. Remember that trading is a journey, and continuous learning and adaptation are key to long-term profitability.

While it might be challenging to think of your golden years when you're still in your late teens or early 20s, it's a good idea to begin investing for your future.

Consider the following tips to get started building wealth and saving for your retirement.

#1 - Work with a Bank that Can Help You Reach Your Goals

The process of saving for retirement might feel overwhelming at first. To get started on the right track, it’s important to work with a bank that can assist you in reaching your financial goals. For example, East West Bank, led by Dominic Ng, has helped countless customers over multiple decades realize the importance of saving for the future to help make their financial dreams a reality.

#2 - Contribute to Your 401(k)

If your employer offers a 401(k) retirement account, by all means, try to make regular contributions to the plan. This tip is especially important if your employer will match what you're already adding to your account. As U.S. News and World Report notes, this is essentially free money that your employer is allocating toward your retirement, so taking advantage of this offer is a good idea. To make it as easy as possible to contribute to the 401(k), you can have a certain percentage of your paycheck directly deposited into the account.

#3 - Invest in Stocks

Another way to start building wealth as a young adult is to invest in stocks. While stocks can be a volatile investment — meaning they can increase and decrease in value rather dramatically at times — overall they have a great long-term record. Plus, if retirement is decades away, you have plenty of time to ride out any ups and downs of the stock market. Unsure of which stocks to purchase? Then you might consider investing in companies that you know and like. For instance, if you're a fan of Starbucks, consider buying some of its stock — and know that every latte you buy is helping your stock values stay strong.

#4 - Consider Crypto

Investing in cryptocurrency is another way to start saving for retirement. While crypto has a well-deserved reputation for its volatility, there are several ways to make money with it. For instance, once you purchase crypto, you can hold onto it until you see its value rising before selling it and making a profit. Use the profit to either purchase more crypto, add more to your stock portfolio, or contribute more to your 401(k).

#5 - Look Into Real Estate

There are different ways real estate can help you build your retirement fund. For instance, if you acquire a property to rent out, you can allocate as much of the monthly cash flow as you can to your long-term investments. You might also look into short-term vacation rentals as a way to make money. You could either own a home to rent out to travellers or, if you're on the road quite a bit for work, look into renting out your own home. Granted, it can take some time to save money to purchase a property, but if you're able to afford it, it can be a potentially lucrative investment.

Your Future Self Will Thank You

Of course, everyone wants to have enough money to live comfortably after retirement. If you start now, you'll be that much more financially prepared for this time of life. Start by finding a bank to assist you with your goals and then consider adding to your 401(k), investing in stocks, crypto, and/or real estate — or a combination of all of these. No matter what you choose, your future self will thank you for the financial planning you start today.

For starters, life expectancy has increased, making the average retirement period longer. Research shows that babies born after 2007, around 50% of those are expected to live to 104 years in the US.

Coupled with a longer retirement is the soaring cost of living, which in recent months has reached stratospheric levels, as inflation and macroeconomic problems have seen prices climb to their highest in more than four decades.

More and more companies have scrapped the idea of a defined pension benefit as well. The shift in workplace loyalty among newer generations has given soon-to-be retirees and current employees less financial support from employers toward their pensions. Today, the average monthly Social Security benefit for a retired worker is about $1,681, and will potentially rise to $1,827 in 2023.

For the millions of soon-to-be-retired Americans, plumping their savings and boosting their pension with some alternative investment opportunities will be one of the best options they have as they look to navigate the uncertain financial road ahead.

Retirees planning to pay off their mortgage, travel to exotic destinations, migrate to a different state, or even do a cross-country road trip will need a bit of cash to do all these things while still being able to live comfortably.

Here’s a look at some alternatives to invest your pension for a more comfortable retirement.

Dividend income funds

Often individuals will purchase stocks or dividend-yielding stocks that provide them with an alternative income stream. For retirees that are looking to minimise their risk against a volatile market, dividend income funds can provide a steady income over the years, especially if companies decide to raise their dividend payouts.

Dividend income funds often consist of a fund manager that manages the fund and the dividend-paying stocks, which makes it a more suitable choice for any person, even if they have no prior trading or investing experience.

In some instances, companies will allocate dividends that may be taxed at a lower rate compared to that ordinary income or interest. In this case, these dividends are classified as “qualified dividends” and should be held in non-retirement accounts or funds.

Real Estate Investment Trusts

In 2020, around 58.1% of working-age baby boomers, between the ages of 56 and 64 were most likely to own at least one type of retirement account. Often, working individuals who are soon to retire will either have an IRA, Roth IRA, or a standard 401(k).

While these products can produce significant savings for retirees, investing in real estate, or at least in a real estate investment trust allows them more opportunities to grow their wealth and their retirement portfolio.

Like a dividend mutual income fund, a REIT is a mutual fund that either owns or invests in real estate property. These funds are typically managed by a team of fund managers, and in most instances, investors are allocated an income as the fund matures over time.

REITs are a simpler, yet a safer option for retirees, as it allows them a better chance to invest in property and real estate, without directly exposing themselves to market volatility. Think of it as a way to increase your savings and wealth, regardless of whether you’re planning to use those savings to build your dream home or relocate abroad to Canada or somewhere exotic - REITs often provide better security for pensioners.

Annuities

When planning to invest in annuities, it’s best to consider the two types of annuity products that are available. For starters, fixed annuities are often considered to provide retirees with a guaranteed income for life, which can help them hedge inflation and potentially offer tax-deferred growth.

The second annuity product is fixed index annuities, which have the same benefits related to the before mentioned but have marked-related growth factors. This means that fixed index annuities are considered more of a risk, as they can fluctuate with the market, but depending on the index it may be related to, the reward may often be higher than regular annuities.

There are several benefits to annuities, and retirees should consider each product and their benefits individually before adding it to their retirement portfolio.

Exchange Traded Funds

Often considered a traditional investment option, ETFs are mutual funds that are a mix between stocks and bonds that often track the index benchmark. With ETFs, individuals have the option to buy and sell their mutual fund at any point, as they are priced in real-time, and traded on the stock exchange.

Usually, retirees or early novice investors will opt for ETFs as these are considered safer investment options, and are relatively affordable to buy. Important is the fact that the longer you hold an ETF mutual fund or any related stock pick, the better your chances of increasing its value over time.

This is true for most investments, and when it comes to ETFs, it’s easy to hold onto it well into retirement, only to later sell it off once it has reached a pinnacle. The longer you hold, the more valuable the fund, and the more likely you are to save on fees and additional costs which can be directed towards your retirement fund.

Why is investing important in retirement?

There are several important reasons why one should look at different investment opportunities well before or during retirement. Traditional pension and retirement plans, such as a 401(k) or Keogh Account are no longer enough to financially sustain you during your retirement.

The soaring cost of living, volatile markets, and uncertain labour conditions have made it increasingly hard for many individuals to plan and save for their retirement. Instead of holding onto the idea that life savings or an emergency fund will be enough to keep you going once you hit retirement, it’s best advised to start looking for alternative pension options that can help give you a comfortable retirement.

Final thoughts

As many soon-to-be retirees enter their golden years, some have opted to park their pensions in several investment opportunities that can provide them with a sustainable income. Not only are there more options available for retirees in terms of boosting their retirement portfolio and savings, but often these products can provide better financial security as well.

Planning for the future can be hard, as we’re not sure what to expect or what to plan for. Yet, it’s rather better to have a financial safety net in place now so that by the time you retire, you can live comfortably off your earnings.

But, on the other hand, the coins can also collapse again very quickly. So it's important to take a good look at how things are going. This is the only way you can keep a close eye on the trends. Here you will find some tips that you can easily use when investing.

The rate of the coins

Of course, it all starts with the basics. It is always the case that the price of the coins is the starting point. So that means it helps you to find websites with the most accurate information on this. A good example is websites on crypto. These are the kind of websites where you can very simply get started with the rates of the various coins. Where you can also look at the trends and expectations. Only in this way can you make the best possible choices. That is ultimately the basis of success.

Staying on top of the news

When you decide to invest in crypto coins, you can also anticipate the trends and expectations. After all, these come from somewhere. This is actually no different from other types of investments. This is because of the news and current events. This means, therefore, that it is smart to look at what is out there to follow this. More and more news is very easy to get. Especially since this market has become so big. So you can take advantage of that when you invest.

Focus on the many coins

It is also fun to focus on the different types of coins. After all, there are a lot of them, including Bitcoin, Ripple XRP, Dogecoin, Ethereum.

It is good to know what the differences are and why one does better than the other. The best place to start is with real specialists. This website, for example, is the place to go. That's the kind of provider where you can get all the information very easily. This way you can be sure that you really make the right choice when you bet. It's exactly what you need for this.

Getting in quickly when there are opportunities

Then finally, there is one more point to consider. The world of cryptocurrencies does change very quickly. So you do need to see your opportunities in it. By getting in and out on time you seize the opportunities on the market. That is the way to ensure that you actually earn something from the coins. Many people have already been successful with this. For that reason alone it is advisable to find good sources and consult them regularly to be sure.

Not all entrepreneurs are good with numbers and keeping records, which is why it’s so crucial that they have a solid plan in place for money matters. Whether you’re thinking of starting a small business or want to improve the way you handle your books, these tips can help you to achieve more control over your financial situation.

Accounting Software

If you’re still using spreadsheets to keep track of your finances, it might be time to invest in accounting software. This will help you to keep all your records secure while maintaining accurate information. There’s less room for human error thanks to the software’s ability to make calculations for you and you’ll never misplace an invoice or receipt again. What’s more, many types of accounting software will also help you to handle payroll and have better visibility over your cash flow.

Invest Your Money

When starting out it can be tempting to hold onto your money tightly, but this can often do your business more harm than good. While you need to be making a profit, it’s important that you reinvest your money in your business. This is crucial for future growth and will help you to increase your profits in the long term. Whether you’re thinking of hiring a marketing agency, upgrading your website or building an app, take some time to improve the services you’re offering to your customers to see your revenue increase.

Be Aware Of Tax

Everyone knows they have to pay tax, but are you planning for it throughout the year? Many business owners only start thinking about tax as their deadline approaches, but this can put you in a tricky financial situation if your payment is bigger than you expected. Make sure you’re calculating tax as you go and setting aside funds that you know aren’t really yours. This way you can avoid any disasters at the end of the tax year that could potentially see your business folding before it’s even had a chance to grow.

Choose Loans Carefully

People have different attitudes to loans, with some refusing them completely and others taking out too many. Loans aren’t all bad but you do have to choose them carefully. If you need an injection of cash to get your business off the ground, a loan could be well worth your time. But taking out loans with high interest rates could hurt you in the long run, especially if you’re not investing the money as wisely as you should.

Insurance

Finally, insurance might be an extra expense in the short term, but it can save you thousands further down the line. Make sure you thoroughly research the types of insurance your business can benefit from to give yourself complete coverage. You want to be fully protected from potential lawsuits as well as natural disasters like floods and fires. 

2021 has seen a huge tie in of key areas including our biggest foe – COVID-19 and one of the most current trending terms, Net-Zero. Of course, with most of us obeying the rules of lockdown, there has been a huge online presence for retail and of course, NFTs. Unfortunately, some of my most compelling investments and eyes on companies are early-stage, not listed, so I cannot add them to this list. However, I will be writing up soon on the ones to get in early if you are like me and like a diverse early-stage portfolio.

With digital art selling for which some would consider ludicrous amounts of money and major sports leagues throwing collector cards at any platform they can, will NFTs be the dot-com bubble that led to so much loss only two decades ago?

Personally, I have been curve balling away from art and music NFTs for a little while. I may kick myself in the future, but I am sitting back and waiting for things to settle a little or at least, a set of platforms and standards which would make a standard for at least ensuring a real value and security in my collection. However, I have been watching the game world and the big things happening on the so-called “metaverse”.

I mentioned Animoca in a previous article, and voila, Sandbox has sold vast chunks of virtual land recently, propelling the SAND coin up the ranks.

This month, I have been concentrating on all those goodies which have been developing for the last year and also the online gaming markets, along with the retail trends which have really changed a great deal during our prison sentences.

So, let’s start with retail. I tip my hat to Debenhams at this point – I have great memories of visiting the stores but unfortunately, way too many things went wrong for them. Goodbye to a fond memory!

PayPal

CEO Dan Schulman has made public statements recently into the payment giant’s movements, which have tied in very nicely with the pandemic and people’s moves to digital payments.  Over the last year, I have used little cash, with my preferred Apple Pay taking precedence. Even the Royal Mint seem to be in a panic over the decrease in cash use.

However, this is not the only thing making the stocks be eyed again. Around three years ago, I advised on the changes to retail when looking at the Battersea Power Station project and the vast movement to experiential shopping behaviours of consumers. The mass floor space is becoming a thing of the past and shoppers are happier to buy and receive goods the next day. PayPal payments can be a big driver behind this and if we are moving to a cashless society, secure payment methods are key. PayPal has developed a great deal of technology to protect the buyer and my bets are on them targeting further into the physical purchase markets.

Next up – online gaming. The big players are really pushing hard now, very likely due to the demand on games from the stay-at-home players, who are wanting more from the experience. Even colleges in the US are designing courses for gameplay and the next Olympics will very likely see full-scale digital Olympians too.

Epic Games

This powerhouse is the creator of the Unreal VR engine and is certainly taking the product very seriously. It’s not only the gaming world this covers, but also the whole CGI arena and the Unreal engine has just empowered MetaHuman, the latest and rather scary fully mapped human creation engine. Epic has not gone for their IPO yet, but I am waiting, ready to pounce when they do. However, if you are wanting to get in on the game (excuse the pun), then you can buy a bit of Tencent Holding (TCEHY), which has a stake in Epic right now.

Epic is also taking the Metaverse world very seriously and if executed correctly, rather than trying to own the whole thing, the Unreal engine could certainly be a standards contender across the whole verse.

Now it’s time to reach for the stars. SpaceX is firmly on my radar, especially with the Starlink satellite-based internet service rolling out. I hear you say: “Hey they are not even close to IPO”, and you would be right. I imagine it will happen in 2023 when Musk presses the button. However, I have a trick up my sleeve.

Alphabet Inc.  

Okay, what on earth has Google got to do with SpaceX? Easy, they invested into 10% stock when it was an infant getting going. By investing in Google, you can bypass the huge overinflation of the upcoming IPO and sit on Google’s early seed investment, which I believe is still around 9%. Buckle up and become part of the space race.

As a final thought, I move to MedTech, which is one of the areas I consider to be a present and future requirement highlighted during COVID. Much of the research and development which took place can be used to continue the fight against future viruses and even other medical issues.

Quidel

Apart from other immunoassays, Quidel received rapid emergency-use authorisation from the FDA for their COVID-19 antigen test. Unlike many other tests, theirs is designed to test asymptomatic individuals. This alone is something to propel a stock, but they are also using a great deal of known research from previous tests to provide key medical test solutions into the future.

What we do know with MedTech, is that it is going to play a much more important role in our future daily lives. The pandemic hit us hard, but there almost certainly will be other viruses and infections which will haunt us and these companies are key to far more rapid solutions than we probably gave them credit for.

Next time, I will be looking into those companies which could have made a completely different outcome to the COVID-19 pandemic in the field of vastly more intelligent tracking and tracing and even predictions of further waves of virus mutation. There was a complete lack of interoperability across the world when it came to information and traceability. Red-listing countries post avalanche of people movement, quarantines with very poor intelligence, zero prediction of further waves. It is time for a change and I am a firm believer in a global information interchange. People may scoff at this, but whilst reading this article, you are using the world’s largest data interchange platform - the Internet.

Finally, I am watching one of my own big bets, EyA – which may be listing in the not so distant future. Fingers on the button with this one, that is for sure!

*NO INVESTMENT ADVICE

 The content is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. Nothing contained in this article constitutes a solicitation, recommendation, endorsement, or offer by Graham Norton-Standen, HIG, Finance Monthly or any third-party service provider to buy or sell any securities or other financial instruments.

Set your investment path as we approach 2021 and hear macro-economic views, portfolio strategies and tactics from 3 of the world’s leading financial minds.  2020 has been an extraordinary year of challenge for all of us on every level.  What lies ahead for global economies, and markets?  What are the most important considerations for investment portfolio’s?

Finance Monthly is delighted to partner with Rotella Qcast to host what is sure to be a fantastic webinar to guide your investment portfolio for 2021. With expert insight from some of the industry leaders you won't want to miss this opportunity to get your portfolio in line and ready to maximise the next year.

Register Now :   “2020 - A Most Unexpected Year, What's Next in 2021”

Moderator:  Ms. Delphine Amzallag, ABN AMRO

Speakers:  Mr. John Llewellyn, Partner, Llewellyn Consulting;  Mr. Sebastien Page, Head of Global Multi-Asset – T. Rowe Price;  and Mr. Berouz Fatemi, Head of Quantitative Strategies – InvestcorpTages.

Wednesday, December 16th @ 11:00 AM EST / 4:00 PM GMT

Key Takeaways include:

• Global View of the Economic Recovery – 4 to 5 Years
• Going Forward – The 60/40 Model, Fat Tail Events, and Active vs Passive
• What Goes Up, Must Come Down – A Strategy
• The Growing Role of Fiscal Policy Affecting Markets

Register Now for the Webinar: Click Here 

Rotella Qcast  and Finance Monthly are delighted to have you join us.  You won’t want to miss this one.

It is unquestionably causing chaos all over the world with dysfunctional administrations wishing for its departure, yet it is the administrations and governments themselves who may find that it is them who will be sent ‘packing’ before long.

So, our focus this month is FinTech, the ‘new’ exciting and flexible link between finance and technology. COVID will not see off the more robust FinTech outfits but they may morph into slightly different versions and become more of a new establishment. Some companies do appear to be actually benefiting from the climate and have been careful and flexible enough to alter their targets and their image slightly and not stay stuck in yet another ‘new card system’.

Over the last seven months, we have witnessed the increase in the phone-based alternative to plastic (coming with its own auto fx model), to now having it as the only way to purchase in stores. And, if you add to that the massive increase of online fulfilment programs for all forms of retail, this has risen to the top of priorities for many firms such as Amazon, eBay and Alibaba.

Therefore it is fundamentally important to focus on the FinTech markets and also to see which of them are going to become ‘not flexible enough’, and those that are right up there and ready to take advantage of a continuing extraordinary new set of markets being pushed out in front of our eyes during COVID. Who will best deal with a continuously changing market that is not transitioning smoothly?  

One of the phenomena of the FinTech space is that we have seen literally every type of business categorise themselves into the FinTech sector over the last few years, with different levels of success, and the craze of fish chasing them around to try and find the next big game-changing tech as an investment has become difficult.

It really does remind us of memories of the dotcom bubble, when tech companies were having millions thrown at them by greedy investors on the back of a handwritten cigarette pack business models!

Of course, there were the success stories including some of the greatest of all time, such as Google and Amazon and a few others which now dominate both our online and offline worlds. However, we still need to show some caution when playing in the FinTech world.

PayPal 

PayPal Holdings Inc is a company that has been there for a long time before the word ‘FinTech’ existed and is a part of most of our lives in some way or another. Our online fortress as we spend away on those items we really need (and not so much either) on eBay and the plethora of e-commerce websites we are all trawling at the moment. So far during the pandemic, PayPal has seen its user base increase dramatically and will very likely continue to grow as we spend longer at home. The company’s CEO Dan Schulman says that the current user base of 325 million people could increase to a billion, which would increase the value of PayPal in our pockets and the hold it will continue to have on us online. Obviously, this is not a ‘get-rich’ quick stock, unless highly leveraged, but looks to be a nice one for a diversified portfolio.

Starling Bank 

Starling Bank is another digital bank which is aiming to disrupt the banking sector, just as is Revolut and some other contenders. Currently, Starling is still private, but CEO Anne Boden has strong ambitions of floating the digital bank by 2022. As discussed, the pandemic is making us think twice before popping into the local bank. With the old-fashioned bricks-and-mortar banks appealing less, especially to the younger generations, it really does seem that digital is not going anywhere soon. Although this is not open for us mere mortal investors at the moment, it is certainly one of the disruptors to keep our eyes firmly locked onto over the next couple of years.

Square

Square (SQ) has come a long way over the years. Initially, a POS card reader service for smaller businesses, of which there are now many, the company has diversified to offer a large and rather powerful suite of payment and loan solutions. Previously investors were cautious with Square, but with the cash app reaching 24 million users, along with literally no impact from COVID-19, it seems that they are going from strength to strength.

Apple

Apple is and stays on our radar. They are one of the tech giants eyeing up the FinTech sector and were one of the first organisations using a no-card retail play in their stores using the Apple App payment system, and with this model, they also were able to use ‘Apple Pay’ as a wallet app device in most shops for payment.

They have now finally released their actual credit card into the US, which of course sits nicely into the Apple Wallet on our iPhones and is likely to be released in other countries such as the UK in the near future. With cash now being a be a potential carrier of COVID, a lot more people will be moving over to their digital currencies and will start avoiding cash completely.

Instead, Apple has for some time been able to deliver a simple double-tap and recognition so users can enjoy being able to pay up to £100 via contactless. Along with this, iPhones’ security continues to increase even to the point that if the phone is stolen – the money can’t be! With the sheer weight Apple has, it is likely they will roll out cards globally and capture a market which they could easily dominate; and even in collaboration with the fulfilment markets.

Amazon

Similarly, as with Apple, Amazon has also finally gained traction with Amazon Pay, which provides a checkout solution for e-commerce websites enabling customers to pay with their Amazon account.

The Amazon Pay website guarantees: “Your site, enabled with a trusted checkout experience”, which will certainly be appealing to sites considering the sheer number of Amazon subscribers globally.

Stripe

Lastly, as 2020/21 could be a period for some new IPOs and mergers to keep our eyes on, many are considering the US-based Stripe - a software developer orientated e-commerce platform. With American Express and Visa bolstering them, Stripe is a good option to jump on when they announce an IPO.

FinTech is still ‘new’ and as stated, there are some companies that will certainly make this their new century to a point where cash is in the past and most currencies will become ready-made app-based solutions. What COVID has taught everyone is to have a new respect for what and how we spend our worth. Those FinTechs that demonstrate that respect will ultimately win.

Regular people who had the courage to speculate were instantly transformed into millionaires, with access to all the wealth they could ever have dreamed of. These success stories were well documented in the media, and others were kicking themselves that they hadn’t jumped on the bitcoin bandwagon in the early days. But it might not be too late for other investors to make money from the cryptocurrency market. Indeed, with the e-currency now back down to a market value of around $7000, it could be the perfect time to invest.

The time has definitely passed for people to invest a small amount of money in bitcoin and become millionaires a few years later. The digital currency created by the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto is too well-known and has already broken into various industries as an accepted payment method. However, there is a chance that the value of bitcoin could spike again in the near future, and those who buy when it is at its current value could stand to turn a profit.

One of the best options right now may be to trade your bitcoin for other cryptocurrency assets. Because this is such a big industry today, there are actually apps that can assist you. This means you don’t have to follow the markets yourself. Bitcoin Loophole is a great example of one such service - a bitcoin bot developed by bitcoin investor Steve McKay, which is designed to allow manual and automated trading. It is easy to sign up to and has been lauded for its user-friendly features. For newcomers who don’t know much about bitcoin trading, this could be a good option to get in on the ground level.

How to Bag Bitcoin

Getting hold of bitcoin is quick and easy, and there are various websites that can help you access the cryptocurrency in exchange for your own. All you have to do is go through a few security questions in order to set up an account.

Once you have some bitcoin, you could choose to hold it or play the exchange markets in an attempt to turn a profit. If you want to sit on your investment, it is wise to store it in a hard wallet which can be removed from the computer and put in a safe location. This way, your assets won’t be vulnerable to cybercriminals. With this method, you have to hope that bitcoin will rise considerably in value again so you can cash in at a later date.

With bitcoin having reached highs of $20,000 in the past, there is no reason why it can’t push back to those levels at some point. Indeed, if the cryptocurrency can gain traction and break into the mainstream, the price could rise much further. Now could be the ideal time to invest in bitcoin and to start trading.

That may be true, but the rest of the 99.99% of things are quite heavy on the bank account. Between bills, school, food, children, girlfriends, wives, entertainment, and subscriptions, how can anyone keep accurate track of their money? Personal finance is the collective term used for managing your money at home. It encompasses everything from diapers to government bonds. Here are steps one must take to ensure that every cent is accounted for.

Seek Advice

Seeking advice is an invaluable tool for any person that wants to keep their personal financial plan on the straight and narrow. Find an expert you can extract information from and mold your strategies around these insights. If you don’t have access to a professional financial planner, MoneyTaskForce.com is a great tool to keep you up to date on trends and news. Big-time search engines also have their financial sections you can look at. The idea is to get a strong feel of how successful people work with their money.

Set Goals

Every person needs goals. A person without goals is probably not going anywhere. Same goes with money. Money is a means--a proof of value. What you do with it determines your wealth. Having a financial plan is crucial to this. Figure out what your goals are. Do you want that new motorcycle? Do you want to save enough to pay for your child’s college? Do you want to take copy-cat selfies in Bali with friends? None of these things can be responsibly done on a whim. Determine a series of goals and attach timelines to them. Have a short, medium, and long term goal. Short is within the year. Short is that vacation mentioned earlier and whatever other purchases you may take on. Medium has a range of five to ten years. Medium is that motorcycle and your eye on that nice apartment in the city. Long term is looking towards the horizon towards retirement. Having a solid plan to stay afloat during your unemployed golden years is always a good idea.

Set Up A Budget

Your primary tool to accomplish what you want financially is the budget. Your budget is a set guideline as to how much you’re allowing yourself to spend within a given time frame. It can be simple or it can be complicated. Like most things, the answer is somewhere in the middle. The Goldilocks quotient of any good budget means that you’ll be aware and somewhat challenged by the boundaries, yet not completely restricted. Ease of use still plays a factor in a financial plan. It’s not all about spending as little as possible. It’s about understanding your habits, curtailing the unnecessary ones, and rewarding the good ones.

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Create Safety Nets For When You Splurge

The tendency for anyone under an extremely strict budget is to accrue a feeling of entitlement. “I’ve been so good with my money, I deserve a night out.” This is dangerous. Anything you feel like you “deserve” is absolutely undeserved in the world of personal finance. That attitude primes you to go overboard and splurge way too much. Set up systems that ensure that you don’t go completely off the rails. A very common and highly effective way to do this is to squirrel away money without you even knowing. Have a relatively small percentage of your paycheck go to a savings account in a bank separate from where you have your checking account. Lose the account number. Lose the pin number. Lose everything pertaining to said account and just forget about it. This means you won’t feel the hit of this savings strategy, and you’ll have something to fall back on in case overdraft fees are in your immediate future. Make it as inconvenient as possible. That means that the only way to access that money is to physically go to a branch, wait in line, and retrieve it in person.

Pay Off Debt

Pay off your debt. It doesn’t matter how much money you have in your pocket, if you’re in debt, someone else owns that cash. Make an effort to pay off all your debt within a certain time frame. Let's say in your early years you took on a lot of debt to get life going the way you wanted it to. Pay extra on all of them, focussing on the ones with higher interest rates. Once the high-interest rate loans are paid off, pay that same amount total, but towards the other loans. For example, if you have three loans that each cost you $100 a month, pay that same $300 total towards the remaining two when one of them is paid off. This ensures that you pay off your debt as quickly as possible. It’s called the debt-paydown snowball effect.

Invest

Lastly, invest. Start investing and getting good at it as soon as you can. You have tons of options ranging from bonds to stocks, to real estate. The sooner you get into the investing game, the more you’ll focus on your long term goals and retirement. It’s never too early to start, but due to the nature of these plans, there is such a  thing as too late. You just have to choose the right one and tailor your plans around it. But be careful. There if you delve in stocks and bonds, there is a gambling aspect that is sewn into the system itself. Your goal is to buy low and sell high, of loan out big to get an even bigger return. Due to the fluctuations in the market, this may not work in your favor. But if you do it right, you’re looking at a lifelong habit of making significant passive income.

Gone are the days where things were primarily cash or check. It’s all card and recurring payments. It’s absolutely necessary for one to be on top of their money. Being financially responsible means the difference between knowing when you’re in the red and somehow finding yourself deep in it. Financial responsibility is the key to getting ahead of the game and making sure that you can live a good, happy, worry-free life for years to come. That is the essence of good personal finance.

This rings particularly true when it comes to the property market. Below, Jerald Solis, Business Development and Acquisitions Director at Experience Invest, explains.

Naturally, those looking to purchase a home (or several) in the coming months are speculating what Brexit will mean for real estate as an asset class. And whether you’re a first-time buyer or seasoned investor, keeping a watchful eye on the property trends that are currently shaping the industry will offer a good indication of future prospects.

Importantly, despite doom and gloom predictions from some quarters of the property sector, there is still plenty of evidence to suggest that appetite for bricks and mortar investment remains strong. In December of last year, the average cost of a home rose by 2.2% – the highest monthly growth in prices in 2018. Meanwhile, the total value of the UK’s housing stock reached a record £7.29 trillion in 2018.

So, for those keen to jump on, or move up, the property ladder in 2019, here are a number of the key factors to keep in mind.

Types of real estate investment

There exist a variety of avenues for property investment, and it goes without saying that some will be more suited to a buyer’s circumstances than others.

There exist a variety of avenues for property investment, and it goes without saying that some will be more suited to a buyer’s circumstances than others.

Buy-to-let is a popular option for many, offering the advantage of a monthly rental income alongside prospective growth in the capital value of the property over time. And in line with growing demand for housing across the country, there is an increasing number of specialist Build to Rent (BTR) developments emerging across the country, offering investors a clear path into the lettings market.

In fact, an analysis by Savills released in January revealed that there are now 139,508 BTR homes complete, under construction or in planning across the UK – that’s an increase of 22% over the last year.

Whether a BTR property or simply a house or flat that the buyer intends to rent out, one of the advantages of a buy-to-let investment is the flexibility it offers investors when it comes to leasing options. Of these, the two most prominent are professional single lets and student lets.

Professional single lets can be thought of as the traditional buy-to-let path; it involves renting out a property as a single unit to a working individual or family. The benefits here include consistent and predictable returns (as long as there are adequate allowances in place for costs). What’s more, the process of acquiring a mortgage for the purpose of professional single lets investment is also typically simpler when compared to other types of buy-to-let.

The other popular route is student lets. The student market can be a great way of getting regular income from a property, particularly due to a predictable student cycle that falls in line with the academic calendar. Students generally sign up for a specified length of time, so your returns will generally be predictable.

Where to invest?

Regardless of whether you’re investing in a property for the sole purpose of owning your own home, or using it as part of an investment strategy, it’s vital that buyers are aware of regions that offer the best prospects for capital growth.

For those pursuing the buy-to-let option, the importance here is choosing an area that will attract strong, year-round interest from people looking for accommodation. Key areas to be mindful of are thus popular student cities like Newcastle and Liverpool, as well as hubs that attract young professionals looking for promising job prospects.

For instance, in January of this year data from Your Move revealed that investors in the North are enjoying some of the UK’s highest percentage returns for their investments – with the West Midlands witnessing the largest monthly rent rise at 0.4%.

More generally, property buyers will always want to see their asset appreciate in value as the months and years go by. And while the UK market as a whole has delivered very strong returns in this regard for many decades – average house prices rose by more than £60,000 between 2008 and 2018 – it is worth noting that some markets are growing at a far quicker rate than other.

Identifying up-and-coming markets will help improve the investor’s chances of higher capital growth.

Identifying up-and-coming markets will help improve the investor’s chances of higher capital growth.

How to plan and action investment

It’s good to be aware of certain factors that might potentially preclude a buyer from obtaining the finance he or she needs to secure a property quickly, and without unnecessary hassle.

Property investors should, for instance, be aware of the tightening restrictions on mortgage lending from traditional banks – particularly in light of Brexit uncertainty.

To provide some relief for homebuyers, certain agencies are able to manage the entire buy-to-let investment process from start to finish. These agencies can offer suggestions of where best to invest, while actioning everything on your behalf and managing the investment in the long-term.

And especially when it comes to buying a new-build property, leaving the financing and management in the hands of an experienced agency can be much more convenient than looking after it yourself.

Especially when it comes to buying a new-build property, leaving the financing and management in the hands of an experienced agency can be much more convenient than looking after it yourself.

Looking ahead

Naturally, there are challenges on the horizon as the UK prepares for Brexit. However, bricks and mortar investment options are certainly growing, particularly with councils and developers stepping up housebuilding efforts to cater to rising demand for property.

Being aware of the nuances and advantages of each type of property investment – as well as identifying regions set to undergo strong growth in the coming months and years – will ensure that prospective homebuyers are well-prepared to seize upcoming opportunities in 2019 and beyond.

Hyundai Motor Company, South Korea’s largest automaker, has announced a partnership with Revv, India's fastest growing self-drive car sharing company to develop an innovative car sharing service and conduct creative marketing activities in India. The strategic partnership, including Hyundai Motor’s investment in Revv, sees innovative future mobility services gain the company’s first foothold in the Indian mobility market.

The strategic investment and partnership will enable both Hyundai Motor and Revv to build competency and the technology necessary for leading the future mobility market in India; an evolving market showing exponential growth, expanding from US$ 900 million in 2016 to US$ 1.5 billion in 2018, and projected to expand to US$ 2 billion by 2020. India’s 15,000 car sharing vehicles are expected to grow to 50,000 by 2020, and 150,000 by 2022. Furthermore, millennials, who are heavy users of car sharing services, comprise 35% of the total population of India. The market growth potential for mobility services is stronger than that of any other global market.

Gopika Pant & Vineet Gupta from Indian Law Partners acted as Legal Adviser to Hyundai Motor Company, Korea.