For about a year now, I and my friends have been talking about Stocks and why you should own shares of some tech companies. What have we done so far?
- A conversational Webinar on how to use Bamboo in Nigeria. We recorded it. You can download it here: https://mailchi.mp/00978c289aea/bambooweb
- A blog post with answers to questions you might have about Bamboo: https://bit.ly/3p7Bblk
- Everything you need to start trading stocks if you’re in Nigeria: https://bit.ly/2LIDYE0
- How to Buy Stocks with 1000 Naira or even less: https://youtu.be/YLkYaiSY0Hs
They are all free.
In Nigeria? 7 Reasons to Invest In Stocks right now
Now, at some point, you’ll have some money saved and think, “Wow, I probably should somehow invest this” and you should, In Stocks. Here are seven reasons why you should invest in stocks right now.
Own a part of your favourite companies
One of my favourite reasons for investing is being able to purchase parts of companies that you believe in. Plus, you can also buy high-risk company shares that you want. You can buy Amazon’s shares if you believe in the company Or maybe buy Tesla’s shares because you love electric vehicles (EV)
Grow your money
This is the easiest justification to invest and it’s also at the heart of why stocks are bought by anyone. When done correctly, over the long term, you will raise the money you spend by anywhere from 7% to as much as 1000% in a year. According to Investopedia, “The average stock market return is about 10% per year for nearly the last century.
Stock market investment is a well-worn road to making money work harder, but to get your feet wet, you don’t have to fork over thousands of naira. You can start by setting aside the few nairas that you would usually spend on a regular junk and investing in stocks or an index fund the monthly sum. It’s a painless way to use your income to service your future.
Choose your Investment style
You can be extremely selective in terms of selecting a style by purchasing individual stocks. For instance, you might want to develop a portfolio consisting solely of businesses involved in banking. It’s up to you. You have full power over it.
It is commission-free with many brokers
It was expensive and tedious in the past to own individual stocks because each time you purchase or sold stocks, you had to pay a fee. Plus, you had to buy shares or sell them entirely. Not anymore. Most brokers are currently commission-free, and many of them encourage you to invest in fractional shares. Indeed, as the majority of ETFs(Exchange Trade Fund)and mutual funds have an expense ratio, keeping individual stocks can potentially be cheaper.
Invest in Stocks because cash loses its value
You’ve probably read of inflation before, but it’s kind of an odd idea. Think of inflation as the slow but steady force that makes things cost more over time, to put it. Do you know how your grandfather was able to watch the ₦100 movie? Now it’s going to cost you ₦1500, ₦2500, or even ₦3000 to watch a movie. That’s mostly because inflation causes the price of goods and services to rise over time.
What that means to you is that, over time, your hard-earned money steadily loses its worth.
For instance, if you save ₦100,000 this year and place it for the next 10 years under your mattress when you take it back out, it will not be #100,000. I mean, yeah, it’s still going to be 100,000 naira, but it’s not going to be worth what it was worth when you won it for the first time. So if your ₦100,000 today will buy you an amazing trip around the world, it will only be possible to buy you two nights in a nearby hotel in 10 years when you take it out from under your mattress.
Reinvest dividends however you like
Most businesses pay dividends on a regular basis. If you’re just an ETF consumer, you have two options: either buy more shares of ETFs or take the cash out of your account. However, you can take the dividends and use them to purchase more of the company that sold them, or buy a new stock entirely, if you already buy stocks. It depends on you.
Invest in Stocks to diversify
You will diversify how your money is spent and how you make a gain for yourself and your family by buying stocks. What does “diversify” mean? Basically, the more ways you have to make money, the less you are at risk of getting into financial trouble if you disrupt any one method. You may have some money in the retirement plan of your company, or saved in a bank account, or invested in CDs, or something else. Another form of investment may be bonds, diversifying in any one field against possible trouble.
In Nigeria? You can buy Stocks with Bamboo, Trove, Risevest and more. I use Bamboo
