It is easier for people to save than invest because savings have virtually no risk and are usually short-term unlike investing which carries some risk and should be long-term. Also, with savings, you just put money away but investing means putting money&nbsp;in&nbsp;something and that something requires thought. You want to know that whatever is invested in is healthy and can grow, so investing is rightfully more difficult than saving which is why a lot of people delay it or think they need to hit certain financial milestones before they start investing. Our advice is to start immediately.



<h3>Why You Should Start Investing Now</h3>



The rewards when you start investing early far outweigh the benefits of starting later because of the powerful force that is compound interest. 



People who <a href="https://rise.capital/blog/finance/the-goal-of-investing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">invest </a>at a young age are typically more likely to grow their wealth, become financially independent and reach retirement sooner than those who don&#8217;t. The first step in your journey to investing should be a strong financial education. It is never wise to make investments in financial products you do not understand or cannot explain.



Say there are two individuals who started working at age 20 and retired at 60, person A starts investing $500 right from her first paycheck while person B decides to hold on for ten years, investing $500 monthly from age 30.



At retirement, person A will have $2.8 million at an annual compounding rate of 10% thanks to a 10-year headstart while person B will have $1million. There’s an almost $2million difference in their investment value despite the fact that there’s only a $60,000 difference in capital invested. That’s the power of starting immediately.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://miro.medium.com/max/1134/1*qeuR5mCEFs7ujnmE0kYrvQ.png" alt="Image for post"/></figure>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://miro.medium.com/max/1446/0*U3nUr-SBvNuhkGw5" alt="Image for post"/></figure>



With investing, it’s not just the act but the habit you are building along the way. Plus, postponing it shortchanges you in the long run. The sooner you invest and maximise the power of compounding, the more your money grows and no amount is too small to start, that’s why at Rise, you can begin with $10.



We understand that investing can be daunting for newbies and experts alike because of how unpredictable the market is. With Rise, it doesn’t have to be. We don’t let you figure things out by yourself, instead, we invest and manage your money in a global portfolio of dollar investments.



Start investing today at&nbsp;<a href="http://risecapital.com/">rise.capital</a>.



Our telegram community surrounds you with others who can help you along your financial journey with tips, support, advice and learning. Join the&nbsp;<a href="https://t.me/joinchat/DTGhd0cfd_R5q8w_dC1KHQ">community</a>

When should I start investing?

Hello Riser, Please don&#8217;t be alarmed by the recent circular from the SEC about investment platforms trading in securities listed in foreign markets. Fintech is still in its nascent stages in Nigeria and it is the job of the SEC to protect public investors just as it is our duty to help you invest legally and safely. Rise has always made sure that we are in full compliance with all regulatory requirements and the recent announcement from the SEC is no exception. 



We do not enable the direct trading of stocks by individuals. Still, we are in touch with all the relevant stakeholders to ensure that we continue to stay on the right side of regulations. Be assured that your investments in Rise are secure and safe and that we will continue to be proactive about regulations and compliance. 



Thank you for your support The Rise Team

About the latest SEC circular…

You&#8217;ve heard that the best return on investment comes when you invest over the long term. In fact, there&#8217;s a graph that best illustrates that.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pC_zfGRkLNf45vyzsEcyD8D1oYTcKWsgK5Y0gww4jhY4ldb9McnC2Z5Pib8-Kts8lf6QoKU1nZ6BnjUwJLERPwpaKFKojwYdzdoazMKrJs63j0c9PDiBycZSnFQ9028RVTvqyw-j" alt=""/></figure>



The reality is that investing your money in any plan, with the mindset of keeping it there for decades something that’s done for fun. It&#8217;s a difficult task. We either end up not doing it or we break the cycle. And frankly, there&#8217;s no quick fix for that, it&#8217;s human nature.



However, there are some things that others have done to help them navigate such long term goals that are difficult to achieve.



In this article, I’ll be uncovering 3 things you can do to help you navigate your long term investing goals.



<h2>Narrowing your focus</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/OW4sYz8BhCT5xoasEAcJyBf39NH5VWVs_Q1iPAfyZpqvOyv8lj0r1WRUJjWWxA7sK76KFgZw6h5DeNdConx2ZCKtwDeOnWI5pCWbzQGNIyxPa2PBGA3v1WNNf-FjDsW7zeTUmI6z" alt=""/><figcaption><a href="https://th.bing.com/th/id/Rde483e326083800ae103ee74c1a94464?rik=%2b4ZA%2bnMgB23vXw&amp;riu=http%3a%2f%2fwww.trbimg.com%2fimg-5970cc58%2fturbine%2fct-joan-benoit-samuelson-chicago-marathon-20170720&amp;ehk=exUmNL%2bcNQg%2fGqQLVxsRKlVguQUOrdJadcnIGTs4V0Q%3d&amp;risl=&amp;pid=ImgRaw">Photo credit</a></figcaption></figure>



Joan Benoit Samuelson was the first women&#8217;s Olympic marathon champion, winning the Gold Medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She ran for 26 miles in 3:02:53. Before that time, women were not allowed to run the marathon. Joan Benoit Samuelson&#8217;s landmark victory was the beginning of a changed narrative. Since then and till now, a lot more people have run the miles well under 3 hours.



When asked how she was able to run that long miles in the time she did and with much energy remaining, her answer was instructive. She said something like ”what she does is to use some kind of narrowed focus, she chooses a target ahead of her and pursues that target alone per time. It could be the pink short of somebody running ahead or a visual beacon she can see in a distance. And then she narrows down on those as the target. She reaches that and sets another and another until she reaches the finish line.”



So she takes the 26 miles and breaks it down to smaller nearby competitions.&nbsp;







The same effect of narrowed focus has been seen to help when pursuing long term financial goals. 10 years is a very long time to keep your money invested but 1 year is not long nor is 6 months. What you can do to help you achieve a 10 years financial goal is to:



<ol><li>Forget about the 10 years</li><li>Focus on a shorter time frame eg. 6 months or 1 year.</li><li>Set target savings and investment that can be achieved within a year. Then work towards achieving that alone.</li><li>When you achieved the 1-year goal, set another 1-year goal.&nbsp;</li></ol>



Doing this, you will realize that all you have before you is just a 1-year goal repeated 10 times. Oftentimes, this approach has worked for a lot of people and it may work for you if you try it as well.&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/9g4ysAuLQCzQOiuqS9hdVcSFmy5prRVhtB36jN5WA8-ECN4QnxHZWE9cjzzlkQKM8TJT9rKwAsCz_dZIHDekhql4w3G9prXegnCAF740svEQ2oV10tRsmDpuNWuzfXp50GxjKpuW" alt=""/></figure>



A Recommendation: Rise makes implementing this approach very easy for you through an Auto Invest option and the period is created for the Fixed Income and Real Estate plan. You can easily set a target investment for a year in a plan and automate the debit to remove the hurdles of doing it yourself.



<h2>Materialize the long term&nbsp;</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/hab583boJBW7KPc5FhWB-N7-CZijUtcpgbBQ3owcO6BPpkHZ38zObVchS7mTrZW6qOZhrwjIJMzrbVEJT71iCgt4Hqpd7oe91Tv-9ugRPPz26Jz5KQBJHzvWWJN6ORdMRuYnCzeS" alt=""/></figure>



<a href="https://image.winudf.com/v2/image1/Y29tLmRhaWx5Lmhvcm9zY29wZS56b2RpYWMuZmFjZW15c3RlcnkucGFsbWlzdHJ5X3NjcmVlbl8wXzE1NjQxNjMzMTlfMDU4/screen-0.jpg?fakeurl=1&amp;type=.jpg">Photo credit</a>



In an experiment conducted by Prof. Emily Balcetis of New York University, she asked her students whether they&#8217;ve started saving for retirement or not. 92% of them said, ”They have not thought about retirement.” This was despite the fact that they had jobs and the advantages of starting early far outweigh starting tomorrow<a href="https://rise.capital/blog/when-should-i-start-investing"> when to start investing</a>.



When Prof. Emily Balcetis asked why they weren&#8217;t thinking about retirement, their common answer was that ”it was too far off” considering they were just entering the real world (first-year work).



Then she took their photographs and used photo morphing software to try and create what they are likely to look like at old age. Then she printed it and handed it over to them so they could see what they are likely to look like at retirement. Then she gave them time to look at it and to jot down what they would be doing at retirement, what hobbies they will have and who they will be with among other things.



After the activities, she turned to each of them again and asked if they will start saving for retirement immediately from their next paycheck. A vast majority of them replied yes this time around.



What happened to the students in this class is a common phenomenon among humans and that includes you. 30 years from now is very far but when we materialize what we will like to be doing in 30 years and what our condition might look like, in a way the period will seem not too far away anymore.



That&#8217;s why this second point comes in as a handy strategy to help you focus on the long term.



It is much easier to save and invest towards your dream home even if it takes 15 years than it is to just save and invest for no clear material benefits for 15 years.



In light of the above, we encourage you to attempt putting a material goal towards all the plans that you are creating.



Instead of naming your plans ”savings” or ”investment”, give it names like ”graduate education”, ”children college education”, ”$20,000 house project” and the likes. That way, you tend to be committed to your plan and be disciplined enough to not interrupt the cycle. We think you should try this.



<h2>Your future self is still you</h2>



This last point lends itself to groundbreaking research by Hal Hershfield, a psychologist at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He wanted to know why people weren’t saving for retirement. So he did something uncharacteristic.



Hershfield and his team <a href="https://www.apa.org/action/resources/research-in-action/scan">scanned the brain</a> of the participants in their research and found something interesting.



The same reaction that the brain has when confronted by some unknown person asking you for money is what it has when you are told to save and invest for the future. In other words, the longer the term of investment, the stranger you appear to yourself. So you tend to make decisions that benefit you today more easily than you would make decisions that will benefit you tomorrow but hurt you a bit today.



Just like you wouldn&#8217;t go hungry or inconvenience yourself to put food on the table of a stranger, you will also not endure such to benefit your future self whom your brain equates to a stranger.



<h2>What&#8217;s the way out?</h2>



Solving a problem starts by identifying it and that&#8217;s what we&#8217;ve done. One of the most effective ways to reverse this working of the brain to constantly remind yourself that your future self is in all ways still you. You literally have to do that.&nbsp;



Other things you can do are



<ol><li>Making it easy for your Future Self to do whatever it is your Present Self doesn’t want to do &#8211; instead of saving 50% of your income for the sake of some 10 years goal, save just 5%. Instead of saving for 10 years, save for 1 year 10 times.</li></ol>



<ol start="2"><li>Employ the tactic of instant gratification &#8211; instead of 09 “c9 the benefits of achieving your 10-@year goal to 10 years from now, set some reward metrics that you can benefit from immediately. For example, when you save with Rise, tweet about it. Another thing you can do is join the Rise affiliate program and take pleasure in helping others to achieve their financial goal.</li></ol>



Long-term investing is hard and we recognize that. All the stories and strategies that we&#8217;ve shared so far confirms that and proves that it is not a one-person problem but a humanity problem. Our hope for sharing these 3 strategies is that if one doesn&#8217;t work for you, the other will work or a combination of others will work.

Long-Term Investing is Hard: Here are 3 things to help you make it easier.

<h3>When people ask you what you do, what do you tell them?</h3>



I’m a digital education architect and I curate remarkable learning experiences. I’m also currently doing my masters in Digital Teaching and Learning.&nbsp;



<h3>What does financial wealth mean to you?</h3>



It means to have enough that is sufficient to do whatever I want to do, It is not necessarily about having billions or millions of naira, but it is about seeing myself doing several things without worrying about how to pay for them.&nbsp;



<h3>How did you start investing?</h3>



Few days after my induction as an occupational therapist, a doctor friend spoke to me about investing. The conversation was about my plans for the income I’d be earning from my internship.



I have always loved to save money, so my instinct was to reply with “I will save it”. He suggested I instead seek investment options.&nbsp;



I also read books such as “Richest Man in Babylon” and “Smart Money Woman” and I got clarity on what to do. I took an investment course that explained stocks and money markets to me. With the knowledge gained, I started by investing in the money market with one of the banks, then I put some money in Agric too.&nbsp;



<h3>What was the first thing you invested your money in?</h3>



It was mutual funds, Stanbic mutual funds. That was the first thing because it was the safest. I think it is always best to play it safe while you are figuring out your risk appetite.&nbsp;



<h3>How do you approach investment today?</h3>



I am still a bit of a medium to a high-risk investor, but I lean more to medium than high. I do not dabble in things I do not understand. If I do not understand it, I do not invest in it. for example, I have known about Crypto since 2018, but I have not jumped into it because I feel like I don&#8217;t know enough, even though I am now curious and open to exploring it.



Also, I do not enjoy checking my investment daily, so any investment that is going to require me to check daily, I do not invest in it.



And when I say high risk, I mean I have no issue with putting my money into stocks, even though stocks can be crazy.



<h3>What tools do you use to invest today?</h3>



Risevest and Bamboo are the only two I use right now.&nbsp; I am looking for other options in other currencies.



<h3>What investing hill are you willing to die on?</h3>



If it looks like a scam, smell or sounds like a scam, It is a scam.&nbsp;



<h3>Since you started investing, what has been your wildest gain?</h3>



Nokia stock was one of the first stock I bought early last year. I just bought it because it was cheap at the time and it is Nokia. I am a bit sentimental about Nokia,&nbsp; When I bought the stock, I would just check once in a while, then I checked the stock some weeks ago during the surge in Gamestop stocks, and there was a 92% increase in the stocks.&nbsp;



I also think fondly about when I put money in RiseVest and left it for over a year and when I came back to it, I was impressed.



<h3>So, has there been any loss?</h3>



Of course, there are days when everywhere is red, but I mean, I do not see it as a loss because I am not withdrawing it at that period



<h3>So, there has never been a time that by the time of maturity, you have made a loss on your investment?</h3>



On an investment, no.&nbsp;



&#8230;&nbsp;



Wait! Sometime in late 2016 or early 2017, I put money in a forex &#8220;investment&#8221; run by one <a href="https://naijagists.com/btd-investment-scam-oau-dropout-turned-forex-billioanire-bowofade-adewuyi/">BTD</a> company in Ife, even though at the time I didn&#8217;t think of what I was doing as investing. I made some returns that I rolled over, even got my family members on board and then, they started having issues with payments and that was the end of all our monies.



I even visited the office and thought I had done my due diligence, but alas, hahaha. I realise I didn&#8217;t even know what their business model was. Anyway, I&#8217;m grateful it was a lesson I learned before I started earning more money.



<h3>What is the hardest decision you have had to make?</h3>



I am already a low spender and I cannot say depriving myself of certain things because if I were not investing, I still would not be spending my money, I would be saving.



<h3>Before you started investing, is there anything you wish you had known earlier?</h3>



I guess I would have loved to have started investments in dollar-denominated currencies at the start, I removed my money from naira instruments immediately I noticed that my returns were reducing. They were just sliding a fraction above the inflation rate and I said, “if I leave my investment like this, I am going to lose”. If I had known from the start, I would have bypassed naira investments. I still have a soft spot for Agric companies, but I would have passed on the whole mutual funds and gone straight to the dollar investment without hesitation



<h3>What does a dream investment look like to you?</h3>



I think a dream investment to me is doing 50% in stocks, like good stocks probably run by funds or something and real estate. Yes, it will be a mixture of real estate and stock, with a very small fraction of euro bond. Then I think at some point I would like to invest in art. Those seem like a good way to invest, buy them and hope that they appreciate them in a few years.&nbsp;



<h3>How does your dream investment compare with your reality today?</h3>



I think it looks similar to it,&nbsp; but I do not have enough money yet.&nbsp; I am currently building my way there though.&nbsp;



<h3>How do you feel about your investment position generally? Do you feel good? Do you feel proud? Knowing that you started in 2018</h3>



I think I am happy that I started then because I made a career shift which also affected my income, but I was happy that I already knew about investment. So even when my income was drastically reduced, I still found my way around making it work and still being able to put something aside.



 I am open to learning more that is why I like the culture around Rise and investment education. I mean Rise even goes beyond investment education as they keep us updated on everything. Yes, I am happy with where I am, but I know that there is still so much more I can learn, so much more that I can know.



<h3>What will you tell a beginner about investment?</h3>



First, read investment books, I recommend The Richest Man in Babylon, and Rich Dad, Poor Dad.&nbsp; I know some people give Rich Dad, Poor Dad a lot of flak but there is wisdom worth picking from the book. So always read.&nbsp;



Secondly, do not invest in anything you do not understand, and I say this because sometimes I tell people about RiseVest and I say if you don’t understand please get me to explain it to you before you invest. You must understand and get a hang of it before you start investing. So, do not invest in it if you do not understand it.&nbsp;



Thirdly, don’t forget: if it smells like a scam, looks like a scam, feels like a scam, do not invest in it because it is a scam.



One last thing is to invest in places where you can always easily communicate with the team members. I withdrew from an investment; because it took them so long to respond to emails that I sent to them and it was not comfortable for me.

“Invest In What You Understand”: My Name Is Jennifer, And This Is How My #MoneyRise

This month, only two companies from our portfolio reported earnings, CrowdStrike and Asana.



CrowdStrike&#8217;s earnings report was so solid that we couldn’t wait until month-end before writing about it. If you missed it earlier, please <a href="https://rise.capital/blog/crowdstrike-delivered-a-phenomenal-q4-result">read it here</a>.&nbsp;



<h1>Asana</h1>



<h2>3 highlights</h2>



<ul><li>Revenue grew 59% YoY.</li><li>Customers spending $50,000 or more on an annualized basis in Q4 grew to 397, an increase of 92% year over year.</li><li>The dollar-basedDollar-based net retention rate for customers with $5,000 or more in annualized spend was 125%.</li></ul>



There’s a high likelihood you don’t know what business Asana is doing. Asana is a work management platform, it enables teams to organize work, from daily tasks to cross-functional strategic initiatives. With its products, Asana enables individuals to manage and prioritize across&nbsp; each of the projects. Its products enable individuals to collaborate with teammates and have visibility into each team member’s responsibilities and progress. Think of it as a combination of Slack, Airtable, and Google Docs.



Asana enables executives to communicate company-wide goals, monitor status, and oversee work across projects to gain real-time insights into which initiatives are on track or at risk. Asana is powered by its multidimensional data model called the work graph. The work graph captures and associates units of work, the people responsible for executing those units of work, the processes in which work gets done, information about that work, and the relationships across and within the data.



Asana is a SaaS (Software as a Service) company and operates a B2B business model. In the fiscal year, 2021 revenues grew 59% year over year and its total paying customers count reached 93,000. It also recorded over 85% growth in revenues year over year from customers who spend $5,000 or more on an annualized basis.



Founded in 2008 by Dustin Moskovitz, ex-facebook co-founder, the company went public in October 2020 with a market capitalization of $4.1 billion. Today, the market capitalization is well above $4.5 billion, a 10% growth from IPO.



Its impressive full-year result has made it a subject of communication on social media already. A (well) <a href="https://twitter.com/awilkinson/status/1376985854229504007?s=20">former competitor also did a long thread on Twitter</a> about how impressive the business has become.



In the fiscal year of 2021, revenues were $227.0 million, an increase of 59% year over year. GAAP operating loss was $175.6 million, or 77.3% of revenues, compared to GAAP operating loss of $119.6 million, or 83.9% of revenues, in fiscal 2020. Cash flows from operating activities were negative $92.9 million, compared to cash flows from operating activities of negative $40.1 million in fiscal 2020. Free cash flow was negative $76.0 million, compared to negative $44.6 million in fiscal 2020.



Asana falls under the category of a growth stock and the nature of such business is a sustained loss period until it reaches a critical inflexioninflection point. With unparalleled execution by the team and a clear vision about the strategic direction of the company, we believe that Asana’s potential will be realized as an addition to our portfolio.



<h2>Some other financial highlights:</h2>



<ul><li>Ended the year with over 93,000 paying customers and 1.5 million paid users.</li><li>Customers spending $5,000 or more on an annualized basis in Q4 grew to 10,174, an increase of 55% year over year.</li><li>Customers spending $50,000 or more on an annualized basis in Q4 grew to 397, an increase of 92% year over year.</li><li>The overallOverall dollar-based net retention rate in Q4 was over 115%.</li><li>The dollar-basedDollar-based net retention rate for customers with $5,000 or more in annualized spend was 125%.</li><li>The dollar-basedDollar-based net retention rate for customers with $50,000 or more in annualized spend was over 140%.</li></ul>



<h2>Non-financial highlights</h2>



<ul><li>Named #1 in the Workplace category in Fast Company’s prestigious annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2021.</li><li>Launched new product features, including Asana Goals; Project Overview and Brief; Asana for Operations, Sales and Account Management; and new integrations with Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Jira, Salesforce, Tableau, and PowerBI.</li><li>Expanded the Asana Together community program to more than 2,000 members across 94 countries.</li><li>Topped the G2 Enterprise Grid® Leader quadrant for the third year in a row and earned the #1 spot in the 2021 Grid® Report for Project Management.</li><li>Ranked a Best Workplace by Fortune, Inc., Glassdoor and Built In NY &#8211; including the #1 Best Workplace in the Bay Area for the fourth consecutive year.</li></ul>



<h2>Financial Outlook</h2>



For the first quarter of fiscal 2022, Asana expects:



<ul><li>Revenues of $69.5 million to $70.5 million, representing year over year growth of 46% to 48%.</li><li>Non-GAAP operating loss of $44.0 million to $42.0 million.</li><li>Non-GAAP net loss per share of $0.27 to $0.26, assuming basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding of approximately 161 million.</li></ul>



For the fiscal year 2022, Asana expects revenues of $309.0 million to $314.0 million, representing year over year growth of 36% to 38%.



We remain fully invested in Asana and look forward to another full year report on how the company would perform.

March Portfolio Companies’ Earnings Report

This is an article that you need to read immediately before you make any decision about your investment at such a time as this.



If you have been checking your stock investment returns in the last few days, you will see it’s been negative returns all along. And we know you may be worried but we would like to tell you that you don’t have to worry.



Negative returns on your stock plan simply mean assets in the portfolio are getting cheaper. Well, that’s one perspective, another person may choose to see it as declining in value.



The right perspective though is actually that it is getting cheaper. The value of the companies in our stock plan is intact. They are still executing on their mission and growing revenue and cash flow. And there’s been no news or any form of information to suggest otherwise.



However, when assets get cheaper, there’s bound to be panic. The panic sometimes leads to people making costly decisions. Decisions like pulling out of the market instead of running into it. And decisions at such a time as this are always what determines your investment success or otherwise.



As you know, we have always advocated that keeping a long term view is the best way to get the best out of the market. In the short term, the market goes up and down. In the long term, the only clear thing is the market going up.



<h2>Think about this scenario:</h2>



<ul><li>You own 1 unit of a stock that’s currently worth $1,000</li><li>Then the stock is down by 20% to $800</li><li>Out of panic, you sold that one unit to “cut your loss”. So you now have $800.</li><li>You planned to get back to the market when growth is restored and everywhere is green again.&nbsp;</li><li>But the market only recovered slowly and then suddenly such that you now have to buy the asset at even a more expensive price. Which means you lose the advantage of selling to cut your loss. That is it will now cost you more than $800 to buy one unit of the stock again.</li></ul>



You think that’s not possible, we think it’s not only possible, but it’s also the norm. However, staying invested in the market has an advantage. And the advantage is in ensuring that you do not miss the “days that matters”.



<h2>“Days that matters”</h2>



In <a href="https://am.jpmorgan.com/us/en/asset-management/adv/insights/retirement-insights/guide-to-retirement/">research</a> carried out by JP Morgan, analyzing data between January 2001 to December 2020, 20 years. It found that missing 10 days in the markets could cost you 50% of your potential return. And missing 20 days out of 5,000 trading days within 20 years could mean you won’t make any return from the market at all.



You see, while there are about 250 trading days a year and 5,000 trading days in 20 years, a major portion of a stock&#8217;s return in that 20 years happens in about 100 trading days. This means what happens in 2% of the days decides your 5,000 days return. Since it’s difficult to foretell what those days are, staying invested with good companies is the only advantage. And that is exactly what we offer you at Risevest &#8211; a portfolio of quality companies.



JP Morgan’s research modelled a scenario where $10,000 was invested from 2001 to 2020. Then adjusted for the assumption that an investor misses a couple of days that matters. Below is the difference in the outcome from the findings.



<figure class="wp-block-image is-resized"><img loading="lazy" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/NDaea5_UjdplHD22olckl3Bw0PrZU_Zf0qTiU-XJd0sHuAWGoskuKq1ON0wuYaBfu9DfVVAi97aYowJoHCqfVtttbyETCnRiR1kHVboIHapEyKD_mRUUpDfAaqs1feA7K8jfIHn8" alt="" width="524" height="368"/></figure>







While this is a compelling finding, what we find even more instructive is the note that accompanied the research from JP Morgan. “Seven of the best 10 days occurred within two weeks of the 10 worst days, six of the seven best days occurred after the worst days and the second-worst day of 2020 – March 12 – was immediately followed by the second-best day of the year”.



From the example of the investor above who liquidated their asset to “cut loss”, what do you think is the probability of them not missing a day like March 12 above? Very likely they will miss it, you guessed right.



This is the reason why we teach that having a long term view of your investment is the best. And we also like to emphasize that your time in the market matters more than your attempt to time the market.



Don’t time the market, just trust the process and ensure that you have a long term view. Having a long term view will of course mean the money you are investing is not your emergency fund or some amount you need within a few weeks or months.

Market Downturns Might Be Good For You, Here’s Why

Often, we tend to have all kinds of money at hand – our savings, some else&#8217;s savings, our rent, school fees, the category goes on. When an investment opportunity shows up, the urge to make a good return may sometimes push us to invest all sorts of money which often puts us in an unhealthy financial position.



Some money is untouchable, not because you won’t make a return on investing them. Rather because of the non-alignment between why you invest and those kinds of money.



The money you will need in a short time







Investing this kind of money exposes you to the risk of liquidating your investment when it is not due yet thereby paying a charge or liquidating it when the asset price is currently down. Asset prices don’t always go up, they fluctuate daily. You might end up needing that money on a day that it is trading at a price that will make you lose money. Don’t do it.



Money for a defined purpose other than investment







In this category, you have money like school fees, house rent, your emergency fund, and the likes. Notice that all the examples I mentioned here are money whose timing isn’t in your control. You can need your emergency fund immediately with no room for a delay. When your rent is due, you risk embarrassment if you do not pay up. And for school fees, you don’t want to be kicked out of school or want your children embraced for non-payment of school fees. Don’t invest this category of money as well.



An important caveat to that though, if the money is such that you are saving it for another due date which is months away e.g. rent in 12 months or 24 months, by all means, please invest. However, such should also not be placed in a very volatile asset class. Availability of this category of money when they are needed is key.



The money that is not yours







This point is important because of similar risks I’ve mentioned above. If you are the type that usually has someone’s money with you, the temptation might be high to “quickly make use of it” or to quickly invest it and make a buck on it. If you’ve done this well enough though, you would have learnt that it’s a bad idea as the person who kept the money with you tends to need such money when you don’t have them immediately. Thereby, forcing you to take a loss or other non-monetary loss (e.g. embarrassment). Even if the money is kept with you for a long time, as much as possible, resist the urge to invest it. Invest your own money alone.

You Should Never Invest These 3 Categories Of Money

In 2020, our stock investment plan returned 40.77% while the real estate while the fixed income plan returned 16% and 10.1% respectively. Anyone seeing this would have wished that they invested all their money in the stock plan to get the maximum return possible. But is that the most efficient way to grow your wealth? What happens when stock performs poorly or real estate performs poorly?



Stocks don&#8217;t always go up. The best performing asset at any point in time can also be the worst at another time. Thinking about your investment principles, you shouldn&#8217;t just consider how to make the maximum return in the market. It should also be about how to cushion storms when they come.



Ray Dalio of Bridgewater, the largest hedge fund in the world that manages over $150b developed a portfolio idea in 1996 called the All-Weather Portfolio.



The idea is that you should be able to build a portfolio that will stand in all weathers. Ray Dalio&#8217;s team concluded that there are 4 kinds of weather; rising growth, falling growth, rising prices (inflation) and falling prices (deflation). The weather that we seem to have right now is that of rising growth where the stock market is skyrocketing. But if there is one thing history has taught us, it&#8217;s that all weathers only last for a while before another comes. Hence, the need to be prepared for all weathers.



A portfolio that will stand in all weathers as popularized by Ray Dalio is divided as below:



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/Y0epuRT2QXSFSDIDAtfc06IpxqcR5K5JdPRbFnnES9rJBgHeLXBwhxuq7vKNjkPXUW6FKFnzUrA5MY3kQS7ZFZbIBm4hqCtNro_1WzSAg2setcPStJ63jdVTzDo3OR9jJects27Y" alt=""/></figure>



Since 2006, a simulated all-weather portfolio compounded at an annual rate of 8%. Compared to the S&amp;P 500 at 8.5%. However, the maximum drawdown on S&amp;P during this period was 32% compared to 18% on the all-weather portfolio.



The logic behind the principle is first a portfolio with sufficient diversification, then what the asset should be diversified in. Also, it should be such that reduces drawdowns while maximizing upsides. The challenge of course is that you will not get the maximum return in the market but you will have great sleep at night in all kinds of weather.



<h2>Building an all-weather portfolio with Risevest</h2>



When we conceived the idea of Risevest, prosperity for our people was the prime goal. It is our driving force and it is what we optimize for. The implication of this is that even if we see an opportunity that can give the maximum return in the market but could as well potentially cause catastrophic wealth erosion, we would rather not invest in such an opportunity. <a href="https://risevest.medium.com/gamestop-or-long-game-eacb67a7a136">GameStop comes to mind here</a>.



That’s why on the Rise app, you’ll realize that we have more than one investment product. We have fixed income, real estate and stock. The idea is to give you enough product to build an all-weather portfolio.



To build an all-weather portfolio on the Rise app, there are two options.



<ol><li>Building All Weather Portfolio With “Build Wealth” Feature</li></ol>



On the Rise app, you would have noticed a “build wealth” feature and maybe you have even used it. When you tap to create a “build wealth” plan, we will ask you a couple of questions after which we will show you a portfolio mix that will fit your risk profile.



The recommendation we make for you is such that it fits your risk profile and that can stand all kinds of weather. Also ensures you have great sleep at night as you build wealth.



And yes, you can edit the recommendation to accommodate your thought and judgement. The idea is not rigidity but expert advice plus flexibility. With such a plan if you keep adding to it as you planned, you are set to build wealth in all kinds of weather.



A pie similar to what “build wealth” will give here as well.



<ol start="2"><li>Build The All-Weather Portfolio</li></ol>



The other option to create the all-weather Portfolio is for you to build it yourself without the use of our “Build Wealth Plan”. It involves deciding which percentage of your investment should go to fixed income and which should go to real estate and stock as you may deem fit.



Constructing such a portfolio would require more effort from you but it is not impossible. We have seen a lot of others like you doing it. What’s important is that you think in terms of an all-weather scenario and invest in terms of that.



Markets are up at the moment but markets don’t always go up. Investments behave differently depending on how the market is. With a portfolio consisting of different asset classes, you are set up to have the cushion to forestall any drawdown that may threaten to wipe your wealth away.

How To Use Risevest To Build An All-Weather Portfolio

<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/KAr98hzK6a943eyp4g0PjN-gu9qIBkVMuqrQzGVknCLp4LXCajL8rqUtdq7zhbu-VStYVTnJ2JvCKelu7e4yTF0s0uIj4WW8UBhOEd8fxOkrKdU5-2HvvvQuZ9c3Iujj2HilQe1b" alt=""/><figcaption><img loading="lazy" width="624" height="309" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/KAr98hzK6a943eyp4g0PjN-gu9qIBkVMuqrQzGVknCLp4LXCajL8rqUtdq7zhbu-VStYVTnJ2JvCKelu7e4yTF0s0uIj4WW8UBhOEd8fxOkrKdU5-2HvvvQuZ9c3Iujj2HilQe1b"></figcaption></figure>



Data from matrotrends.com | Analysis by Rise



The image above is the historical stock price movement of Apple in the last 5 years adjusted for all <a href="https://www.thebalance.com/understanding-stock-splits-3141376">stock splits</a>. If you draw a line from the origin to the current position (as we’ve done), you will get a straight line moving up from the origin.&nbsp;



That&#8217;s what we all want; an asset whose price is always going up. But does that exist? A look at historical prices of different assets shows that this doesn&#8217;t exist. All assets increase and decrease in price depending on prevailing circumstances. Yet, this straight line underpins the principle of buying when others are selling.



What we see in that graph is a perfect line with an upward trajectory, however, you can see from the highs and lows that reality is not often a straight line.



Let’s take a closer look at one of the lows. In September 2018 the Apple share price peaked at $55.6 and started declining. It never reached that peak again until a year later in September 2019.&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/dpCBAxgJ42nIL3B-la805H14wRWruZ0B6XqWS3ofn4A9y1leTi4UMo6wl5_AgKfepXgT9xI98N3tc8gRrEOX1GoE39uBK-8uAjUBh0W9MPrg7ANKlBUdNeXzXKWDXHVJsS65iZ2v" alt=""/></figure>



Data from matrotrends.com | Analysis by Rise



Yet, experts say you should keep on buying when others are selling. For the uninitiated, you know others are selling when the price of an asset is declining. It means more people are ready to drop that asset than people are willing to buy it. However, seeing your assets (portfolio) value decline every day for a year is not fun.



Let’s run through some numbers.



Assuming you bought one unit of Apple Stock every day between September 2018 and September 2019. What will your finances look like at the end of the period?



There were 272 trading days in the time under consideration. If you bought a unit of the stock every day, it means you will own 272 units of Apple Stock at the end of this period. Despite the ups and downs, nothing particularly changed about the share price. It only fully recovered and if you draw a line from the beginning of the period (September 2018) to the end of it (September 2019), you will obtain a perfect horizontal line (see the red line from the image above)



However, because you were buying all along, especially when others were selling, your 272 units of stock will be worth $15,100 even though it cost you $13,000 to buy them. A whopping 16% return during a market downturn.



<h2>Where did the 16% return come from?</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/65hmEsRnxD6kJd4O-Oz9ZMY1XPea4yqURUT86OALdM6UaRk_jQpwgRx_QLoHV3-1aT7glYZ1JbhWfGcE0htsD6CXBmPy_mtu_vhOdzs__jd6J3u0E3-6TNZx3VzzBwkzQ85RpLay" alt=""/></figure>



Data from matrotrends.com | Analysis by Rise



It came from doing the difficult thing &#8211; buying when others were selling. In the case of Apple Stock, it recovered its price and grew, the units you bought at the lower price made up and produced a return on your investment up to 16%.



Please note that while we have chosen to use a single stock as an example, the principle is largely applicable to most stocks.



Also, note that not all Stocks recover. Some decline for as long as 5 years before they can get back to their previous all-time-high. For example, Microsoft had a five-year decline between <a href="https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/MSFT/microsoft/stock-price-history">2000 and 2015</a>.



The million-dollar question is how do you know which stock will recover? The truth is that it&#8217;s very difficult to know. Many have burnt their hands buying when others were selling because they bet on the wrong stock. That&#8217;s why we encourage you to contract that part of the job to us. We have a team of dedicated experts whose responsibility is to ensure that only quality assets are in your portfolio; all assets go through a rigorous selection process that <a href="https://medium.com/@risevest/how-we-select-stocks-for-our-equity-portfolio-146da9df9032">we recounted here</a>.



When you choose a stock plan with Rise for instance and you see the value declining, you should be happy because you get the chance to buy that asset for a lower price than you did yesterday. And when you combine buying when others are selling and leaving the job of choosing what you buy to us, you are poised for rewarding long-term returns.



So yes, buy when others are selling because it balances out in the end. On our part, we invest your funds into a portfolio of expertly selected stocks based on their long-term growth opportunities and quality earnings.&nbsp; For instance, our Eurobond portfolio returns 10% on average, a return higher than the industry average and our Real Estate portfolio has also consistently produced a return greater than 10%. The same goes for our stock portfolio which has performed better than the S&amp;P 500 year to date.&nbsp;



Buying stocks is equal parts knowledge and temperament. By yourself, you will make a lot of spur of the moment decisions so your long-term outcome will be unsatisfactory. But if you stick with Rise, we have a certain level of objectivity and experience, and the right disposition to make your outcomes better.&nbsp;



Visit <a href="http://rise.capital">rise.capital</a> for access to the best stocks.

The Principle Of Buying Stocks When Others Are Selling

Everyone feels cheated when they get to the market and the price of rice has increased without an equivalent increase in the quality or quantity of the rice. We make remarks like &#8220;Nawa oo&#8221;, &#8220;what&#8217;s the meaning of all these now&#8221;, &#8220;why is the government doing this?&#8221; and many more similar remarks. What we are basically not fine with is the general increase in the price of commodities and services &#8211; inflation.



Imagine a bag of rice cost N15k in 2017 and you kept your money, say N15k (the price of a bag of rice) with someone to safeguard and you returned in 2018 to get the money but instead of getting the N15k, you were paid N25k (the new price of a bag of rice). On the surface, your money grew but its value dipped. You haven’t made a real gain. All you got is still a bag of rice, the same you would&#8217;ve gotten in 2017, for almost double the price.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-default">A real gain will be a gain above the price of a bag of rice in 2018. If you&#8217;d gotten N26k instead of N25k, your real gain would have been N1k</blockquote>



We dislike inflation because it erodes the value of our hard-earned money, shrinks our purchasing power and reduces our standard of living. We&#8217;ve used the example of a bag of rice to illustrate this but inflation applies to all things in the economy and that is why there&#8217;s usually an official rate of inflation for every economy. Currently, the inflation rate in Nigeria is 12.82% while it is less than 2% in the US.



<h3>What has inflation got to do with your investment?</h3>



Your goal of investing should be:&nbsp;



<ol><li>Getting a return that is above inflation rate i.e. real return and</li><li>Increasing your purchasing power</li></ol>



A thin line separates these goals. By now, you understand what real return is from the bag of rice analogy.&nbsp;



If the inflation in a given economy is 2%, any return on investment above 2% means the investor has earned a real return. The inflation rate in Nigeria as at August 2020 is 12.82% and it has averaged 15% between 1960 &#8211; 2019 and 12% since 2000.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/k_bIWCAIP9diqSq3dB9OL3ekMWVky4iD-kLHT2Db3Bu1Vt96bWG2Ig6Yv4LnJ1Ge56lJY430vlWJPAbKi8qGuBcQ7CecUjVeCGnW4AAHpgXhG7Mr4qPY1OvKLIzQNx5MnU2GZL40" alt=""/></figure>



Data from <a href="http://www.macrotrends.com">www.macrotrends.com</a> | Analysis by Rise



Going by the data of the past 19 years, the implication for the Nigerian investor is that they must allocate their capital in a way that will give them a return that is greater than the average inflation rate of 12% over the same period and beyond.



Getting a return above the inflation level will help in fulfilling the second goal of investing. It basically translates to having enough to buy other things after buying the bag of rice (increased purchasing power). That is, a return that ensures you have an amount greater than N25k in our imaginary scenario. That way, you will have some change after purchasing a bag of rice to buy something else.



<h3>Where to get the maximum returns</h3>



Nigerians can’t rely on Naira based assets because of double-digit inflation and devaluation affect the currency. Two examples are the Nigeria Stock Market and Government Securities.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/6NGXVIY_j0YlUrz5rRTlxhDd33vWPNx-JbkL6KnGxb3xB44qBsywGGaZpgvJE_qrFfQIBqjLh07JkRRFT-oqkoSaCNQO5f4SpgT1ZMa4YVj5DFOwe2O1L3G2bXxlK0ikBkBTR5SD" alt=""/></figure>



Historical data of the Nigeria market index shows that if you’d invested N30,000 in the market index in the past 11 years, you would be worse off today as your money is not even up to N30,000 anymore. Of course, we’ve said nothing of the value of the Naira currency in question. 



The message here is simple, The Nigerian stock market doesn’t accomplish the goals of investing. It does not beat the average inflation rate of 12% nor increase our purchasing power over the years under consideration.



The other alternatives are investments in Government securities. The latest 10 &#8211; year bond securities offered by the FGN offer a ROI of 12.5%. Going by our average inflation rate, that&#8217;s just enough to cover for inflation over the period. What&#8217;s unknown is will the value of the Naira remain the same in 10 years time?



<h3>How Rise can help</h3>



We saw how inflation makes it difficult for Nigerians to build wealth and decided to create the product suited to address this situation. The investor in Nigeria is faced with 3 major problems, devaluation of the currency, inflation and low ROI on investment options. We created Rise to provide a cushion for these problems.



<ol><li>Rise invests your money in dollar-denominated assets. The implication of this is that devaluation immediately begins to work in your favour instead of against you. With more devaluation, the value of your investment increases.</li></ol>



<ol start="2"><li>Rise invests your money in an economy with a less than 2% inflation rate. Implying that all it takes to have a real return on your investment is about 3%.</li></ol>



<ol start="3"><li>Rise investment plans give a minimum of 10% return on investment on the average. That&#8217;s well above the inflation level of the economy it is invested in.</li></ol>



With Rise, if you start investing say $500 every month into the assets we select for you, here&#8217;s what your long term journey will look like.



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/qNG7xwJ9CO3jybO38GlUsBFte3o_ZMaB1bQQ7lkOysFqoQPAAd8dh-KCPnHF1JP9nA0RYHbOYsJq0_u-kzcoybEQm335ZzZ16K-c6DTCZZhTmdp1DvGetEBEkQBhhv7ctRrCn4ui" alt=""/></figure>



If you hold for like 30 years, even though you would&#8217;ve only contributed $180,000 to Rise, your investment with us will be worth $1.13m by then.



Rise’s goal has always been about you, helping you to attain your investing goal with ease. You don&#8217;t need to do the work of selecting assets, Rise has experts and algorithms to do this for you. Select a plan, automate it to invest a specific amount from your account monthly and we&#8217;ll take care of the rest.



Visit <a href="http://rise.capital">rise.capital</a> to start.

The Goal of Investing

The coronavirus infection has been spreading across the world since the inability to contain it within China. It has since affected several countries across South East Asia, and cases have been identified in 44 countries in total, including Egypt and Algeria. 81,000 cases have been identified, and about 3,000 deaths have occurred, most of them in China. However, more<a href="https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/"> new cases</a> are now springing up outside China, than inside it.&nbsp;Today, it&#8217;s first case was recorded in Nigeria. 



The major fear of coronavirus is not the risk of mass deaths, as the virus itself has not proven to be very lethal. The fears are that lack of a cure or effective vaccine may lead to the virus developing resistant strains. However, the real big fear and the reasons markets have reacted so strongly to this outbreak is that it risks disrupting supply chains that a lot of companies around the world rely on.&nbsp;



Around the world, a global supply chain, just in time inventory and far flung logistics channels means that most companies rely on other countries and locations for the inputs they need for their business. And most of that supply chain is centred around China and SouthEast Asia, which is ground zero for this outbreak. Companies like Apple, Nike, Amazon, Disney, General Motors, Walmart, etc all rely on Chinese manufacturers and suppliers for a lot of their inventory, parts, logistics, orders and more. The coronavirus by forcing activity to shut down threatens to impact the profitability, performance and even viability of several companies.&nbsp;



This means that profits and sales will be lower, manufacturing will halt, a lot of critical industries may be impacted. For instance, a two-week disruption in a simple parts supply chain for a car manufacturer may impact other activities in their entire value chain leading to massive delays or misses in their targets, which could swing them from profits to loss. A 3-month delay or shut down in business could mean losses for the whole year. With the bull market having run up so high, recession fears have increased with the threat of this disruption.&nbsp;



How should investors respond? First is that if you’re holding high-quality stocks in growing companies then the dust will eventually settle. Nothing lasts forever, especially not a viral outbreak. And if your companies are solid, then they’ll continue to do well long after. So don’t panic. Don’t sell off because your portfolio is down. Instead, continue to invest consistently. Treat your investments like a monthly bill and buy in these moments when stocks are cheap.



Second, diversify. Don’t fill your portfolio with only stocks. On Rise Vest, you can invest in <a href="https://rise.capital/blog/stocks/stocks-101/">stocks</a>, real estate and fixed income giving you a strong, diversified portfolio that can withstand market corrections.&nbsp;



Finally, take the long view. If you are investing with a long term mindset and horizon, temporary fluctuations in the market will be easy to ignore!&nbsp;



Your health is right up there on the list of things with care about. To stay safe, please:



<ul><li>Wash and sanitize your hands more frequently.</li><li>Always sneeze or cough into a tissue. </li><li>Wear a facemask if you have a cold.</li></ul>



<a href="https://m.rise.capital/xEYL">Rise</a> is our app that gives you access to dollar denominated offshore investments across US stocks, US real estate and fixed income.&nbsp;

How Corona Virus Is Impacting Global Markets

It’s Black Friday shopping season and as I’m sure you’ve all noticed, retail and shopping outlets have started advertising eye popping deals to entice buyers. 
Here at MoneyRise we want you to make smart money decisions, so we are going to share some quick tips about how to make the most of the Black Friday deals. If you use this season well, you&#8217;ll get really great deals at prices that save you money! 
<ol>
<li>
<h4>Don&#8217;t Buy Anything Just Because It&#8217;s On Sale: 
</h4>
 
If you buy an item worth ₦10,000 for  ₦7,000, you did not save  ₦3,000, you spent  ₦7,000. Don’t be enticed to spend money you were not going to spend. Only spend money on what you already need. Which means you should have a list of what you want to buy, and stick to it. That nice blender selling for 40% off is not meant for you, if you already have a blender at home. Don’t play yourself. Be disciplined.</li>
<li>
<h4>Not Everything Is Cheaper On Friday: </h4>
Don’t just think, &#8220;Well, its Black Friday, so everything I buy is probably cheaper.&#8221; It doesn’t work like that. Some outlets don’t do deep enough discounts. Some intentionally inflate their supposed original price to make their discounts look deeper than they are. To get the best deals, do price comparisons ahead of time, check many sites to know what a fair price is and if you’re actually getting a good deal or not. Bonus points if you already did this weeks or days ahead of time.</li>
<li>
<h4>Have A Shopping Budget: </h4>
Please there is life after Black Friday. There is the Christmas season, and that three-month period between December 31st and January 31st. We all know that period. You need your money to last through all that. So know exactly how much you can put towards your Black Friday shopping and once you hit that amount, stop. Ties right back to point one. Don’t get carried away.</li>
<li>
<h4>Some Things Are Cheaper Offline: </h4>
Black Friday seems to be an eCommerce driven activity. There are often better deals in the physical store, or in the open market. I’ve seen bargain hunters go offline, and find items at prices that make Black Friday deals look like daylight robbery. It may not be as convenient as ordering, but the savings might just be worth it. Another advantage of shopping offline is that you can leave your ATM/Credit card at home and only go with the money you’re willing to spend. If it’s gone, you’re done.</li>
<li>
<h4>Save As You Shop: 
</h4>
 
If you’re going to spend during shopping season, use it as an opportunity to also save. For every  ₦5,000 you spend on shopping, invest  ₦5,000. It helps you avoid the guilt that comes with shopping, and also keeps something away to grow and possibly fund your future purchases. </li>
</ol>
One of the smartest things you can do with your money is to earn dollar returns on it with Rise. Get started at <a href="http://www.rise.capital">www.rise.capital</a>.
Come back next week for more tips on how to be smarter with your money.

How To Make The Most Of Black Friday Shopping

<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" width="1024" height="524" src="http://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-1024x524.png" alt="" class="wp-image-304" srcset="https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-1024x524.png 1024w, https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-300x153.png 300w, https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-768x393.png 768w, https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-370x189.png 370w, https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1-760x389.png 760w, https://money.rise.capital/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Rise-Social-Media-20-1.png 1291w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



There’s been a lot of talk lately about buying stocks, trading stocks, investing in stocks, stock market etcetera. So you can’t be blamed if you are currently wondering, what even are stocks? Well, let us help you answer. 



Stocks are small units of ownership in a business that you or anyone can purchase. When you purchase one of these units or stocks, you become a shareholder in the business, meaning you own a small piece of the company whose shares you&#8217;ve purchased. Another name for stocks, then, is shares. 



The primary reason people choose to buy stocks or shares in any business is so that they can earn a return on their investment into a company. There are two ways you can earn returns from stocks:



<ol><li>Dividends. These are payments made to shareholders out of the company’s profits. They’re typically paid four times a year. However, some organizations may pay dividends twice a year or once a year. They can be paid to you in cash, or you can reinvest them to buy more shares in the company.</li><li>Capital gains. Stock prices appreciate if the market values the business higher, and falls if the market values the business lower. Like any other commodity of value, stocks can be bought and sold privately or on stock exchanges. Hence, if the price of your shares in the business becomes higher than what you bought them for, you can then sell the stock for a profit if you’d like. The profit you make from the difference is known as capital gains. </li></ol>



Despite the economic ups and downs, the stock market has consistently proven to be a good place to invest and save for your future. When you invest in stocks, you&#8217;re putting it into a business which, if it is a good one, should grow in value and give you a lot more than you invested in the long run.



Rise exists to provide seamless access to global, dollar denominated investments — in this case, stocks in high quality companies trading on the US stock exchanges. Our platform is designed to help you invest steady amounts every month while your funds are invested and managed by our experts, so you can focus on living your life.



To get started, visit <a href="http://www.rise.capital">www.rise.capital</a>, join the waitlist and get early access to the mobile app.



Come back next week and we&#8217;ll talk more about how stocks work and how you can better invest in them!

Stocks 101

Stable currencies are to investments what stew is to rice. For the best results, they absolutely have to go together. This is because your investments are supposed to be long term and if your currency is constantly being devalued, then no matter the returns you’re earning on them, your investments are probably losing, rather than gaining value. The best way to mitigate this risk, therefore, is to save, invest and earn your returns, in dollars.&nbsp; 



<h2>What does Devaluation Mean?</h2>



Devaluation is the deliberate reduction of the exchange rate of a country&#8217;s currency relative to another currency. It is done for a number of reasons that are beyond the scope of this article, but mainly it helps the central bank manage its balance of trade. Devaluation is both a consequence of and a contributor to high inflation. For you as an investor, the combination of naira devaluation and high inflation means that your investments are generally losing value unless they’re in an appreciating currency like the dollar.&nbsp; 



<h2>Historical Record</h2>



The history of the naira against the dollar has been a story of a consistent downward slide in value. In fact, between 1972 and today, the naira has lost 12% of its value every year on average.&nbsp; This means that your investments have to be out earning that loss every year just to stay even, pushing you toward riskier investments. By investing in dollars, you’re immediately retaining that 12% loss in value, and then any additional gains in dollars translate into a real increase in your investments. Or put simply, investing in dollars will vastly improve your long term performance. 



<h2>More than Dollars</h2>



Beyond just having your investments in dollars, you should consider adding foreign investments to your portfolio. This allows you to invest in an appreciating currency, and in assets that are completely immune from local economic shocks and tap into larger, faster-growing economies where you can make more in the long run. 



<h2>How Rise Comes in…&nbsp;</h2>



Rise is a product that allows you to automatically invest in global dollar investments straight from your naira account. &nbsp;We make dollar savings and investment easy and convenient with minimums as low as $10 (N3600) and assets ranging from US real estate, US stocks, fixed income and more. This means you’ll invest like the ultra-wealthy, and earn stable returns and never experience naira inflation or devaluation again.&nbsp;



We’re the dollar-denominated hedge fund that everyone can be a part of. Start your Rise today on <a href="http://rise.capital">rise.capital</a>.&nbsp;

Long-Term Investing is Hard: Here are 3 things to help you make it easier.

“Invest In What You Understand”: My Name Is Jennifer, And This Is How My #MoneyRise

When should I start investing?

Long-Term Investing is Hard: Here are 3 things to help you make it easier.

About the latest SEC circular…

All News

“Invest In What You Understand”: My Name Is Jennifer, And This Is How My #MoneyRise

About the latest SEC circular…

March Portfolio Companies’ Earnings Report

Market Downturns Might Be Good For You, Here’s Why

Most popular articles

“Invest In What You Understand”: My Name Is Jennifer, And This Is How My #MoneyRise

About the latest SEC circular…

March Portfolio Companies’ Earnings Report

Market Downturns Might Be Good For You, Here’s Why

Learn more about investing

Market Downturns Might Be Good For You, Here’s Why

You Should Never Invest These 3 Categories Of Money

How To Use Risevest To Build An All-Weather Portfolio