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Post by rodge on May 7, 2021 1:58:39 GMT
Resurrecting an old thread here.
So I’ve been buying and selling for a few years and have accumulated a decent amount- enough to buy a weekend driver if I wanted.
I made some decisions to sell when it wasn’t going anywhere but more than got my money back- thanks Ethereum. I also missed the boat on some huge gains by selling too early- thanks again Ethereum.
However I bought Bitcoin when it was at its low last year and did ok there and bought Doge in February and sold enough to get most of my money back while still keeping 90% of what I bought. It’s currently up something like 1200% on my initial investment.
Either way, it’s been fun watching the markets go up and down and over the last 3 years, across all portfolios (shares included) my money has increased about 400%.
Way better than anything else I could have got but not in quantities that will enable me to retire or buy a Ferrari.
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Post by ChrisM on May 7, 2021 6:27:56 GMT
I've tried to have Bitcoin explained to me many times, I still haven't a fucking clue! It's like investing in foreign currency of a fictitious country. You have no idea what may make the exchange rate go up or down
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Post by PetrolEd on May 7, 2021 10:03:34 GMT
Maybe I'm the fool for not getting involved earlier but I still don't see how there is any substance to any of these currencies and therefore I'm oot.
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Post by johnc on May 7, 2021 10:34:52 GMT
If you have loads of money and can afford to speculate (and possibly lose) say £50K then I see Bitcoin as potentially being able to create life changing gains. However for most ordinary people who would get a bit pissed off if they lost £1K or £2K, I still think the risks are too high and it really is a matter of luck and not judgement if you make a good gain. I'll admit that I have nowhere near 400% gains overall on my pension or ISA over the last 3 or 4 years. A few stock picks have made 500/600% and one is at over 2,000% but many are languishing down in the 20/30% range with an overall return of c50%. However this includes regular contributions which effectively reduces the percentage returns on those stocks I had 4 years ago. In any normal circumstances I would be delighted with that return so I am just going to keep my head and continue to do what I am doing.
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Post by PetrolEd on May 7, 2021 10:48:16 GMT
If you have loads of money and can afford to speculate (and possibly lose) say £50K then I see Bitcoin as potentially being able to create life changing gains. However for most ordinary people who would get a bit pissed off if they lost £1K or £2K, I still think the risks are too high and it really is a matter of luck and not judgement if you make a good gain. I'll admit that I have nowhere near 400% gains overall on my pension or ISA over the last 3 or 4 years. A few stock picks have made 500/600% and one is at over 2,000% but many are languishing down in the 20/30% range with an overall return of c50%. However this includes regular contributions which effectively reduces the percentage returns on those stocks I had 4 years ago. In any normal circumstances I would be delighted with that return so I am just going to keep my head and continue to do what I am doing. Wow you obviously know what your doing, all tips and hints are more then welcome.
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Post by Martin on May 7, 2021 11:07:03 GMT
If you have loads of money and can afford to speculate (and possibly lose) say £50K then I see Bitcoin as potentially being able to create life changing gains. However for most ordinary people who would get a bit pissed off if they lost £1K or £2K, I still think the risks are too high and it really is a matter of luck and not judgement if you make a good gain. I'll admit that I have nowhere near 400% gains overall on my pension or ISA over the last 3 or 4 years. A few stock picks have made 500/600% and one is at over 2,000% but many are languishing down in the 20/30% range with an overall return of c50%. However this includes regular contributions which effectively reduces the percentage returns on those stocks I had 4 years ago. In any normal circumstances I would be delighted with that return so I am just going to keep my head and continue to do what I am doing. Wow you obviously know what your doing, all tips and hints are more then welcome. +1! I’ve done well with buying shares in my employer, but that’s as far as I’ve gone. I bought some when they dropped in value last March, just wish I’d been more confident and put more money in and also stuck with them for longer, but I made the decision to get out when I’d doubled my money (they are now closing in on 3x) which is what I did. So I can’t complain, especially as I’ve had a decent amount gifted as part of a retention deal that releases a % each year and they’ve obviously benefited from the increase, but hindsight is great!
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Post by Tim on May 7, 2021 12:24:07 GMT
I bought some shares in a lithium miner - car batteries aren't going away - and that turned out to be a flop I've never looked at crypto, mainly because I just don't understand it, but I know a couple of folk who have done quite well out of it. One put about £5k into Bitcoin and is currently sitting on £50k. I don't think my nerve would hold out that long, especially for an investment that has been so volatile in the past and is massively influenced by 1 person (Musk).
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Post by PetrolEd on May 7, 2021 12:53:03 GMT
I was thinking of putting some money into Argo Blockchain but think I'm a bit late to the party. They are a bitcoin miner and are on the LSE so at least assume they have some credibility.
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Post by Big Blue on May 7, 2021 14:26:00 GMT
I’ve gained and lost several tens of thousands in the past 6 years and am currently up. I’m never going to get to the position where I buy a private island so at the end of last year I transferred my focus from share earnings through price changes to share earnings through dividend. Last year was a good time to do that as some long term div payers were oversold and the div percentages are way above what they should be in percentage terms on my outlay plus the prices are stable / going up.
Overall the major markets are like betting on flat races: there’s form, pedigree and a bit of chance. The AIM market is like the jumps: all form is out the window when there’s a fall and I only ever bet on the gee-gees when I can afford to lose without concern. My share portfolio is no different.
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Post by Tim on May 7, 2021 14:45:10 GMT
AIM is like going to Ladbrokes for the first time with no research!
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Post by PG on May 13, 2021 12:22:42 GMT
I’ve gained and lost several tens of thousands in the past 6 years and am currently up. I’m never going to get to the position where I buy a private island so at the end of last year I transferred my focus from share earnings through price changes to share earnings through dividend. And the best way to multiply your money is always to reinvest our dividends. Until you need to live on them to retire (in theory), when the capital gains should deal with inflation and you can take the income. Well Bitcoin has had a hit this morning as Elon has decided he will not be accepting Bitcoun to pay for Tesla cars. It finally dawned on him that Bitcoin (and most other virtual currencies) use vast quantities of electricity to mine / create so are really a bad environmental deal.
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Post by PG on May 13, 2021 12:25:51 GMT
I've tried to have Bitcoin explained to me many times, I still haven't a fucking clue! It's like investing in foreign currency of a fictitious country. You have no idea what may make the exchange rate go up or down I am sure that if Douglas Adams had put a Bitcoin equivalent into Hitch Hikers' Guide to the Galaxy everyone would have found it very amusing.
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Post by Tim on May 13, 2021 12:28:33 GMT
I’ve gained and lost several tens of thousands in the past 6 years and am currently up. I’m never going to get to the position where I buy a private island so at the end of last year I transferred my focus from share earnings through price changes to share earnings through dividend. And the best way to multiply your money is always to reinvest our dividends. Until you need to live on them to retire (in theory), when the capital gains should deal with inflation and you can take the income. Well Bitcoin has had a hit this morning as Elon has decided he will not be accepting Bitcoun to pay for Tesla cars. It finally dawned on him that Bitcoin (and most other virtual currencies) use vast quantities of electricity to mine / create so are really a bad environmental deal. Hasn't the rest of the world known that for several years? Next thing will be that he discovers that the raw materials for batteries doesn't actually grow on trees but has to be dug out of the ground by poorly paid guys who have no H&S representative!
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Post by Big Blue on May 13, 2021 12:35:49 GMT
I’ve gained and lost several tens of thousands in the past 6 years and am currently up. I’m never going to get to the position where I buy a private island so at the end of last year I transferred my focus from share earnings through price changes to share earnings through dividend. And the best way to multiply your money is always to reinvest our dividends. Until you need to live on them to retire (in theory), when the capital gains should deal with inflation and you can take the income. Yes that’s about it. I’ve gone from “gung-ho risk taking young buck” to “ this will serve me in retirement better” in one fell swoop.
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Post by Deleted on May 13, 2021 17:16:42 GMT
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Post by Stuntman on May 13, 2021 18:42:58 GMT
I have still never invested in cryptos but I have watched their gains most enviously. My own savings and investments are about 10% in cash, 10% in precious metals and 80% in world stock markets. It has been an eventful ride over the last 15 months but holding your nerve is usually a very good strategy.
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Post by Martin on May 13, 2021 19:30:33 GMT
I’m way more risk averse than I should be, which hasn’t changed as it probably should have done as I’ve got more savings and less need to touch them. So my savings and investments are about 40% in cash, 35% in shares, and 25% in Range Rover! The cash amount will reduce when I eventually sort out a small extension and new kitchen, although what I should really do it stick it on the mortgage as the rates as so low and invest the cash instead....
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Post by rodge on May 14, 2021 5:18:13 GMT
I bought Doge earlier in the year and made the decision in the last 2 weeks to sell a lot of it. I only bought $800 worth, so sold enough to get that back and then sold more that gave me another $1500. I’ve currently got about $1400 left at its current value which isn’t bad for a few months investing. Not buying more of it as I want to leave it to see how well it does or doesn’t do. Taking the approach that I’ve trippled my money in 3 months, also taking the approach that I wish I had invested more... but chickened out.
Was talking to a client who has been with his company for over 37 years, but he left after 34. He’d bought shares all his life in the company and they were invested in his retirement fund. Then the company wanted to exchange them for other shares- something strange that’s to do with how they manage their 401k as it’s called.
He quit his job as he was one of the 30-40 employees who had over 100,000 shares, then worth about 1.1 million. He rejoined the company last year and got his current position and still has all those shares. They’ve dropped in the last 2 weeks but are hovering around $130 each now.
Not a bad return!
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Post by Alex on May 14, 2021 8:09:12 GMT
Reading this makes me wish I knew something about investment rather than having all my savings sat in an ISA which now has an interest rate of 0.3%. Looking at moving ISAs is barely worth the effort. I dont mind having a go at the stock market but dumping several grand on a cryptocurrency seems like the sort of gamble that's probably not that safe for beginners even though a punt on Doge in January this year looks like a pretty good bet in hindsight.
I'm loathe to put anything in a long term pot for now though as I might need to use it given that my daughters ongoing mental health issues mean I'm probably going to have to take some time off work to look after her.
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Post by Big Blue on May 14, 2021 8:28:16 GMT
Alex: you couldn’t do any worse by simply changing your ISA to a stocks and shares one and buying blocks of shares that have long term dividend paying history. Last year was the first year HSBC didn’t pay one for 70 odd years and there was total uproar on the HKSE. Shell is another one and like all oil companies are seeking to move their industry focus from oil to maintain market position. Even the past two years of div will be better than 0.3% and prices are stabilising after a year of plunging hemlines.
That said all this is just gambling of a sort and money is actually for spending as well so a balance of secure savings, insane savings and buying nonsense is required.
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Post by Tim on May 14, 2021 8:39:16 GMT
I took the plunge last night and invested a mighty £40 into a crypto currency. It's doing really well, my portfolio is currently valued at £37.34
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Post by PetrolEd on May 14, 2021 8:49:09 GMT
Lost 30% on Crypto in the last week so proves I know nothing and should stick to stuff I understand.
Elon Musk must be laughing all the way to the bank. I'm surprised Bezos hasn't announced Bitcoin as legal tender on Amazon so he can influence the market and make a killing, bail out of his position, tell everyone infact Bitcoins crap, let it drop 50% and pick up all the scraps. Frightening the level of influence the super rich can have.
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Post by PG on May 14, 2021 17:57:24 GMT
...Well Bitcoin has had a hit this morning as Elon has decided he will not be accepting Bitcoun to pay for Tesla cars. It finally dawned on him that Bitcoin (and most other virtual currencies) use vast quantities of electricity to mine / create so are really a bad environmental deal. Hasn't the rest of the world known that for several years? Next thing will be that he discovers that the raw materials for batteries doesn't actually grow on trees but has to be dug out of the ground by poorly paid guys who have no H&S representative! Should do. There have been several articles I've read that talk about the huge energy requirements of running a crypto, so it's hardly a secret. But then you don't hear Extinction Rebellion slamming cryptos do you, just fossil fueled cars?
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Post by PG on May 14, 2021 17:59:38 GMT
Alex: you couldn’t do any worse by simply changing your ISA to a stocks and shares one and buying blocks of shares that have long term dividend paying history.... +1. You can open online Stocks and Shares ISA's quite easily.
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Post by johnc on May 17, 2021 7:18:17 GMT
Alex: you couldn’t do any worse by simply changing your ISA to a stocks and shares one and buying blocks of shares that have long term dividend paying history.... +1. You can open online Stocks and Shares ISA's quite easily. The likes of Interactive Investor (or ii as they are now called) also have ready made portfolios for different risk profiles so those who don't know the stock market well can still get involved.
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Post by Alex on May 17, 2021 13:37:47 GMT
Thanks for the advice. Probably something I'll have to look at when family life and finances are a bit more stable!
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Post by Big Blue on May 19, 2021 14:34:39 GMT
Just posting as Crypto currencies are in what is known as “freefall” at present.
If realising that you can’t buy a car, food, holiday or pay your bills didn’t make anyone realise this is all pie in the sky stuff then China deciding it looks a bit dodgy was clearly the signal that invented currencies controlled by no one are as viable as lasting peace in Palestine.
Virtual currency “is not a real currency” and “should not and cannot be used as currency in the market”, said a joint statement issued late on Tuesday on the People’s Bank of China’s WeChat account, banking and internet industry associations. It referred to a recent surge in prices as “speculation”
Couldn’t put it better myself.
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Post by Tim on May 19, 2021 16:20:21 GMT
Yeah, I've managed to turn my £40 into £33 very successfully!
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Post by Bob Sacamano v2.0 on May 19, 2021 17:42:44 GMT
Yeah, I've managed to turn my £40 into £33 very successfully! Just phoned the Porsche dealership to cancel my order. 😭
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Post by Martin on May 19, 2021 17:48:51 GMT
Yeah, I've managed to turn my £40 into £33 very successfully! Just phoned the Porsche dealership to cancel my order. 😭 Only £20 a set, so just buy one!
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