7th March 2022

Smart money weekly; crypto donations for Ukraine, new online event series launched, how to invest smarter in a crashing market, regional property overcooked?

Ben Nash

Hey team,

Happy Monday.

In some interesting crypto updates this week, the Ukrainian government has received $US50 million in crypto donations and has already spent about $US15 million of it on military supplies such as bulletproof vests. The Ukrainian government anticipates the amount of crypto donated will double in the next two or three days. Most of the donations have been in bitcoin and ether. They’ve also received donations in Tether, Polkadot and Solana, along with hundreds of NFTs (non-fungible tokens), including a valuable CryptoPunk.

This has been an interesting development out of the continuing conflict happening between Russia and Ukraine. As I said last week, I’ll leave it to the experts to speak directly on the conflict but I’ll be keeping a close eye on the developments in this space and ultimately what this means for the value of crypto across the short to medium term.

Smart Money upside #58
Because people don’t often talk about the full ins and outs of their money, it’s hard to learn lessons from hearing what good and bad choices other people make. This story is from one of our clients to help you take your money game to the next level.

Numbers/Background
Couple 30’s, income ~$340k, total assets ~$2.5m, saving~ $12k annually

Frustrations
Not making the most of income, stocks/equity in the home and unsure as to what to do. Complete lack of confidence with personal finances. Not sure if selling RSU’s to pay off the mortgage and taxes or should we hold the stock so it grows. Overall concerns around a lack of diversification.

What they wanted from us / the advice process
How to maximise potential of RSUs and reduce hefty tax bill

What success looks like for them
Maximise potential out of their employer shares, clear tax minimisation strategy, have a clear plan that’s easy to follow

What money strategy they were following before we went through the planning process
Saving excess cash and holding on to RSUs

What money strategy they chose to pursue from our planning work
Clear banking management makes it easy to save, maximise super strategy to minimise tax, sell future RSUs and invest in a diversified portfolio to derisk.

Key benefits of going through the process
Having a banking framework that makes it easy to save. Superannuation strategy that minimises tax substantially at the end of every year. Switching to a Super that provides access to a range of quality passive investment options and has low fees. Clear strategy around RSUs to diversify and derisk.

Value of advice after all advice fees year one: $4,432
Year 20 upside after advice fees: $3,758,598

If this story resonates and you want to chat about how to get these sorts of results, you can book an intro call here.

Upcoming events:
We have a new series of events coming up over the next few months, covering everything from saving to building a second income, property, crypto, and hacks and mistakes we’re diving deep into the things you can do to get more from your money.

Event schedule and links to book here:

Giving update of the week
Last week we started working with an amazing business owner kicking a heap of goals and doing some great things in the community at the same time. Our conversations have reminded me of the power of business to change the lives of not only the people that work with any given business, but also the broader community and the world at large. So to celebrate, we’ve provided one year of business training and an attached microloan for 20 women in Malawi. This is part of our ongoing commitment to make a difference in the lives of our clients and simultaneously make an impact on our world through our partnership with B1G1 (Buy 1 Give 1). You can check out more information about our giving here.

Money Hack of the week: The future of regional property.
It’s not cool to admit it, but it’s true: Boring is profitable. It’s a frustrating reality of property investing, but investments that are less flashy and more stable often lead to more money in the long run. In this episode, Chris Gray and I shared our experience (and our clients’) with property investment in trendy regional areas. But, with trends comes volatility which mightn’t be your best strategy in the long run. Check out our full chat here.

Share market wrap
The ASX 200 fell 0.6% on Friday, tracking a global decline with investors on edge with developments in Ukraine, fears of escalating oil inflation, and a looming interest rate increase in the US. Over in the US, stocks continued to struggle with tensions remaining high in the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Consumer staples and utilities outperformed as is normal in a defensive market. Bitcoin is possibly down on realization it’s not exactly “digital gold.”

Key sharemarket numbers:

  • The ASX ‘All Ords’ (top 500 shares in Australia) finished the week 1.5% higher than last Friday, on 7,385.10 points.
  • The US ‘S&P 500’ (Top 500 shares in America) finished the week 1.52% higher than last week, at 4,363.49 points.
  • The US ‘Nasdaq’ (Top 2500+ mainly tech shares in America) finished the week 0.41 % higher than last week, at 13,537.94 points.
  • The Global FTSE ‘All World’ index (largest 3100 companies in the world) finished the week 0.42% higher than last week (Friday AEDT), at 7,238.85
  • The S&P Cryptocurrency ‘Mega Cap’ Index (tracking market value of Bitcoin and Ethereum) is currently at 4,482.05 for the month, down -0.22% for the month to date

Investment story of the week: Nanoveu Ltd (ASX: NVU)
NVU’s Principal Activity is the deployment of nanotechnology for consumer applications. The Company is developing a range of products for mobile phones and other digital displays. They’ve had several large jumps in its share price over the years, based on new products for its consumers. Nanoshield is a self-disinfecting film composed of PET foil with a special resin layer, containing an active copper component. The film has undergone scientific testing to guarantee its anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties. It has been proven to eliminate 99.99% of OC43, a viral strain affecting humans that is also a surrogate for COVID-19. This resulted in an 88% jump in the share price. Nanovue has also secured leading food and beverage solutions provider, Nestlé Professional as its latest customer. With its innovative products and the company’s continued desire for expansion, there may be a lot more room for growth for Nanoveu in the future.

Money mistake of the week: Operating with no savings safety net.
The idea of redundancy doesn’t usually make you think of flexibility and freedom, does it? With the money she’d been saving for years, Jacqui Mooney tells us how she was able to gain clarity following her redundancy and why putting money aside was a crucial step in her emergency planning. Check out our full chat here.

Jargon Buster of the Week: COMMON STOCK (Morgan Stanley)
A class of stock, usually having voting power, confers residual ownership of assets of a corporation after all liabilities have been satisfied. Known as ordinary share capital in the UK.

In the news: How to manage risks when in investing in a down share market
Three things have combined to cause a volatile drop in this particular share market – but it could be a good opportunity for would-be investors. Click through to read my downlow on news.com.au.

Podcast from last week: #158 Money chat w. Misa – How to align your money plan with your partner
In this session, I chat with Misa who has recently gone through the planning process with her partner. We talk about how they got themselves aligned in terms of the most important things to pursue with their money. How they tackled it being a couple and joint decision-making around their pathway moving forward as well as how they automated their savings to lay the platform for their financial success.

Be awesome,

Ben

PS: If you want a hand to get on the front foot with your money in 2021, check out our 45-minute one-on-one sessions here. We’re donating 100% of the money raised to charity, so you can up your money game and do something good on the planet at the same time.

Disclaimer:
I know you’re smarter than someone that would need me to write the words that come next, but our compliance peeps are real hard-asses so here we go… This information is not personal advice, poetry, or a map to where Jimmy Hoffa is buried. It may only be regarded as general advice, and definitely shouldn’t be considered something worthy of inclusion for Donna Hay’s next cookbook or the Archibald prize. This is actually just an email communication that has been sent to a bunch of people and doesn’t even have your name on it. Your personal objectives, needs or financial situation have not been considered when preparing this email, but I want you to know that I have spent a lot of time thinking about the Venn diagram intersection of poetry, landscaping, and essential oils – if you’re fascinated by this same phenomenon please reply so we can compare notes. You should consider the appropriateness of any general advice we have given you, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs, and if necessary, seek advice before acting on it. You should also consider other people when getting on and off public transport, smiling more, eating healthy, and listening to your mum when she tells you that you’ve been working too hard. Where the information relates to a financial product, you should obtain and consider the relevant product disclosure statement before making any decision to purchase that financial product. Where the information relates to a hilarious joke I’ve made, you should consider belly laughing deeply. Worth noting also that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance when it comes to investments, and definitely not when it comes to the Wallabies. Financial services guide. All jokes aside and just to be clear, this information may only be regarded as general advice. That is, your personal objectives, needs or financial situations were not considered when preparing it.  You should consider the appropriateness of any general advice we have given you, having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs, and if necessary, seek advice before acting on it. Where the information relates to a financial product, you should obtain and consider the relevant product disclosure statement before making any decision to purchase that financial product. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.