Blog & Articles
Simple investing
The Unbiased Guide to Offshore Investing for Expats
Discover how to invest in stock and bond funds (ETFs) as an expat – cheaply, quickly and sensibly. Maximise your saving power while you work abroad!
How to tame your monkey mind – the psychology of saving & investing
I have found a way for people to save and invest cheaply and flexibly. All that remains is to get your psychology handled. This is simple, but not easy. You have to train your brain to accept that yes, you will become great with money, you will stick to the path and you won’t let your monkey mind get in the way.
You can do it! A very concise guide to investing sensibly by yourself
Here’s a complete overview of investing by yourself, from mindset to transaction fees. If you go it alone, you’re going to have to find some knowledge and discipline. It’s worth it though, to avoid the hidden fees and exit penalties in the plans sold by most UAE banks and financial advisors. It has never been easier to invest cheaply and effectively by yourself.
The essential guide to low-cost funds and ETFs
This week, I explain how to invest with index funds and ETFs. There’s only space for 300-400 words, so this is probably the most concise guide I will ever produce. I had to leave a lot out, but what you’re getting here is exactly “the essentials”.
Saving - debt, income & expenses
How to avoid drowning in debt and escape forever from the debt swamp
I’m proud to serve on The Debt Panel of The National newspaper in the UAE, but it can be depressing. Almost every question is from someone who has over-loaded themselves with debt and cannot see a way out. This week’s question was a classic example of this.
Terrible savings plans (and how to avoid them)
UAE: gratuities, allowances and what makes a good employee saving scheme
The end of service gratuity is a relic of the old UAE that, along with the one/two rent cheque, hasn’t quite gone the way of
Why don’t people trust financial advisors?
Click to listen to Steve debate the trustworthiness of financial advisors… with the king of financial advisors. Recently the CFA Institute (which oversees the Chartered
What to do if your nest egg is locked up in a savings plan
Reader question – what to do if you find yourself trapped in a long-term savings plan.
Having invested into equity and bond funds over the last two years I can no longer put money regularly into my savings plan. I have some US$100,000 invested. What should I do?
Expert opinion: is it safe yet to get a savings plan in the UAE?
This is a great article from Thomson Reuters Regulatory Intelligence featuring us and many other voices of reason in the UAE market. It discusses some of the problems with the selling of personal savings plans here and why there is reason for cautious optimism about the future.
5 reasons why you should never invest in a long-term offshore savings plan
Financial advisors are often trying to get expats to invest in long-term savings plans. They sound good in theory but 99% of the time they are completely inappropriate. You will probably either make unimpressive gains or lose money. So just say no and tell your friends to say no too. Here’s why. Almost no financial advisor on commission is going to tell you this, which is why I have to.
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