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?

<h3>What is Rise?</h3>



Rise is a product that connects Nigerians to foreign investment opportunities by offering Fixed Income securities, Real Estate, and stocks.&nbsp;



Several stock investment options exist in the Nigerian market, but they only offer stock options. We do two things differently. First, we act as a fund manager this means we don’t let you figure out which stocks to buy instead we invest on your behalf in expertly selected high-performing companies. Secondly, We have three investment channels depending on your risk appetite and they all offer decent returns.&nbsp;



<h3>Our Products&nbsp;</h3>



We offer three asset classes to help you create a healthy investment portfolio. You can invest in any <a href="https://rise.capital/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rise </a>product from as low as 10 dollars.



Fixed Income: Fixed income securities or eurobonds are investments that pay a fixed amount of interest within the agreed investment period. They are set for a specific period with guaranteed returns. The risk is lower than stocks and because of that, returns are also lower. Eurobonds are perfect for people with a very low appetite for risk.



Real Estate: This plan allows us to invest your funds into a portfolio of high-demand commercial properties. The risk here is higher than with eurobonds because several situations like a pandemic, for instance, can impact rental income. Because of this, real estate returns are higher than eurobonds but less than stocks because property prices are more stable but also don’t compound as rapidly or appreciate as quickly as stocks.&nbsp;



Stocks: Investing in stocks has the highest risk compared to real estate and eurobonds. With stocks, it’s possible to double your money in one year and it’s also possible to see the value of your investments drop within the same period. If you have a huge risk appetite and want to own a part of great businesses, this is for you.



<h3>Fees</h3>



We charge a management fee of 1.5% and 2%&nbsp; depending on how much returns you make on your investment.&nbsp;



If your returns are 10% or less we don’t charge anything. If they are more than 10% but less than or equal to 15%, we charge 1.5%. If you earn more than 15% in returns, we charge 2%.



<h3>Why we ask for BVN</h3>



First is because we can’t say no to the government. The BVN requirement is a government regulation that applies to financial institutions &#8211; banks, investment companies, and fintechs.



Secondly, your BVN is the easiest way for us to confirm your identity. Also, your BVN keeps your money safer by making it harder for your identity to be stolen.



What we do with your BVN



When you type in your BVN, we compare it with the government database to make sure it’s yours.&nbsp;



We don’t save it and we can’t use it to access your bank account(s) and we definitely don’t sell it.



<h3>Regulators</h3>



Rise members are secured through our cooperatives license, which allows us to invest on their behalf, and report holdings to the Lagos State Government. Our investment assets are held in our registered investment advisory entity in the US, in partnership with other regulated third parties. We also have an ongoing process with our investor ARM Holdings, as well as the SEC to set up additional regulatory frameworks for our cross border investments.



<h3>Withdrawals</h3>



Withdrawing your funds takes 3-5 working days. It takes this long because your funds are invested in the US so liquidating, converting, and processing takes some time which is a good thing because money is a delicate matter.&nbsp;



It is also for the safety of your funds because we have to run fraud checks for every withdrawal to make sure it’s the rightful owner making the withdrawal.



<h3>Steps to link your card or bank</h3>



Linking your card or bank account is secure and saves you the hassle of entering your information every time you want to fund your plan.



Step 1: Log in to your app and go to &#8216;Account&#8217;



Step 2: Select &#8216;Bank &amp; Cards&#8217;



Step 3: Click the &#8216;+ &#8216; symbol&nbsp;



Step 4: Enter card details and save&nbsp;



If you have further questions, please send us a message on hello@rise.capital, @risevest on Twitter, or join our telegram group <a href="https://t.me/joinchat/Pn2OtEcfd_RbzdkZiuOiTg">here</a>.

A Beginner’s Guide to Rise

Last month, there was no middle ground. Winners really won and losers really lost.



Despite the volatility created by the market’s reaction to the&nbsp;<a href="https://risevest.medium.com/how-does-the-us-elections-affect-my-stock-portfolio-370b5788b4a0">US presidential elections</a>, Rise stocks portfolio outperformed S&amp;P 500 in October, with our performance for the month coming in at 4.29% vs 3.48% for S&amp;P 500 in the same period. However, there was a lot of disparity in the performance of various stocks in our markets portfolio with the gainers up by a lot and our losers down by the same measure.



Here are the best and worst performers for the month of October.



<h2 id="3cee">Winners</h2>



<ul><li>Match.com (MTCH) &#8211; 16.96%</li><li>Upwork &#8211; 51.91%</li><li>TradeDesk &#8211; 20.02%</li><li>AB InBev &#8211; 22.03%</li><li>Adient &#8211; 26.31%</li></ul>



Most of our winners benefitted from a few trends including beaten-down stocks that reported solid revenue and profit numbers which provided a boost; strong companies benefitting from the continued shift towards online and remote work; and an improving macroeconomic outlook given the prospect of vaccines becoming available.



One of our favourite stocks and the best performer this month, Upwork, has continued to grow tremendously month on month as the market is catching up to its relatively lower valuation compared to their close competitor, Fiverr. We expect valuations for our top stocks to continue to grow into the year-end.



<h2 id="5a38">Losers</h2>



<ul><li>Fastly -14.96%</li><li>Alibaba -13.8%</li><li>Crowdstrike -10.54%</li><li>Wayfair &#8211; 21.3%</li><li>Shopify -15.44%</li></ul>



Majority of our losers are strong long term investments who faced market correction after running up so much. However, Alibaba faces more structural headwinds given its cancelled ANT Financial IPO, some challenges with the pandemic, and competition from JD.com, PDD and co. However, we continue to monitor their long term outlook and update our portfolio accordingly.



That’s our update for the past month and we hope to share more after this month. Rise always focuses on the long term and we will navigate market complexity to deliver outperformance for you. Start investing at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.rise.capital/">www.rise.capital</a>



Disclaimer: Rise Vest Technologies Limited and all of its subsidiaries are sharing this update for educational reasons only. Nothing in this update can be regarded as investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and all investments carry some risk. Investments are held by regulated partners in the relevant jurisdictions.

Performance update — Oct. 2020

Today marks Rise’s first birthday. From a founding team of 3 to a team of 20 and counting people, Rise has grown significantly and continues to do so.



We started<a href="https://rise.capital/blog/rise-news/cashestate-is-now-rise-yes-weve-rebranded/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> Rise</a> as a simple way of providing people living in Nigeria with dollar-denominated investments in the US and other markets to enable them to earn returns that make investing worth it. Today, over 40,000 Nigerians use Rise to invest globally (in dollars) across all levels of wealth, enjoying strong investment performance and beating inflation through their mobile phones.



Since we launched, we’ve been constantly awed by the reception from our users. It’s incredible the love you all have shown to us, how patient you’ve been as we have improved our product, how much you’ve shared<a href="https://rise.capital/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> Rise </a>with your friends, and how actively you’ve participated in our community. We are honored to have you in our corner and grateful to you for making our Year one exceptional.



Thanks to our tireless and incredibly dedicated team, we successfully completed two accelerator programs; LABS powered by<a href="https://www.arm.com.ng/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> ARM</a> in Lagos, and Techstars &amp; Western Union accelerator in Denver, USA. We learned so much and have received a great amount of support from investors, partners, mentors, and advisers.



As we celebrate our first birthday, we’d like to show you some of our key highlights:



<ul><li>We added dollar funding and withdrawals so you can now add your dollar card and withdraw in dollars as well.</li><li>Our Stocks portfolio has grown 28.6% YTD</li><li>Our Real Estate portfolio has earned 11.39% YTD</li><li>The second version of the Rise app is now in beta</li></ul>



Our mission to connect our users to the best investments around the world feels even more important today given how much uncertainty and turmoil the country is experiencing. We will continue to navigate and filter the global markets for the strongest dollar investments our users can invest in. Expect new asset classes, more in-depth explanations of why we choose the investments we make, strong outperformance, and simpler, easier ways of investing.



But most importantly, we look forward to watching you, our users, grow your portfolios and achieve more of your dreams, supported by Rise.



Thank you for a great first year. This is just the start, we can’t wait to see what the next years bring.



Love,



The Rise Team&nbsp;🚀

Celebrating 365 days of Rise 🎉

Come November 3rd, the most important political event in the world will take place &#8211; the US elections. Everyone is wondering who is going to emerge as the winner, Donald Trump or Joe Biden?



At Rise, we are pondering about that too but more importantly about what this election means for your investments and how it affects your stocks portfolio.



The U.S. presidential election can have a major impact on policy, laws and foreign relations. But how do presidential elections affect the market? And how does that affect you and your investment portfolio?



We know that the next few weeks are going to be very volatile but the investments we select for Rise are chosen because they have the ability to perform well and ride out volatile markets, even if their value might fluctuate in the short term.&nbsp;



Your investments in Rise are similar to ownership stakes in different businesses. If you own a strong, profitable and growing business, managed by competent hands and operating in a large market, you will not sell your business because of approaching elections, would you? To illustrate this point, take our positions in Visa and Mastercard, two of the strongest businesses around card payments and e-commerce. Profits have never been stronger, yet thanks to short term market volatility, they are down. So rather than panic and sell, <a href="https://rise.capital/blog/stocks/the-principle-of-buying-when-others-are-selling/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">we buy</a>. That way, when the market inevitably recovers, the value of your investments would be even higher.&nbsp;



 Related: <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://rise.capital/blog/stocks/the-principle-of-buying-when-others-are-selling/" target="_blank">The principle of buying when others are selling</a>



To quote a market veteran, Peter Bernstein, who lived through two market crashes, “time in the market is more important than timing the market.” Basically, as long as you are holding high-quality investments, then your best move is to focus on the long term and don’t try to time the market.&nbsp;



So how are we responding to the election volatility? We are keeping our eyes on the best investments on the market, and when their prices go down, we buy more of them. In the meantime, we are also increasing our market hedges to reduce the volatility in your portfolio. So when all this is passed, your portfolio will get stronger. You have nothing to worry about. You’re using Rise, so you know your investments are in the best hands.&nbsp;



Love,&nbsp;



The Rise Team

How Does the US Elections Affect My Stock 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: 



<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. 



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

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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;

Performance update — Oct. 2020

Performance update — Oct. 2020

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