Sheila Olson

Some traders liken penny stock trading to gambling due to the fact that the vast majority of these stocks don’t pay out. A penny stock is defined as any stock that trades for less than $5 per share, although the old definition of the word referred to a stock that traded for less than $1 per share, which meant that you could garner a 1000% ROI (or better) if the right company took off. Due to the unpredictability of penny stocks, conventional wisdom suggests that you should create as diverse a portfolio as possible in this realm. If you have $1,000 to invest, and you place $100 in 10 different stocks, all it takes is for one of them to take off for you to make a profit. In other words, your wins can easily make up for your losses, even with a 10% success rate in your bets. You could also think of a diversified penny stock portfolio as buying affordable insurance for your net worth due to the fact that penny stocks don’t cost much per share, allowing you to diversify more effectively with a smaller investment. Less Fees, Lower Minimum Many penny stocks are over the counter (OTC), which means that trading for these with your broker will require lower minimums and lower brokerage fees compared to costlier stocks. Another advantage to diversifying your penny stock portfolio is knowing sooner rather than later whether or not your investment will work out. Movement happens quickly with penny stocks, which tend to fluctuate quickly. This means that you can make the decision to ride it out or get out faster than with other stocks. It’s relatively common for a penny stock’s share to double overnight, while in some cases, a micro-cap stock can soar to become a mid-cap stock before you know it. In these cases, your return can surpass the 1000% mark, which means that you’ve already made a profit even if your other nine penny stock investments take a hit. As a result, you will have more capital that you can use to trade more aggressively moving forward. Penny Stocks Terminology Here are some terms in the penny stock trading world you should be familiar with: Ask: This refers to the price at which investors are willing to sell their shares to buyers. Averaging Down: When a stock has been declining but you still believe it has spike potential, you may buy new shares of that stock at a lower price because its price has been averaging down. Hedging: This term is pretty straightforward--it refers to the concept of hedging your bets with penny stocks by buying two stocks that may oppose each other, such as an airline stock and an oil stock with the hopes that one will take off. Market Capitalization: Also known as market cap, this term calculates a company’s financial value by multiplying the number of shares the company has by the price of its share. Naturally, a price spike has the potential of doubling or tripling a company’s value, while a decline will take a toll on its value. NASDAQ SmallCap: While most of the stocks you’ll be trading for will be OTC, there is a segment of the NASDAQ exchange that includes penny stocks valued between $1 to $5 per share. Risk Tolerance: This term refers to how much money you are willing to lose with your investments due to the unpredictability of penny stocks. If you’re willing to lose your investment but you’re aiming for large returns, you have high risk tolerance.   Two Contrasting Penny Stocks Context is everything when trading for penny stocks. In the case of Walter Energy Co., the stock price reached a high of $143.76 per share in 2011 before falling to $0.16 per share and eventually going bankrupt. This occurred due to the fact that the company was in the metallurgical coal industry, which was on the decline. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there was Inovio Inc., which traded for under $1 per share in 2008, topping $10 per share in 2009, as well as 2013 through 2016. This success can be attributed to the biotechnology company’s innovative cancer vaccine portfolio, which showed great promise at the time. Understanding a company’s industry, how that industry is doing and the company’s role within that industry will give you an idea of whether or not the stock is a viable investment vehicle. Other Factors It’s worth considering that there are plenty of penny stocks out there that will take your money 99% of the time. There are shifty traders who take part in pump and dump schemes where they artificially inflate the price of a penny stock through misleading positive statements in order to push beginner investors into buying into that stock. These shifty traders buy into that stock early, inflate the price and then sell their shares of the stock at their peak, causing the stock price to plummet. You can keep an eye out for these by verifying the reputation of an investor who is pushing you to buy a certain stock, as well as whether or not they are being sponsored by that company to push that stock. A good way to determine whether or not you should invest in a penny stock is by examining what a stock looks like over time. This allows you to identify patterns that you can take advantage of by anticipating when a stock will increase or decrease, prompting you to buy or sell respectively. In a Nutshell Diversifying your portfolio and hedging your bets is always a smart move in the world of penny stock trading. Taking this route will not guarantee a profit, but it will increase the chances of one stock taking off and netting you a positive ROI. And even if all your stocks turn out to be a bust, you will have garnered some experience in the penny stock trading world, which could inform your future decision-making by learning what went wrong with each stock.

Automated investment management services, or robo-advisors, are almost a match made in heaven for retirement accounts, especially for buy-and-hold investors in early or mid-career. Those approaching drawdown age may be better served by a traditional financial advisor, however, when investment strategies tilt toward income generation and tax efficiency,here’s what you should know before you roll your retirement assets into a robo-advisor account. Robo-advisors are investment management platforms that use complex algorithmic calculations to develop a series of pre-set portfolios based on risk tolerance and investment objectives. They almost always invest in low-cost, tax efficient ETFs, although some trade in other asset classes. The process for investors is simple: Answer a few questions, supply some personal information, and set up recurring deposits to fund your account. The robo-advisor does the rest, presenting you with a recommended portfolio, and managing all the transactions on your behalf, including often overlooked ones like regular rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting. Unsurprisingly, it’s these automated extra services that make robo-advisors so valuable and cost effective for retirement accounts. Research shows that portfolios that are frequently rebalanced to the correct asset allocation formula outperform those than aren’t. And although tax-loss harvesting is not an issue in tax-deferred retirement accounts, if you hold any money in taxable accounts, these tax-loss transactions boost your returns. Rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting are provided as part of the account management fee, and transaction fees associated with these services are usually waived with robo-advisors. Most robo-advisors offer traditional, Roth, and SEP IRA account types; you can open a new account or roll over funds from an existing account into a robo-advisor IRA. If you have an inactive 401(k) account with a former employer, you can also transfer those funds into an IRA with a robo-advisor. Most robo-advisors will recommend a portfolio based on your income, existing assets, and years to retirement. As you get closer to your target date, asset allocation and fund recommendations are adjusted to minimize risk, maximize returns, and protect your existing wealth. Robo-advisor retirement portfolios are in many ways superior to the target-date funds, or TDFs, that dominate the retirement account landscape. TDFs are usually offered in five-year increments, such as retirement in 2045 or 2050, while robo-advisor portfolios are focused on a specific retirement date. TDFs also stick to a strict asset allocation schedule regardless of how much you have saved. Robo-advisors continually recalculate your portfolio recommendations based on how much you have saved and how your investments have performed. Finally, TDFs make the same asset allocations regardless of which types of accounts you own, traditional or Roth, which can have huge income tax consequences when you withdraw your funds. Most robo-advisors use a tax-coordination strategy to optimize the asset allocation in each of the different retirement accounts to minimize tax drag and maximize after tax gains. It’s important to again point out that not all robo-advisors offer the personalized guidance for income generation and drawdown most retirees require to maximize the funds in their retirement accounts. If you are approaching retirement, you may want to choose a hybrid robo-advisor that offers some level of professional advice from a human advisor or pay an advisor on the side to go over your retirement assets and offer targeted recommendations a few years before you’re ready to retire. If you have an active employer-sponsored 401(k) account, your robo-advisor options are limited. Although some robo-advisors are breaking into plan administration, few employers have jumped on the robo-advisor bandwagon. Most 401(k) plans don’t allow you to rollover an active account to a robo-advisor while you are still employed. There is, however, one robo-advisor alternative for employees with active employer 401(k) accounts. Blooom is an investment management service specifically for employees; its only service is managing 401(k) accounts. It works with any employer-sponsored plan as long as it offers online access. After you link the Blooom platform to your 401(k), it analyzes your current investments to weed out the ones that don’t align with your retirement goals. Then it combs through the available investments options and chooses the least expensive funds that get you closest to your ideal portfolio for your specific situation. Blooom manages your account for you, switching funds in your portfolio as needed, and regularly rebalancing your assets. Blooom charges $10 a month for this service, so if you have at least $50,000 in your account, the fees are comparable to or less than the fees for most robo-advisors.

A Candlestick is an illustrative way of reflecting Price Action over a given period of time. Different time periods can be selected, typically ranging from 1m (one minute) through to 1y (one year) but the design characteristics of the candlestick are constant regardless of the time period or instrument to which they are applied. The horizontal bars of a Candlestick represent the opening and closing prices and the box between these two levels is referred to as the ‘body’ or ‘real body’. If the closing price is in excess of the opening price the body of the candle is colored green which denotes price action was positive. Accordingly, if the closing price is lower than the opening price the body of the candle is colored red which denotes price action was negative. The vertical lines represent the range of price action during the period. The highest point of the upper shadow reflects that period’s trading high and the lowest part of the lower shadow reflects the low of the time period. Short shadows denote a price action to have been within a small range, longer shadows denote a greater price range. Candlestick charts present a way to clearly and quickly convey price action and it’s important to understand what they are trying to tell you. The Bullish candlestick has a long lower shadow that suggests at some part of the trading period bearish traders sold short and drove prices down. By the end of the time period strong buying pressure had taken price back up above the opening price and up to new highs. The closing price being close to the high point of the period suggesting buyers finished up on top. The Bearish candlestick has a long upper shadow that suggests at some part of the trading period bullish traders bought heavily and drove prices up. By the end of the time period strong selling pressure had taken price back below the opening price and continued to make new lows. The closing price being close to the low point of the period suggesting sellers finished up on top.   Trading strategies based on Technical Analysis take things a step further and use Candlesticks as a guide to initiate and close out trading positions. It should be noted that trading solely off Candlesticks while possibly being profitable would not be taking account of other readily available market information. Many other signals, such as traded volumes, Pivots and Support and Resistance levels can be incorporated into your strategy. Moreover, the information is widely available for no charge so developing and testing a strategy based on a variety of signals may be more profitable. It’s also important to consider what time frame you are analyzing. A Candlestick formed by data taken over a longer time period is considered to offer a more reliable signal on the basis that more market participants have contributed to the process of price action moving through time. Some Candlesticks, such as Dojis and Evening Stars, are distinctive enough in shape and important enough to traders that they are given their own name. Extending the study to cover a sequence of Candlesticks moves analysis on to Candlestick Patterns.

Bollinger-Bänder sind Linien, die die Volatilität eines Währungspaares anzeigen. Sie wurden von John Bollinger erstellt. Die obere Linie kann als Verkaufssignal oder die untere als Kaufsignal verwendet werden. Die Spanne zwischen den Bandbreiten kann auch dazu verwendet werden Voraussetzungen zu erkennen, unter denen ein Paar wahrscheinlich aus einem zuvor gehandelten Bereich ausbricht. Bollinger Bänder kurz erklärt In einem Bollinger Bänder-Indikator gibt es drei Bänder. Das mittlere Band ist ein gleitender Durchschnitt von 20 Zeiträumen. Zwei Standardabweichungen unterhalb des mittleren Bandes sind das untere Band. Zwei Standardabweichungen oberhalb des mittleren Bandes sind das obere Band. Wenn sich der Abstand zwischen den Bollinger-Bändern vergrößert, bedeutet dies, dass das Währungspaar eine höhere Volatilität aufweist. Wenn sich der Raum zwischen den Bollinger-Bändern zusammenzieht, deutet dies darauf hin, dass das Paar eine geringere Volatilität aufweist. Beispiel für Bollinger-Bänder Contraction = Zusammenziehen Expansion = Ausdehnung In diesem Diagrammdes Währungspaares AUD/USD sehen wir mehrere Zeiträume, in denen sich die Bollinger-Bänder entweder ausdehnen oder zusammenziehen. Während der Ausdehnungsphasen befand sich das Paar in einem Trendverlauf. Während der Zusammenziehungsphasen haben sie sich konsolidierte. Wichtige Punkte zu Bollinger-Bändern Es gibt mehrere Punkte, die man bei Bollinger Bändern beachten sollte. Hier sind ein paar davon: In einem schwankenden Markt tendiert der Preis in Richtung Mittelband. Wenn der Preis das obere Band erreicht, fällt er in der Regel. Wenn der Preis das untere Band erreicht, steigt er in der Regel an. Wenn sich die Bänder zusammenziehen, sitzt der Preis in einer engen Spanne fest. Dies führt oft zu einem Ausbruch. Wenn der Preis während einer Zeit extremen Zusammenziehens über das obere Band hinausgeht, deutet dies auf einen möglichen Ausbruch nach oben hin. Dies stellt eine Ausnahme zu Nr. 2 dar. Wenn der Preis während einer Zeit extremen Zusammenziehens unter das untere Band fällt, deutet dies auf einen möglichenDurchbruch nach unten hin. Dies stellt eine Ausnahme zu Nr. 3 dar.   Wie man mit Bollinger-Bändern handelt Es gibt mehrere Strategien, bei denen Bollinger-Bänder verwendet werden können. So können Sie jederzeit verkaufen, wenn der Preis das obere Band erreicht und kaufen, wenn das untere Band erreicht wird. In diesem Fall kann ein Händler das mittlere Band als Punkt zur Gewinnmitnahme nutzen. Ein Kurslimit kann knapp über dem oberen Band oder knapp unter dem unteren Band platziert werden, um Verluste im Falle eines Ausbruchs des Paares zu begrenzen. Go long = kaufen Go short = verkaufen Eine andere Strategie ist es, darauf zu warten, dass sich die Bänder zusammenziehen, um dann zu kaufen, wenn der Preis das obere Band erreicht, oder zu verkaufen, wenn das untere Band erreicht wird. Dies wird manchmal als die Strategie der „konträren Bollinger Bänder“ bezeichnet. In diesem Fall kann ein Kurslimit leicht über oder knapp unter dem mittleren Band platziert werden. Price isbelow… = Preis ist nach dem Zusammenziehen unterhalb des unteren Bandes. Verkaufen. Price isabove… = Preis ist nach dem Zusammenziehen oberhalb des oberen Bandes. Kaufen. Bollinger-Bänder sind ein Maß für die Volatilität eines Währungspaares. In einem schwankenden Markt zeigen die Bollinger-Bänder Händlern, dass sich der Preis wahrscheinlich umkehren und in die Mitte der Spanne zurückkehren wird. Sie können auch zum Auffangen von Ausbrüchen verwendet werden. Infolgedessen sind Bollinger-Bänder nützlich, um Ein- und Ausstiegspunkte bei Trades zu erkennen.

Digitale Vermögensberater sind die "nächste große Sache" in der Finanzplanung und die Verbraucher entscheiden sich zunehmend für ein automatisiertes Anlagemanagement anstelle von menschlichen Finanzberatern, zumindest für einen Teil ihrer investierbaren Vermögenswerte. Aktuelle Untersuchungen deuten darauf hin, dass digitale Vermögensberater bis 2020 10% aller weltweit verwalteten Vermögenswerte oder etwa 8 Billionen Dollar verwalten werden. Es gibt Vor- und Nachteile für alle Finanzmanagement-Services und digitale Vermögensberater sind nicht anders. Wenn Sie erwägen, Ihre Investitionsentscheidungen zu automatisieren, sind dies die Vor- und Nachteile, die Sie beachten sollten, bevor Sie Ihre Entscheidung treffen. Vorteile digitale Vermögensberater Geringe Gebühren Obwohl es unterschiedliche Preismodelle für Finanzberaterleistungen gibt, können nur wenige mit den Gebühren der günstigsten digitalen Vermögensberater mithalten. Menschliche Berater berechnen in der Regel zwischen 1 % und 2 % des verwalteten Vermögens für ihre Dienstleistungen, während digitale Vermögensberater nur 0,25% berechnen. Betterment, die größte und älteste der eigenständigen Plattformen, bietet ein ganzes Jahr lang kostenlos an, bevor eine bescheidene Verwaltungsgebühr von 0,25% oder 25 $ für die Investition von 10.000 $ erhoben wird. Sie verzichten auch auf die meisten Transaktionsgebühren und Provisionen im Zusammenhang mit dem Kauf und Verkauf von Fonds. Niedrige bis gar keine Mindestbeträge Die meisten Finanzberater arbeiten nur mit Kunden zusammen, die bereits über ein beträchtliches Portfolio verfügen, wobei diejenigen, die auf Basis einer stündlichen Gebührenstruktur arbeiten, kleinere Investoren aufnehmen. Digitale Vermögensberater hingegen haben in der Regel Mindestbeträge von 500 $ oder weniger. Dies gilt insbesondere für eigenständige Plattformen wie Betterment und Wise Banyan. Viele der renommierten Finanzmanagement-Unternehmen wie Fidelity, Vanguard und Charles Schwab bieten ebenfalls digitale Dienstleistungen an, meist in Kombination mit eher traditionellen Vermögensverwaltungsdienstleistungen. Diese Plattformen neigen jedoch dazu, Mindestbeträge für den Zugang zur Technologie der digitalen Vermögensberater festzulegen, die typischerweise bei 10.000 US-Dollar beginnen. Zugang zu innovativem Portfoliomanagement Die Technologie basiert auf Algorithmen, die von Nobelpreisträgern wie Robert Shiller und Eugene Fama entwickelt wurden. Die Investmenttheorie hinter den digitalen Vermögensberatern nimmt dem Menschen die Arbeit ab und stützt sich auf statistische Analysen, um Portfolios zu erstellen, die das Risiko minimieren und die Erträge maximieren. Einfachheit und Verfügbarkeit Der Durchschnittsnutzer kann mit wenigen Klicks ein Konto eröffnen und mit einem digitalen Vermögensberater in wenigen Minuten ein Portfolio aufbauen. Ein klarer Vorteil gegenüber zeitintensiven menschlichen Finanzberaterleistungen. Außerdem gibt es den Komfortfaktor des 24/7-Zugriffs. Ausbalancierung Es gibt eine Reihe von Studien, die zeigen, dass die regelmäßige Anpassung Ihres Portfolios an die ursprüngliche Asset Allocation der Schlüssel zu einer hohen Performance ist. Einzelne Investoren bemühen sich selten um eine Neugewichtung, und ein Finanzberater erhebt eine Gebühr für die Dienstleistung. Digitale Vermögensberater automatisieren den periodischen Rebalancing-Prozess, in der Regel vierteljährlich, sodass Ihr Vermögen immer in Übereinstimmung mit Ihren Präferenzen und finanziellen Zielen investiert wird. Indexgerechte Renditen Die meisten aktiv verwalteten Fonds erreichen insbesondere mittel- und langfristig nicht ihre Benchmark-Renditen. Digitale Vermögensberater investieren typischerweise in ETFs, d.h. passiv verwaltete Fonds, die an einen zugrunde liegenden Index gebunden sind. Im Allgemeinen leisten ETFs und Indexfonds viel bessere Arbeit, um die Renditen zu vergleichen. Sie sind auch preiswerte Investitionen, die Ihre Gewinne nicht mit hohen Kostenquoten und Gebühren vergeuden. Nachteile von digitalen Vermögensberatern Begrenzte Personalisierung Die meisten digitalen Vermögensberatern haben eine Reihe von Portfolios und stecken jeden Kunden in das Portfolio, das seinen Anlagezielen und seiner Risikobereitschaft am ehesten entspricht. Sie haben eine begrenzte Anzahl von Antworten auf jede finanzielle Situation, so dass sie für Menschen mit ungewöhnlichen finanziellen Situationen außerhalb des "one-size-fits-all"-Portfolios keinen Sinn ergeben können. Es gibt keine menschliche Beziehung Es ist schwer zu sagen, welche Rolle Emotionen bei der finanziellen Entscheidungsfindung spielen. Ein rückläufiger Markt oder ein unerwarteter persönlicher finanzieller Abschwung können schlechte Investitionsentscheidungen und Transaktionen auslösen, die von einem digitalen Vermögensberater einfach durchgeführt werden können. Die menschlichen Berater hingegen bieten Perspektiven und spielen verschiedene Szenarien aus, um Investoren zu helfen, voreilige Entscheidungen über ihr Portfolio zu vermeiden. Fehlende Integration Digitale Vermögensberater zeichnen sich durch einfache Finanzplanungsaufgaben wie Pensionsrechner und ausgewogene Vermögensallokation in steuerpflichtigen Konten aus. Wo sie fehlschlagen, ist die Integration aller Ihrer finanziellen Bedürfnisse, wie z.B. Steuer- und Nachlassplanung, in einen einheitlichen Plan. Weniger Flexibilität Digitale Vermögensberater konzentrieren sich fast ausschließlich auf ETFs; nur wenige handeln einzelne Wertpapiere oder bieten andere Anlageklassen an, um Ihr Portfolio abzurunden. Darüber hinaus gehen Risikomanagementstrategien wie Optionen über die algorithmischen Fähigkeiten eines digitalen Vermögensberaters hinaus. Die Branche steckt noch in den Kinderschuhen, und neuere Plattformen können einige der Einschränkungen beseitigen, die dem Modell des automatisierten Investmentmanagements innewohnen. Letztendlich hängt die Entscheidung, einen digitalen Vermögensberater für einen Teil oder das gesamte Portfolio einzusetzen, von Ihren allgemeinen Anlagezielen und Ihrem persönlichen Stil ab.

Bitcoin wurde im Januar 2009 zum ersten Mal vorgestellt und hat die Finanzwelt für immer verändert, als sie in die neue Ära der Kryptowährungen einleitete. Es war eine turbulente Zeit für die junge Kryptowährungsbranche, in der Regierungen, Aufsichtsbehörden, Steuerbehörden und Vollstrecker weltweit darüber diskutieren, wie man mit Kryptowährungen umgeht. Unter all dem ist lautet primäre Frage, die viele Benutzer stellen: " Sind Bitcoins in meinem Land legal "? Die Antwort hängt davon ab, über welches Land Sie sprechen und wofür Sie Bitcoin verwenden. Es gibt keine eindeutige Antwort, da auch innerhalb einzelner Länder Unklarheiten herrschen. Bitcoin ist eine computergenerierte digitale Währung und als solche hat es keine Verbindungen zu einer Regierung oder Zentralbank. Es wurde als Peer-to-Peer-Alternative zu staatlich ausgegebenen Fiat-Währungen geschaffen und bietet den Nutzern eine bequeme und kostengünstige Möglichkeit, Werte zu transferieren und gleichzeitig privat zu bleiben. Mit wachsender Akzeptanz bei Händlern, der Möglichkeit, Bitcoin in Fiat-Währung umzuwandeln, dem Wachstum von Börsen und Handel und der wachsenden Zahl von Investitionen in andere Blockchain-basierte Plattformen sieht es sicherlich so aus, als ob Bitcoin und Co. akzeptiert worden wären. Dennoch gibt es keine globale Regulierung von Bitcoin, und selbst die lokalen Regierungen haben widersprüchliche Ansichten über die neue Zahlungsmethode. Lassen Sie uns einen genaueren Blick auf die einzelnen Länder werfen, um festzustellen, ob Bitcoin in Ihrem Land legal ist. Länder, in denen Bitcoin legal ist Die meisten Länder haben noch nicht vollständig über die Rechtmäßigkeit von Bitcoin entschieden, doch können wir sagen, dass es kein akzeptabler Ersatz für die gesetzliche Zahlungsmittelwährung eines Landes ist. Einige Länder haben die Verwendung von Bitcoin durch Verordnungen akzeptiert, andere haben die digitale Währung regelrecht verteufelt und die meisten verfolgen einen abwartenden Ansatz. Hier sind die Länder, in denen die Verwendung und das Eigentum von Bitcoin als legal angesehen werden: Japan - Japan ist führend in der Akzeptanz von Bitcoin. Es war das erste und bisher einzige Land, das 2017 Bitcoin als gesetzliches Zahlungsmittel deklarierte. Auch bei den Vorschriften liegt es vor anderen Ländern: 2017 wurden Gesetze zur Lizenzierung von Kryptowährungsbörsen verabschiedet, die gleichzeitig unter die Vorschriften zum Wissen über den Kunden und zur Bekämpfung der Geldwäsche fallen. Vereinigte Staaten - In den Vereinigten Staaten gab es eine allgemein positive Einstellung der Regierungsbehörden gegenüber Bitcoin. Während einige sich dafür einsetzen, die Verwendung bei illegalen Transaktionen zu unterbinden, haben andere damit begonnen, Vorschriften in Bezug auf Steuern und Investitionen zu erlassen, einschließlich der Einführung eines Bitcoin-Derivats an der Chicago Mercantile Exchange und der Chicago Board Options Exchange. Der IRS hat Bitcoin als Vermögen für Steuerzwecke betrachtet, das US-Finanzministerium hat gesagt, dass es sich um ein Gelddienstleistungsunternehmen und nicht um eine Währung handelt, und die Securities and Exchange Commission arbeitet an Vorschriften zur Definition des Bitcoin-Handels. Auf der kommerziellen Ebene gibt es eine wachsende Anzahl von US-Unternehmen, die Bitcoin als Zahlungsmittel akzeptieren. Kanada - Kanada hat eine freundliche Haltung gegenüber Bitcoin und arbeitet gleichzeitig daran sicherzustellen, dass es nicht für illegale Zwecke verwendet wird. Die kanadische Finanzbehörde hat Bitcoin als Ware eingestuft, was Bitcoin-Transaktionen in Kanada zu einer Tauschtransaktion macht, die den Gesetzen und Vorschriften für Geschäftseinkünfte unterliegt. Die Besteuerung richtet sich nach der Absicht des Käufers und Verkäufers der Bitcoins. Wie die USA betrachtet Kanada Bitcoin-Börsen weitgehend als Gelddienstleistungsunternehmen. Dies macht sie den KYC- und AML-Vorschriften unterworfen und verpflichtet sie, sich beim Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC) in Kanada zu registrieren. Negativ zu vermerken ist, dass einige kanadische Banken die Verwendung ihrer Kredit- und Debitkarten bei Bitcoin-Transaktionen verboten haben. Australien - Australien hat auch eine freundliche Haltung gegenüber Bitcoin eingenommen und betrachtet es wie jede andere Fremdwährung. Unternehmen in Australien sind berechtigt, mit Bitcoin Geschäfte zu tätigen sowie zu handeln, zu kaufen und zu minen. Die Europäische Union - Die Europäische Union hat bisher keine formelle Entscheidung über Bitcoin und andere Kryptowährungen getroffen. Mangels einer zentralen Entscheidung haben die einzelnen Länder eine eigene Haltung gegenüber Bitcoin entwickelt. In vielen Fällen hat dies zu einem Mangel an Vorschriften und einem steuerfreien Status für Bitcoin in einem Großteil der Europäischen Union geführt. Vereinigtes Königreich - Das Vereinigte Königreich ist Pro-Bitcoin und unterstützt die digitale Währung in ihren Regulierungs- und Steueransätzen. Länder, in denen Bitcoin verboten ist Es gibt Länder, die Bitcoin nicht mit offenen Armen akzeptiert haben, weil sie sich Sorgen um den dezentralen Charakter von Bitcoin, seine Verbindungen zu illegalen Aktivitäten, seine Volatilität oder seine wahrgenommene Bedrohung für die aktuellen Fiat-Währungen machen. In einigen Ländern wurde er für illegal erklärt und verboten, während in anderen Ländern der Zugang zu Bank- und Finanzdienstleistungen eingeschränkt wurde. Bangladesch - Dieses südasiatische Land ist eines der wenigen, das sich offen gegen Kryptowährungen ausgesprochen hat. Bereits 2015 machte die Regierung von Bangladesch deutlich, dass es eine "strafbare Handlung" ist, Bitcoin und andere Kryptowährungen in Bangladesch zu verwenden. China - Aufgrund seiner Verbindung zum Bitcoin-Mining und der großen Anzahl von Altcoin-Projekten in China hat das Land eine teilweise intensive Medienbeobachtung seiner Politik gegenüber Bitcoin erfahren. Während die chinesische Regierung offen erklärt hat, dass sie keine Pläne hat, Bitcoin zu verbieten, hat sie 2017 ICOs verboten und die Kryptowährungsbörsen niedergeschlagen, indem sie den Handel mit digitalen Vermögenswerten gegen den chinesischen Yuan ausgesetzt hat. Sie hat auch die Steuererleichterungen und den billigen Strom abgeschafft, die den Bitcoin-Mining in China so attraktiv und profitabel machten. Russland - Auch Russland hat eine teilweise widersprüchliche Beziehung zu Bitcoin und Kryptowährungen. An verschiedenen Stellen sollte er reguliert, dann verboten, dann erlaubt werden, jedoch nicht für Transaktionen und schließlich hat die russische Regierung Anfang 2018 Vorschriften erlassen, die den Bitcoin-Austausch in Russland offiziell erlaubten. Es gibt immer noch Gerüchte, dass das russische Finanzministerium eine Gesetzgebung entwirft, die es verbietet, Bitcoin als Ersatz für den russischen Rubel zu verwenden. Vietnam - Die Zentralbank und die Regierung Vietnams haben erklärt, dass Bitcoin keine legitime Zahlungsmethode ist, aber sie haben keine formalen Vorschriften bezüglich seiner Verwendung als Investition erlassen. Allerdings ergriff die vietnamesische Regierung im Mai 2017 die Kontrolle über den größten Kryptowährungswechsel des Landes und verbot im August 2018 den Import von Kryptowährungs-Mining-Ausrüstung. Ägypten - Es gab kein Regierungsverbot für Bitcoin in Ägypten, aber im Januar 2018 erklärte der höchste religiöse Führer in Ägypten, dass der Handel mit Kryptowährungen nach islamischem religiösem Recht verboten ist. Südamerika (Bolivien, Kolumbien und Ecuador) Die Zentralbank von Bolivien hat die Verwendung von Bitcoin verboten und kann in Kolumbien nicht für Käufe oder Investitionen verwendet werden. Ecuador hat auch die Verwendung von Bitcoin durch eine Abstimmung in seiner Nationalversammlung verboten. Afrika (Namibia, Nigeria and Simbabwe) In Namibia wurde ausdrücklich darauf hingewiesen, dass Bitcoin-Transaktionen illegal sind und die Nutzer mit Strafen belegt werden. Die nigerianische Regierung hat den Banken verboten, mit Kryptowährungen zu handeln, aber sie hat auch gesagt, dass sie an ihrer offiziellen Haltung gegenüber Bitcoin als Zahlungsmethode und Anlageform arbeiten. Simbabwe hat seinen Banken verboten, Transaktionen im Zusammenhang mit Bitcoin zu verarbeiten, aber im Mai hat es auch ein Verbot von Kryptowährungsumtausch aufgehoben. Der neue Finanzminister hat seinen Wunsch, dass Simbabwe Kryptowährungen annimmt, offen zum Ausdruck gebracht. Die Quintessenz Obwohl Bitcoin über 10 Jahre alt ist, haben die meisten Länder noch nicht festgelegt, wie sie mit der noch jungen digitalen Währung umgehen sollen. Allerdings werden Fortschritte erzielt, und in den freien und offenen Ländern wurde Bitcoin akzeptiert. Regierungen, die typischerweise eine größere Kontrolle über ihre Bürger ausüben, waren zögerlich oder nicht bereit, Bitcoin zu akzeptieren, was angesichts der mangelnden Kontrolle über die digitale Währung nicht verwunderlich ist. Während die Nutzung und Investition von Bitcoin in weiten Teilen der Welt nach wie vor eine Grauzone ist, nimmt die Akzeptanz langsam zu, und die meisten Bürger der Welt werden feststellen, dass Bitcoin in ihrem Land legal ist, insbesondere als Investition.

ETFs are different from index funds and other types of mutual funds, primarily in that they can be traded throughout the day on the stock exchanges. For this reason, you can choose to invest as little as the cost of a single share. Unlike index funds and other mutual funds, which are bought and sold from the fund sponsor directly or indirectly through a brokerage, ETF transactions are between individual investors on the exchange. There’s a saying that ETFs are traded in shares, while mutual funds are traded in dollars. What this means is that you can make a $1,000 trade in a mutual fund or index fund, and the entire amount will be invested in the fund; you are able to buy fractional shares. When you buy ETFs, however, you specify the number of whole shares you want to buy; a $1,000 investment would have some amount of cash left uninvested after the last full share is paid for. Most mutual funds and index funds have minimum investment requirements. These are typically in the neighborhood of $2,500 or $3,000, although some have minimums as low as $100. As a rule of thumb, funds with the lowest expense ratio, or percent of assets charged to cover management costs, have the highest minimum investment. For example, Vanguard offers two classes of index funds tracking the S&P 500; VFINX requires a $3,000 initial investment and has an expense ratio of 0.16%, while the “admiral class” fund, VFIAX, has a $10,000 minimum investment, but an expense ratio of just 0.05%. Although the lack of a minimum investment requirement puts ETFs within reach of even the smallest investors, it’s important to keep in mind that you’ll pay broker’s commissions and fees whenever you buy or sell ETFs. These fees typically range between $4.95 and $19.95 per trade, with the average hovering around $10. In other words, if you decide to open a brokerage account with $100 and use it to buy shares of an ETF trading at $25, you’ll only be able to buy three shares, and you’ll waste about 10% of your investment right up front on commissions. Some ETFs trade commission-free when you buy directly from your account with the fund sponsor. Vanguard, for example, has a number of commission-free ETFs if you open a Vanguard account, so if you plan to make regular, smaller share purchases, you should look for investment companies that offer commission-free ETF options. Otherwise, your trading costs will wipe out your gains and probably even put you in negative territory over the course of the year. While commission-free ETFs are the exception rather than the rule, most index funds have no transaction costs. Index funds tend to be the more attractive option for smaller investors who want to invest a certain amount on a regular basis. While traditional mutual funds generally have much higher expense ratios than ETFs, index funds have low expense ratios, often on a par with ETFs. You may, however, have to maintain a minimum account balance in order to avoid service fees. If you plan to make just a few large share purchases per year, ETFs may be the most efficient investment option, because your commission costs will not affect overall returns. If you are a small investor planning to make monthly or semi-monthly purchases, perhaps through an automatic investment plan deducted from your paycheck, an index fund is likely the more economical option, even if you need to save up a few months to reach the minimum initial investment.

Exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, are passively managed investments tracking a particular index. They are an inexpensive way to gain exposure to broad sectors of the market, or to goose your portfolio with niche stocks on an exotic index. The most obvious risk with ETFs is the riskiness of the assets in the underlying benchmark. As passively managed funds, ETFs don’t have a portfolio manager taking active steps to hedge or mitigate risks. The assets are simply bought and sold in lockstep with the index more or less—if the benchmark drops 50%, so will the ETF. This is an especially serious problem with leveraged ETFs, which aim to double or even triple the returns of the underlying index. For each $1 of capital invested, the fund maintains $2 or $3 of exposure to the benchmark using derivatives such as index futures and equity swaps. You can recognize these funds, because they have words like “ultra” or “enhanced” in their names, or simply use the 2X or 3X designation. These funds are not meant to be used as long-term investments, and if you look at their performance over time, they almost always lose money. If you want to add them to your portfolio, always have an exit strategy in place. The SEC actually warns against their use for buy-and-hold investors. Another risk for inexperienced investors lies in understanding the sectors and indices themselves. For example, in the biotech sector, there are indices tilted toward DNA, genomics, and genetic engineering (NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index) and others tilted toward healthcare equipment, technology, and facilities (NASDAQ U.S. Healthcare Innovators Index), and as you’d expect, the returns between the two are wildly different. ETFs tracking the Arca Biotech Index had year-to-date returns approaching 9%, while those tracing the Healthcare Innovators Index are in negative territory for the year. Retail investors can also inadvertently end up overexposed to a particular stock, even in what appears to be a diversified portfolio. For example, a portfolio containing ETFs for large cap stocks, growth stocks, dividend stocks, value stocks, and low volatility stocks might appear balanced on quick inspection. Dig deeper into the securities in each of those indices, and you discover a single one, such as ExxonMobil, makes up a significant portion of each, giving you an unhealthy level of exposure to that particular stock. Different tax treatments also pose a risk. While ETFs tend to be very tax efficient investments, the fund’s underlying assets matter. For example, the SPDR Gold Trust ETF holds actual bars of gold, which are treated as “collectibles” for tax purposes, and gains are taxed at 28%, regardless of how long the shares are held. There’s also special tax treatment for currency ETFs. There is also a total lack of control over investments in an ETF. By definition, passively managed index investments follow the underlying benchmark as closely as possible. If a company on the index performs poorly, there’s no way to remove it from your portfolio without dumping the entire fund. Similarly, if you have moral objections to a particular company or industry represented on the index, you can’t divest of that stock without liquidating your entire position in the fund. Perhaps the most pernicious risk with ETFs is they can turn investors into traders. Buying and selling in an attempt to “time the market” is a bad approach for investors, and the excess commissions wipe out the low fees, one of ETFs’ main advantages. Even if you’re buying proprietary funds through a brokerage account with no trading fees, you’ll still pay spread (the difference between the bid and ask price of the share) on your trades, which can be substantial for large trades. ETFs do a great job of providing broad exposure to the market with low fees; they are often a good choice for long-term investors. But like all stocks, they are not without risk.

Penny stocks are risky, full stop. Because they are cheap,they are tempting for inexperienced investors,but they have wild price fluctuations, which does offer the possibility for huge gains if you time the market right. The problem is, it’s almost impossible to do that. More often than not, people lose their shirts trading penny stocks. Penny stocks are fraught with risks most experienced traders and investors take care to avoid. First of all, most companies trading OTC or on pink sheets are of low quality. Their balance sheets are a disaster, they are operating at a loss, and their financials in general are a train wreck. Even worse for investors, these companies aren’t required to disclose the financial information that analysts and retail investors use to evaluate a stock. The information you do find is often inaccurate and promoted by scammers who want to pump and dump a penny stock. If the company was doing business legitimately, turning a profit, being transparent about its operations, it would be able to get listed with an exchange. The fact that these companies trade over the counter should be a big red flag. There’s also a risk of valuation inflation, especially when a penny stock catches the public’s attention. The rumor mill can easily cause a buyer stampede, falsely driving up the price of a penny stock. This happened recently when Tesla announced it was acquiring Riviera Tool LLC. Riviera Tool LLC was a privately held company, but it had been publicly traded as Riviera Tool Co until 2007. Shares in the old company made it onto the pink sheets, essentially inactive and trading for less than a cent a share. On the day of the Tesla announcement, however, speculators rushed to buy them, driving the price to $0.60 in a single day. Of course, the shares were worthless, since the company no longer existed, and a lot of speculators lost a lot of money. Another risk is that these are highly illiquid stocks, meaning they have extremely low trading volumes. An investor who wants to close his position may have a very hard time finding a buyer, and the spreads will be much larger than for high quality stocks. Imagine you’re a penny stock trader with a $5,000 stake in a company with an average daily trading volume of 10,000 shares (and there are penny stocks that have these kinds of painfully low volumes), and a daily range of $0.25 to $0.30. You couldn’t dump all your shares at once because it would drive down the price significantly. You’d have to sell them off bit by bit over a period of days or weeks. If you did try to sell the whole batch at once, your order might sit unfilled for days because there aren’t enough buyers at that price. The same thing would happen in reverse if you tried to buy a $5,000 stake in the company. You would have a hard time filling the order, because there aren’t enough sellers. You’d have to offer substantially more to incentivize more shareholders to sell. Then there’s the issue of trading itself. Most brokers charge higher commissions for OTC trades, and you usually can’t place special trades like a stop-loss. Occasionally, a blue chip can run into financial trouble and end up in penny stock territory. A spectacular example is Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which were highly profitable and traded on the big boards prior to the financial crisis. Today, they’re on the pink sheets. GM was also delisted after it filed for bankruptcy in 2009; shares were trading at $0.75. Citigroup was removed from the Dow when its share price fell below $1, and today it’s trading above $60. The bottom line? There are occasionally really big winners in penny stocks, the losers are far more common. If you do decide to trade penny stocks, know that you do so with a high level of risk.

Digitale Vermögensberater werden von keiner Aufsichtsbehörde daran gehindert, in bestimmte Anlageklassen zu investieren; es steht ihnen frei, das Geld eines Kunden in jede Art von Wertpapier der Wahl zu investieren. Die überwiegende Mehrheit von ihnen entscheidet sich jedoch für Investitionen in börsengehandelte Fonds oder ETFs, da diese Fonds eng mit dem Geschäftsmodell des digitalen Vermögensberaters verknüpft sind. Digitale Vermögensberater sind kostengünstige Alternativen zu herkömmlichen Finanzberatungsdienstleistungen. Sie nutzen komplexe Algorithmen zur Entwicklung risikoadjustierter Portfolios und empfehlen diese vorab erstellten Portfolios ihren Kunden auf der Grundlage ihrer Risikobereitschaft und Anlageziele. Die Anlageverwaltung und Kontoführung wird automatisiert, und Dienstleistungen wie regelmäßiges Rebalancing zur Wiederherstellung der korrekten Parameter der Vermögensallokation und die Erfassung von Steuerverlusten für steuerpflichtige Konten sind in der Verwaltungsgebühr enthalten. Das Geschäftsmodell des digitalen Vermögensberaters knüpft an den Trend des passiven Managements an. In den letzten zehn Jahren haben US-Investoren ihr Vermögen massiv von teureren, aktiv verwalteten Investmentfonds in preiswerte Indexfonds und ETFs verlagert, die an einen zugrunde liegenden Index gebunden sind und versuchen, ihre Renditen einfach zu replizieren. Wenn aktiv verwaltete Fonds Kostenquoten von bis zu 2% oder mehr aufweisen, insbesondere für eher esoterische Fonds, können passiv verwaltete ETFs für nur 0,04% gehalten werden. Mit über 2.000 ETFs zur Auswahl, ist es für digitale Vermögensberater einfach, kostengünstige Fonds auszuwählen, um ein ausgewogenes, diversifiziertes Portfolio mit einem breiten Engagement in einer Vielzahl von Branchen und Märkten abzurunden. Diese unkomplizierten Anlagen helfen den digitalen Vermögensberatern, die Verwaltungsgebühren niedrig zu halten. Einige, wie WiseBanyan, verlangen von den Anlegern nichts, um ihr Geld zu verwalten, obwohl die meisten dazu neigen, zwischen 0,25% und 0,50% der Vermögenswerte für ihre Dienstleistungen zu verlangen. Die Branche der digitalen Vermögensberater steckt noch in den Kinderschuhen; die älteste, Betterment, wurde 2008 gegründet. Im Zuge der weiteren Expansion des Marktes verzweigen sich jedoch einige digitale Vermögensberater in andere Anlageklassen. Hedgeable ist eine der anspruchsvolleren digitalen Vermögensberater-Plattformen, die über 200 Optionen zur Anpassung eines Portfolios bietet. Darüber hinaus gibt es eine Vielzahl von Anlageklassen, darunter US-amerikanische und internationale Aktien, Bitcoin, Immobilien, Rohstoffe und Währungen. Natürlich sind ihre Gebühren wesentlich höher als die der meisten anderen digitalen Vermögensberater, obwohl die Gebühren mit steigendem Kontostand sinken. Vanguard Personal Advisory Services ist ein hybrider digitaler Vermögensberater, der die persönliche Beratung durch einen menschlichen Berater mit automatisierten Vermögensverwaltungsdienstleistungen kombiniert. Es bietet auch mehr Anlageklassen als Basis-ETFs, darunter die aktiv verwalteten Investmentfonds von Vanguard, Einzelanleihen und steuerfreie Muni-Bond-Fonds. Wealthsimple ist ein weiterer digitaler Vermögensberater, der einzelne Aktien anbietet, obgleich diese auf sozial verantwortliche Anlageportfolios und Halal-Entscheidungen nach islamischem Recht ausgerichtet sind. Es ist auch eine hybride Plattform, die Sie mit einem professionellen Berater verbindet. Wenn Sie daran interessiert sind, in einzelne Aktien zu investieren, können Sie besser mit einem kostengünstigen Onlinekonto für den Teil Ihres Geldes bedient werden, den Sie nicht in ETFs halten möchten. Sie zahlen eine höhere Managementgebühr für solche Plattformen, die diese Anlageklassen anbieten, und sind auf die in den voreingestellten Portfolios verfügbaren Aktien beschränkt. Und während die meisten digitalen Vermögensberater auf Provisionen bei ETF-Handel verzichten, werden Ihnen in der Regel dennoch einzelne Aktienhandelsgeschäfte berechnet. Es ist einfach, einen Billigbroker zu finden, der Trades für $10 oder weniger anbietet, was Ihnen Geld spart und Ihnen mehr Flexibilität bei Ihren Anlagemöglichkeiten gibt.

Robo-advisors, or automated investment management platforms, are typically considerably less expensive than using traditional financial advisors. Most make money by charging customers a percentage of assets under management, typically between 0.25% and 0.8%, depending on the platform. You still pay expenses associated with your investments, which are usually low-cost ETFs with expense ratios of 0.25% or below. Some robo-advisors don’t charge customers anything for managing their investments; WiseBanyan and Wealthfront are two examples of stand-alone no-cost robo-advisors. Among legacy financial management companies, Charles Schwab also offers robo-advisor services, known as Intelligent Portfolio, at no direct cost to investors. Although a robo-advisor doesn’t charge a management fee, it still has ways to make money off your money. For example, some charge commissions on the trades they make in your portfolio. Others may have a maintenance fee on accounts below a particular balance. Management fees may also vary depending on your account balance. Wealthfront’s 0% management fee only applies to account balances below $50,000; after that, they charge 0.25% to manage your assets. Hedgeable, on the other hand, starts at 0.75% for balances up to $1 million, when the fee drops to 0.30%. Some robo-advisors make money through kickbacks from proprietary funds. For example, if a robo-advisor recommends an ETF from a particular company, that company pays the robo-advisor a “referral” bonus. Other robo-advisor platforms build cash allocation into their revenue model. They hardwire a particular asset allocation formula into each portfolio, such as 60% stocks, 35% bonds, and 5% cash. Charles Schwab has particularly high cash allocations of between 6% and 30% of the portfolio, and these can’t be changed on a case-by-case basis. That’s significant for investors, because there are indirect opportunity costs associated with high cash allocation. A $500,000 portfolio with a 10% mandatory cash allocation will experience significant cash drag on returns. Assuming a typical portfolio of 60/40 stocks and bonds earns 7% a year, you lose out on about $3,500 in returns on the cash portion of your account. Over the long haul, the impact on your portfolio is dramatic. One other expense to keep in mind with robo-advisors relates to transaction fees and commissions on trades. Every time the advisor buys or sells on your behalf, you may be charged a fee. Some platforms waive these transaction costs, but others charge between $5 and $20 per trade. In most cases, robo-advisors cost significantly less than traditional human financial advisors, but their menu of services is also limited to straightforward financial planning needs. Most robo-advisors stick to basic retirement planning, portfolio rebalancing, and tax loss harvesting. More complex financial planning needs, such as wealth protection or integrated estate planning, are beyond their capabilities. Some robo-advisor platforms have addressed these shortcomings by offering hybrid packages that enable limited access to a human financial planner along with automated portfolio management services. Betterment, for example, offers “advice packages” tailored to specific life events. Vanguard pairs each robo-advisor client with a certified financial planner. If you’re considering using a robo-advisor, be sure to understand all the costs involved, direct management fees and fund expense ratios, as well as transaction expenses and indirect opportunity costs. Each of those will have an impact on overall returns.

Da Kryptowährungen typischerweise als Coins oder Token bezeichnet werden, ist es vielleicht nicht verwunderlich, dass wir uns auf den Begriff Wallet als Analogie für einen Ort zur Speicherung der digitalen Assets festgelegt haben. Doch da die Kryptowährungen rein digital sind, was ist eigentlich ein Wallet für Kryptowährungen und wie werden diese verwendet, um die verschiedenen Coins und Token zu speichern, die zur Darstellung digitaler Blockchain-Assets verwendet werden? Kurz gesagt, ist eine Wallet für Kryptowährungen eine Softwareanwendung, die zum Speichern der privaten Schlüssel verwendet wird, die das Eigentum an den digitalen Assets, die als Kryptowährungen bezeichnet werden, kommunizieren. Der private Schlüssel in Kryptowährungen wird mit dem öffentlichen Schlüssel gekoppelt und ermöglicht die Überprüfung, dass eine Wallet-Adresse Kryptowährungen enthält, wenn sie an eine andere Adresse übertragen werden. Mit dem öffentlichen Schlüssel werden Münzen an Ihr Wallet gesendet, während der private Schlüssel verwendet wird, um zu beweisen, dass Sie die Münzen haben, wenn Sie versuchen, sie zu übertragen. Arten von Wallets für Kryptowährungen Kryptowährungs-Wallets sind in verschiedenen Ausführungen erhältlich, mit unterschiedlichen Funktionen und Merkmalen sowie einer Vielzahl von Benutzeroberflächen. Einige speichern nur eine Art von Kryptowährung, während andere Dutzende oder Hunderte verschiedener Kryptowährungen aufnehmen können. Die Wallets werden über mehrere Plattformen angeboten. Es gibt einfache webbasierte Wallets, wie sie beispielsweise beim Kauf von Bitcoin oder anderen Kryptowährungen an einer Börse verwendet werden. Eine der populären webbasierten Wallets ist MyEtherWallet. Die Beliebtheit beruht auf der Tatsache, dass in diesem Modell unzählige Ethereum ERC-20-kompatible Token gespeichert werden können – und das kostenlos. Diese Open-Source Client-seitige Schnittstelle ermöglicht eine einfache Interaktion mit der Ethereum-Blockchain. Es gibt auch Desktop-baiserte Wallets, die auf einem PC installiert sind, sowie Wallets für den Einsatz auf Smartphones und anderen mobilen Geräten. Exodus und Jaxx sind beliebte Desktop-Geldbörsen. Als sicherstes Wallet für Kryptowährungen gilt ein Hardware-Wallet. Dies sind kleine Geräte, die speziell für die Speicherung und Sicherung von Kryptowährungen entwickelt wurden. Die beliebtesten Hardware-Wallets sind der Ledger Nano S und der Trezor. Beide können Hunderte von verschiedenen Kryptowährungen enthalten und solange sie nicht mit dem Internet verbunden sind, gelten sie als 100% sicher. Zu den abschließenden Arten von Kryptowährungs-Wallets gehört das Papier-Wallet. Wo die anderen Kryptowährungs-Wallets die öffentlichen/privaten Schlüssel der Kryptowährung innerhalb der Softwareanwendung speichern, oft in einem verschlüsselten Zustand, ist in einer Papier-Wallet der private Schlüssel (und möglicherweise ein QR-Code) auf einem Blatt Papier gedruckt. Da sie offline generiert werden können und nie mit dem Internet verbunden sind, gelten sie als die sicherste Art von Wallet. Da es sich um Papier handelt, sind sie natürlich anderen Risiken wie Diebstahl oder versehentlicher Zerstörung ausgesetzt. Sie mögen Wallets genannt werden, aber Kryptowährungs-Wallets tun viel mehr, als nur Ihre Zahlungsmittel, Karten und Quittungen aufzubewahren. Sie sind eine Verbindung zur Blockchain und ermöglichen es den Benutzern, Coins zu senden und zu empfangen, zu verfolgen und zu sichern. Einige Wallets haben sogar Funktionen, mit denen Sie eine Kryptowährung gegen eine andere tauschen können. Daher sind sie eine Blockchain-Schnittstelle und nicht nur ein Speichermedium.

The main difference between a LEAP (Long Term Equity Anticipation Securities) and a ‘regular’ option is the period of time until the expiry date. Regular (Exchange Traded Options) have monthly expiry dates which are usually the third Friday in the month. You could for example buy Put options in a particular instrument with a Strike price of $125 and an expiry date in: June, July, August or indeed any month in the next 12 months. LEAPs are specifically intentioned to have expiry dates in excess of 12 months and in fact offer expiry dates up to 3 years away. The difference in structure follows through to price action. An option that has an expiry date that is further away allows more time for the price of the underlying instrument to move towards the Strike price. In general, longer dated options tend to be priced at higher levels than shorter dated options and accordingly with LEAPs the premiums involved in buying them are higher than for regular options. Rolls The benefits of LEAPS are that traders can take option positions without having to ‘roll’ positions. If you were trading regular options and wanted to gain exposure to an expiry date in 18 months’ time, you’d need to take a position in the longest dated option available to you, which would likely have an expiry date 11 months in the future. In about seven months’ time you may see the option with the expiry you desire come into the market. At that point you could sell the first position and buy the next one. This rolling of the position will be subject to frictional costs and operational risk. Capital & Hedging LEAPs are similar to regular options in that both instruments offer possible advantages in terms of capital use and hedging. The longer term nature of LEAPs means they can more readily take advantage of these features, or at least mean the position does not involve further management in terms of ‘rolling’. Taking a position using either instrument allows the position to be financed via the means of option premium being paid. If the position was bought outright then the entire cash balance would need to be financed. If the LEAP/Option position is being used for hedging purposes, then taking on a LEAP is particularly advantageous as it means the operational risk associated with rolling is avoided. Buying existing and selling a new position although carried out at the same time could be subject to one trade getting executed and the other not, or possibly more likely the ‘fat finger’ risk involved with data entry. Both LEAPS and regular options can be sold at any time; there is no requirement for them to be held until expiry.

Bollinger bands are lines that indicatethe volatility of a currency pair. They were created by John Bollinger. The top line can be used as a sell signal or the bottom as a buy signal. The width between the bands can also be used to identify conditions where a pair is likely to breakout of a range in which it has previously been trading. Bollinger bands explained In a Bollinger bands indicator, there are three bands. The middle band is a 20 period moving average. Two standard deviations below the middle band is the bottom band. Two standard deviations above the middle band is the top band. When the space between the Bollinger bands expands, it means the currency pair has higher volatility. When the space between the Bollinger bands contracts, it indicates the pair has lower volatility. Bollinger bands example In this chart of AUD/USD, we can see several periods where the Bollinger bands either expanded or contracted. During the expansion periods, the pair was trending. During the contraction periods, it was consolidating. Points to remember about Bollinger bands There are several points to remember about Bollinger bands. Here are a few: In a ranging market, the price tends to move toward the middle band. When the price hits the top band, it usually falls. When the price hits the bottom band, it usually rises. When the bands contract, it means the price is stuck in a tight range. This often results in a breakout. If the price goes above the top band during a period of excessive contraction, it indicates a possible upside breakout. This is an exception to #2. If the price goes below the bottom band during a period of excessive contraction, it indicates a possible break downward. This is an exception to #3.   How to trade using Bollinger bands There are several strategies where Bollinger bands can be used. One is to go short anytime the price hits the top band and long if it hits the bottom band. In this case, a trader can use the middle band as a take-profit point. A stop-loss can be placed just above the top band or just below the bottom band to limit losses in case the pair breaks out. Another strategy is to wait for the bands to contract, then to buy when the price hits the top band or sell when it hits the bottom band. This is sometimes called the “contrarian Bollinger bands” strategy. In this case, a stop can be placed slightly above or slightly below the middle band. Bollinger bands are a measure of the volatility of a currency pair. In a ranging market, Bollinger bands indicate to traders where the price is likely to reverse and move back to the middle of the range. They can also be used to catch breakouts. As a result, Bollinger bands are useful for finding entry and exit points in trades.

Daily Pivots are a price level indicator calculated using the previous day’s price data. The Daily Pivot for today’s trading is calculated by calculating the mean average of the: Previous Day’s High Previous Day’s Low Previous Day’s Close The Daily Pivot is a tool you might want to use to construct a trading strategy. If you find you side with some of the arguments questioning the usefulness of Daily Pivots, it’s still valuable to monitor them as certain market participants do give them credence. The below chart of the CFD price action in SEB shows how the Daily Pivot is calculated. Source: City Index Demo Account 20181113 Classic Trading Strategy One established method of trading the Daily Pivot is to monitor price action for the first 15 minutes of the day and if it is below the Daily Pivot to trade into a short position and if the price is above the Daily Pivot then to trade into a long position. Holding periods would be intra-day, and there would be scaling out of positions at the Support Levels or Resistance Levels depending on whether you are trading long or short. Your Stop Loss levels would typically be set just the other side of the Daily Pivot. The theory behind the Daily Pivot trading strategy is somewhat self-fulfilling. The Daily Pivot is a well-known analysis tool that has been around for a long time. Even if you are not basing your trading activity on the Daily Pivot, you are still likely to benefit from knowing where it is and understanding its impact on price action. The fact that some other market participants will be trading using the Daily Pivot means it is important to monitor. Questions While the Daily Pivot is important, you might be questioning the benefit of risking your capital trading strategies based around it. Take time to step back and consider the significance of the three data points chosen to calculate it? How useful are they as determinants of today’s price action? Why not include the previous day’s Opening Price? Why not only consider two data points, namely the previous Day’s High and Low? The truth is that some traders do use methods with different data points. It’s fair to conclude that Daily Pivots must have worked pretty effectively at some point. Any method of making profits in the market soon gains a loyal following. You have to draw your own conclusion on the significance you’ll place on Daily Pivots. Even if not completely convinced by the methodology the role of the Daily Pivot needs to be acknowledged and might at least be tested by trading a Demo account. Pivot points can be applied to different time intervals. Weekly and Monthly Pivot points are calculated using the same method, for example: Monthly Pivot = mean average of (Previous Month’s High + Previous Month’s Low + Previous Month’s Close) A yearly or monthly Pivot might even be running through your intra-day charts and explain particular price action.

Bitcoin was born in January 2009, and it changed the financial world forever as it ushered in the new era of cryptocurrencies. It’s been a tumultuous time for the infant cryptocurrency industry as governments, regulators, tax authorities and enforcers worldwide debate how to deal with cryptocurrencies. Among all this the primary question many users ask is, ‘is bitcoin legal in my country?’ The answer depends on what country you’re talking about, and what you’re using bitcoin for. There’s no set answer, since confusion reigns even within individual countries. Bitcoin is a computer generated digital currency, and as such it has no ties to any one government or central bank. It was created as a peer-to-peer alternative to government issued fiat currencies and it offers users a convenient and inexpensive way to transfer value while also remaining private. With growing acceptance from merchants, the ability to convert bitcoin into fiat currency, the growth of exchanges and trading, and the burgeoning number of investments in other blockchain based platforms it certainly looks as if Bitcoin and its kin have been accepted. Yet there is no global regulation of bitcoin, and even local governments have conflicting views on the new payment method. Let’s have a closer country-by-country look to determine if bitcoin is legal in your country. Countries where bitcoin is legal Most countries have yet to fully rule on the legality of bitcoin, but we can say that it is not an acceptable substitute to any country’s legal tender currency. Some countries have accepted bitcoin’s usage by enacting regulations, others have outright demonized the digital currency, and most are taking a wait-and-see approach. Here are the countries where bitcoin usage and ownership are considered legal: Japan – Japan is at the forefront of bitcoin acceptance. It was the first, and so far, the only, country to declare bitcoin legal tender in 2017. It is also ahead of other countries in regard to regulations, with laws being passed in 2017 to license cryptocurrency exchanges, while also putting them under Know-Your-Customer and Anti-Money Laundering regulations. United States – In the United States there has been a generally positive attitude from government entities regarding bitcoin. While some do work to stop its use in illegal transactions, others have begun to draft regulations regarding taxation and investing, including the introduction of a bitcoin derivative on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board Options Exchange. The IRS has deemed bitcoin a property for taxation purposes, the U.S. Treasury has said it is a money services business rather than a currency, and the Securities and Exchange Commission is drafting regulations to define bitcoin trading. On the commercial front there are a growing number of U.S. businesses that accept bitcoin in payment. Canada – Canada has a friendly stance towards bitcoin, while also working to ensure it isn’t being used for illegal purposes. Canada’s Revenue Agency has determined bitcoin to be a commodity, which makes bitcoin transactions in Canada a barter transaction subject to business income laws and regulations. Taxation is determined by the intent of the bitcoin buyer and seller. Like the U.S., Canada largely considers bitcoin exchanges to be money service businesses. That makes them subject to KYC and AML regulations and requires them to register with Canada’s Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC). On a negative note, some Canadian banks have banned the use of their credit and debit cards in Bitcoin transactions. Australia – Australia has also taken a friendly stance towards bitcoin and considers it to be like any other foreign currency. Entities in Australia are permitted to transact with Bitcoin, as well as trading, buying and mining it. The European Union – So far, the European Union hasn’t issued a formal decision regarding bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. In the absence of a central decision individual countries have been developing their own stance regarding bitcoin. In many cases that has led to a lack of regulation and tax-exempt status for bitcoin across much of the European Union. United Kingdom – The U.K. is pro-bitcoin and has been supportive of the digital currency in its regulatory and taxation approaches. Countries where bitcoin is unwelcome There are countries that haven’t embraced bitcoin with open arms due to worries over the decentralized nature of bitcoin, its links to illicit activities, its volatility, or its perceived threat to the current fiat currencies. In some countries it has been outright declared illegal and banned, while in others it has seen access to banking and financial services severed. Bangladesh – This South Asian country is one of the few that has openly declared against cryptocurrencies. The Bangladesh government made it clear as early as 2015 that it is a “punishable offense” to use bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in Bangladesh. China – Because of its link to bitcoin mining, and the large number of altcoin projects in China, it has seen sometimes intense media scrutiny regarding its policies towards bitcoin. While the Chinese government has openly stated that they have no plans to ban bitcoin, they have also banned ICOs in 2017, and have cracked down on cryptocurrency exchanges by suspending trading of digital assets against the Yuan. It has also been removing the tax breaks and cheap electricity that made bitcoin mining so attractive and profitable in China. Russia – Russia has also had a sometimes contradictory relationship with bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. At various points it was going to be regulated, then banned, then allowed, but not for transactions, and finally in early 2018 the Russian government released regulations making bitcoin exchanges officially legal in Russia. There are still rumors that the Russian Finance Ministry is drafting legislation to make it illegal to use bitcoin as a substitute to the Russian Ruble. Vietnam – The central bank and government of Vietnam have stated that bitcoin is not a legitimate payment method, but they have not released any formal regulations regarding its use as an investment. That said, the Vietnamese government seized control of the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in May 2017 and banned the import of cryptocurrency mining equipment in August 2018. Egypt – There hasn’t been a government ban on bitcoin in Egypt, but in January 2018 the highest religious leader in Egypt stated that cryptocurrency trading is forbidden under Islamic religious law. South America (Bolivia, Columbia and Ecuador) The Central Bank of Bolivia has banned the use of bitcoin and in Columbia it cannot be used for purchases or investment. Ecuador has also banned the use of bitcoin by a vote in their national assembly. Africa (Namibia, Nigeria and Zimbabwe) In Namibia it has been made expressly clear that bitcoin transactions are illegal, and users will face penalties. Nigeria has prohibited banks from dealing with cryptocurrencies, but the government has also said they are working on their official stance towards bitcoin as a method of payment and as an investment. Zimbabwe has banned its banks from processing transactions linked to bitcoin, but in May it also lifted a ban on cryptocurrency exchanges. The new finance minister has been outspoken in his desire to see Zimbabwe embrace cryptocurrencies. The Bottom Line Even though bitcoin is over 10 years old most countries haven’t yet determined how to deal with the fledgling digital currency. Progress is being made however, and in the free and open countries bitcoin has been accepted. Governments that typically exert greater control over their citizens have been hesitant or unwilling to embrace bitcoin, which isn’t surprising given their lack of control over the digital currency. While bitcoin usage and investment remain a grey area in much of the world, its acceptance is slowly increasing, and most of the world’s citizens will find that bitcoin is legal in their country, especially as an investment.

Used correctly a Bear Put Spread will significantly reduce your risk. There is a trade-off though as the strategy will also limit your potential returns. Before you start thinking you’ve stumbled upon some kind of wonder-trade it’s important to note there are other risks associated with it. The first risk is that any strategy is open to human error and this one is no exception. It relies on the process being clearly understood and effectively executed. There is also the risk that the potential market move that you think is about to happen, just doesn’t occur. The Bear Put Spread is a strategy that aims to make some profit, but not excessive profits, from downward price action. Naked Short in NFLX NFLX is trading at about the $265 level. A naked short in the CFD would expose you to the full extent of any gains (from price falling) but also any losses should price rise. Considering that price touched $385 within the last two months you’d be putting on a position in a relatively volatile instrument and engaging in a fairly aggressive risk return policy. Source: Interactive Brokers 20181127 Bear Put Spread on NFLX Confident that your analysis is correct, and that price is due to carry on down to as low as $200, you could design and execute a Bear Put Spread to profit from that move. It is imperative that you put the trades on in the same instrument. Both trades have to have the same Expiry date. Using live prices as quoted by Interactive Brokers the Puts with Expiry of Feb 15th 2019: Buy: 100 Put Options with Strike Price 250 - cost: 17.75 Sell: 100 Put Options with Strike Price 200 - revenue: 5.15 The profit you make using this strategy is: (Revenue from Put sale – Cost from Put buy) + (Higher Strike Price – Market Price of underlier or Lower Strike Price, whichever of these two is the smaller) The Revenue and Cost are known at the time of the trade, as are the Strikes of the Options you traded. The only remaining variable is market price. Should this reach levels of EUR 237.40 = (250-17.75+5.15 or lower you will make a profit. Profit is capped at EUR 37.4 per option = (237.40-200) Risk Management If you have made the wrong call and the price doesn’t head south between trade date and Feb 15th 2019 then your downside on the trade is capped at EUR 12.60 = (5.15-7.75). This being difference between the premium paid and received to put on the trades associated with the strategy. Both Put positions will simply expire worthless as they are out of the money. If you find you do make the right call in terms of market direction there is still the risk that you made an error when putting the trades on. There are only a certain number of data fields that need to be checked over, but it is important some kind of four-eye check / reconciliation is done.

There are many risks with penny stocks even before you begin talking about the risks of day trading. Day trading combined with penny stocks is a very risky endeavor. If you’re considering taking that route, be sure you’re trading with money you can absolutely afford to lose, because most of the time, that’s exactly what will happen. Also keep in mind that many of the leveraging strategies day traders use may not be available with penny stocks. For example, most brokers don’t allow you to short penny stocks or use options for trading them. Thirdly, most brokers don’t allow stop-loss orders on penny stocks that trade OTC. You can get around thatby sticking to penny stocks that trade on the exchanges, and in fact, most veteran day traders stick to only listed penny stocks. Final main point; penny stocks often have extraordinarily low trading volumes, which means that your order may not get filled, or it may get filled over several days. If you understand the risks and limitations, day trading penny stocks can be exhilarating and occasionally very rewarding. Trading First, you want to screen out stocks with low volumes; most penny stock day traders look for a minimum of 250,000 daily average volume. Too low, and you may not be able to fill your orders. Second, since you may not be able to short penny stocks traded OTC, you want to identify those that have had an increase in net price of at least 5%, but no more than 10% or 15%. A 5% bump suggests the stock may be entering a breakout, but above 10% or so, you may be looking at a pump and dump scheme, and you don’t want to get caught in a runaway market. You should also check for tight bid-ask spreads. You can’t really use fundamental analysis on penny stocks, so sticking with technical indicators like moving averages is a better way to go. A stock with a rising short-term moving average and bullish crossover, meaning the short-term has risen above the long-term moving average suggests upward momentum. Look for breakouts and breakdowns to time your entry. A breakout is when prices break past resistance moving upward; a breakdown is when they move below a level of support. Breakouts and breakdowns are usually marked by volatility and heavy trading volumes, which confirm the trend. Next, you need strategies to limit your losses. If you’re trading penny stocks on the exchange, you can use stop-loss orders. An effective strategy might look like this: Stock XYZ is trading at $1.85, and you see a long-term support level at $1.75 that the stock has approached but never crossed in a particular period of time. So you put in an order to buy 1,000 shares just slightly above the support level, say $1.78. As soon as it’s filled, place a stop-loss order for those same 1,000 shares at a penny or two below the support level, say $1.73. That limits your potential loss to about 2%, which is a good threshold for day trading. Hedging and averaging down is another strategy for day trading penny stocks. You can do this whether you’re buying or selling. The strategy involves entering multiple buy or sell orders at different prices. If you’re buying stock ABC, for example, you make one order for 2,000 shares at $0.50 and another for 2,000 shares at $0.44. If the price falls enough that your first order is filled and continues to drop until your second order is also filled, you can now average your price to $0.47 a share and still make a profit at $0.48 a share. If the price falls and your first order is filled, but then it starts to rise, your second order won’t be filled, but you may be able to sell your 2,000 shares at a profit. If the price never falls low enough to fill your first order, you’re not out anything and you haven’t lost anything. And in fact, an unfilled order isn’t a sign of failure; it actually suggests you’re doing it right. Remember, when you’re day trading, you’re not looking for 40% or 50% returns, you’re looking to make several small wins, 10% or 20%. Waiting for the “grand slams” with highly volatile penny stocks is a recipe for losing it all. Exit the trade as soon as you can lock in a solid gain.

Stochastic is an indicator created by George Lane in the late 1980’s. It indicates when an asset is overbought or oversold. It can also indicate an impending breakout or trend reversal. Stochastic explained There are a few variations of stochastic,but in Lane’s original version it contains two lines. The first of the lines is called %K. The second is called %D. %K is calculated by taking the highest high and lowest low of a preceding time period and defining a range using those values. Within this range, the price is then expressed as a percentage of its distance from the bottom of the range. A %K of 50% indicates that the price is in the middle of its current range. A %K above 80% indicates that the price is near the top of its range. A %K below 20% indicates the price is near the bottom of its range. The time-period used to define the range can be any number. In the original version, the previous 14 periods were used to define the range. Many stochastic indicators today use a 5-period range instead of a 14-period one. %D is calculated by taking a 3-period moving average of %K. In the original version, this is a “slow” line that is smoother than %K. Crossovers between these two lines are used as buy and sell signals. Many modern versions of stochastic do not show %K at all. Instead, they show %D and a second line that is a 3-day moving average of %D. Regardless, most variations of stochastic have two lines, and crossovers of these lines are used as signals. Stochastic example The chart above uses a hidden %K defined by a period of 14 days. The two lines that are shown are a “fast” sea-green line and a “slow” dotted red-line. In this chart, we can see that the stochastic for USD/CHF fell below 20% in late August, 2018. This implies there was strong downward momentum. In late September, the fast (sea green) line crossed the slow (dotted red) line from below and both lines moved above 20%. This move was accompanied by a widening of the distance between the two lines. After this signal occurred, the price moved from 0.96596 to 1.01095, a gain of over five hundred pips. From late September to mid-November, stochastic stayed above 80%. This indicated strong upward momentum. But in mid-November, the fast line crossed the slow line and both lines moved below 80%. In addition, the space between the lines widened. This indicates that a trend-reversal may be occurring. How to trade using stochastic There are strategies that traders can use to take advantage of the information provided by stochastic. Here are a few: When stochastic is above 80%, consider it “overbought.” Look for chances to go short. When stochastic is below 20%, consider it “oversold.” Look for opportunities to go long. When stochastic crosses over and moves out of oversold condition, buy the pair. When stochastic crosses over and moves out of overbought condition, sell the pair. When the price is going up and stochastic is going down, this is a “divergence.” Sell. When the price is going down and stochastic is going up, this is a “divergence.” Buy. The stochastic indicator is a measurement of the momentum of price over a given period of time. It can be used to identify overbought and oversold conditions, catch breakouts, and find impending trend reversals. It’s an excellent tool to find profitable Forex trading opportunities.

Most indicators are only useful for providing information about one aspect of the market. For example, ADX and moving averages provide information about the general trend, while stochastic and RSI provide information about momentum. For this reason, trading systems that incorporate more than one indicator are usually more successful than single indicator systems. This article will provide some ideas for how to trade using multiple indicators. Before an indicator can be combined with others into a system, its type needs to be understood. Combining indicators of the same type often leads to the same signal being repeated. That can cause a trader to misidentify the strength of the signal being given. The best trading systems combine indicators of different types. Here is a list of indicator types, along with some examples of indicators that fit into each category: Momentum Momentum indicators measure the speed at which price is moving. This allows a trader to determine whether a currency pair is overbought or oversold. This category includes RSI, Stochastic, and Commodity Channel Index (CCI) amongst others. MACD can be used as either a momentum or trend indicator. Trend Trend indicators measure whether the market is trending or ranging. They also sometimes measure the direction of the trend. This allows a trader to catch breakouts early, when potential profits are the greatest. ADX, moving averages, and Parabolic SAR are examples of pure trend indicators. MACD can be used as either a trend or momentum indicator. Bollinger bands can also be used as either a trend or volatility indicator. Volatility Volatility indicators measure how quickly the price is moving up or down. This allows traders to catch breakouts when volatility increases. Envelopes and Average True Range are examples of volatility indicators. Bollinger bands can also be placed in this category. Trading using multiple indicators Here are two examples of systems that incorporate multiple indicators: Bollinger bands and Stochastic When Stochastic is below 20%, the currency pair is considered to be “oversold.” When it is above 80%, it is considered to be “overbought.” However, Stochastic by itself can often give false signals. This is because currencies often remain overbought or oversold for long periods before they finally reverse. Using Bollinger bands by itself can also result in false signals. Sometimes buying when the price hits the bottom band and selling when the price hits the top band is profitable. Other times, the price hits the top or bottom band because the price is breaking out of a range, resulting in a crushing loss for anyone who thought it would return to the middle band quickly. If a trader combines Bollinger bands with Stochastic though, it can result in less false signals. Here is an example: In this chart, the price hit the top of the upper band at around 9:45 a.m., giving a sell signal. But Stochastic showed the pair was not overbought, since it was not above 80%. Having stochastic as an additional indicator could have allowed a trader to avoid losses here. Moving averages and RSI Moving averages and RSI can also give false signals by themselves but work better when combined with each other. In this case, a trader can use a moving average crossover as a sell signal, but exclude cases where RSI is not below 50. A similar strategy can be used for buy signals if the trader excludes signals where RSI is not above 50. Using multiple indicators often leads to more success when compared to using just one. But traders need to only add indicators that provide new information. Using more than one indicator of the same type should be avoided if possible. This is how one can trade using multiple indicators.

Robo-advisors aren’t barred by any regulatory authority from investing in certain asset classes; they are free to invest a clients’ money in any type of security they choose. However, the vast majority of them choose to invest in exchange-traded funds, or ETFs because those funds closely align with the robo-advisor business model. Robo-advisors are low-cost alternatives to traditional financial advisor services. They use complex algorithms to develop risk-adjusted portfolios and recommend these pre-established portfolios to their clients based on their risk tolerance and investment goals. Investment management and account maintenance is automated and services such as regular rebalancing to restore correct asset allocation parameters and tax-loss harvesting for taxable accounts are included in the management fee. The robo-advisor business model rides on the coattails of the passive management trend. Over the past decade or so, U.S. investors have massively shifted their assets out of costlier actively managed mutual funds into low-cost index funds and ETFs, which are pegged to an underlying index and seek to simply replicate its returns. Where actively managed funds carry expense ratios of up to 2% or more, especially for more esoteric funds, passively managed ETFs can be held for as little as 0.04%. With over 2,000 ETFs to choose from, it’s easy for robo-advisors to select low-cost funds to round out a well-balanced, diversified portfolio with broad exposure to a variety of sectors and markets. These no-fuss investments help robo-advisors keep the management fees low. Some, like WiseBanyan charge investors nothing to manage their money, although most tend to charge between 0.25% and 0.50% of assets for their services. The robo-advisor industry is still in its infancy; the oldest, Betterment, was launched in 2008. As the market continues to expand, however, some robo-advisors are branching out into other asset classes. Hedgeable is one of the more sophisticated robo-advisor platforms, offering over 200 options to customize a portfolio. They also offer a wide variety of asset classes including U.S. and international equities, Bitcoin, real estate, commodities, and currency. Of course, their fees are substantially higher than most of the other robo-advisors, although charges go down as your account balance goes up. Vanguard Personal Advisory Services is a robo-advisor hybrid that combines personal advice from a human advisor with automated investment management services. It also offers more asset classes than basic ETFs, including Vanguard’s actively managed mutual funds, individual bonds, and tax-free muni bond funds. Wealthsimple is another robo-advisor offering individual stocks, although these are aimed at socially responsible investing portfolios and halal choices compliant with Islamic law. It’s also a hybrid platform that connects you with a professional advisor. If you’re interested in investing in individual stocks, you may be better served with a low-cost online brokerage account for the portion of your money you don’t want to hold in ETFs. You’ll pay a higher management fee for robos offering these asset classes, plus you’ll be limited to the equities available in the preset portfolios. And while most robo-advisors waive commissions on ETF trades, you’ll still usually be charged for individual stock trades. It’s easy to find a discount broker offering trades for $10 or less, which will save you money and give you more flexibility in your investment options.

Ein Evening-Star ist eine Kerzenkonstellation, dass die Preisbewegung eines Assets über einen bestimmten Zeitraum veranschaulicht. Ein Evening-Star gilt als Indikator für eine bevorstehende Umkehrung der Marktrichtung, wobei sich die Märkte von einem zinsbullischen zu einem rückläufigen Trend entwickeln. Struktur eines Evening-Stars Das Muster eines Evening-Stars ist relativ ungewöhnlich und besteht aus mindestens drei Kerzen. Vorangestellt ist eine Aufwärtsentwicklung des Marktes. Der erste Kerze (links) muss bullisch und lang genug sein, um einen starken Kaufdruck am Markt zu suggerieren. Zwischen der ersten und zweiten Kerze muss ein Abstand bestehen. Dies ist ein wesentlicher Punkt. Die mittlere Kerze muss klein sein, wobei die Richtung und Farbe der Kerze nicht sonderlich wichtig ist. Die dritte Kerze ist bärisch (rot oder schwarz) und hat einen minimalen Schatten, der angibt, dass der Schlusskurs nahe dem Tiefststand des Zeitraums lag. Es gibt unterschiedliche Ansichten darüber, ob eine Lücke zwischen dem Schlusskurs von der zweiten Kerze und dem Eröffnungskurs der dritten Kerze erforderlich ist. Während es verschiedene Ansätze gibt, kann eine Lücke, falls vorhanden, als Hinweis auf eine größere Signalstärke angesehen werden. Die meisten Methoden erfordern, dass die erste und dritte Kerze relativ lang und die dritte Kerze nahe dem Zentrum der ersten Kerze geschlossen wird.   Bedeutung und Interpretation Eine Evening-Star Formation wird verwendet um zu zeigen, dass ein Markt, der nach oben tendiert, im Begriff ist sich umzukehren und einen Abwärtstrend vollziehen wird. Der Abstand zwischen den Kerzen 1 und 2 wird als eine Art letzter Ausfallschritt angesehen und die kleine zweite Kerze als Zeichen der Unentschlossenheit, dass dieser Ausfallschritt eine sinnvolle Lösung ist. Die Kerzen 1 und 2 zusammen deuten darauf hin, dass der Markt ins Stocken gerät. Die dritte Kerze muss rückläufig und von beträchtlicher Länge sein, um zu bestätigen, dass tatsächlich eine Umkehrung stattfindet. Wenn Sie eine Long-Position gehalten haben und das Aufwärtsmomentum handeln, könnte ein Evening-Star Muster Sie ermutigen, Gewinne zu erzielen. Sie könnten versuchen, eine Position in der Umkehrung nach unten aufzubauen, oder zumindest die Märkte beobachten, um zu bestätigen, dass eine Abwärtsbewegung stattfindet. Evening-Stars Handeln Im Vergleich zu einigen anderen Kerzenmustern sind Evening-Stars relativ selten. Es ist wichtig, dass Sie "selten" nicht mit "richtig" oder "genau" verwechseln. Die Zuverlässigkeit dieses Signals wird sich erst durch die sorgfältige Analyse zeigen, die Teil einer erfolgreichen Handelsstrategie ist. Besonders wichtig ist es, vor der Signalgebung einen guten, starken Aufwärtstrend vorzuweisen. Der Handel mit einem Evening-Star-Muster in einem Seitwärtsmarkt ist nicht zu empfehlen. Eine Handelsstrategie auf dem Musters zu entwickeln, wird am besten in einem Demo-Konto getestet. Viele andere Signale, wie z.B. gehandelte Volumina, Trendlinien und der stochastische Oszillator können in Ihre Entscheidungsfindung einbezogen werden. Hintergrund Ein Evening-Star Muster, welches sich über mehrere Tage bildet, ist das Ergebnis einer weitaus größeren Menge an Marktaktivitäten als eines, das über einen Zeitraum von Minuten gebildet wurde. Wie bei anderen Kerzenmustern gilt auch hier: Je länger das Zeitintervall der Kerzen ist, desto stärker gilt das Signal.

There are risks with every type of investment—unless you’re holding all your assets in cash, there is some risk involved. That is especially true of stocks. No matter what anyone tells you, there is no “sure thing” when it comes to the market. There is always an element of risk. That said, when it comes to the mechanism of investing, robo-advisors are pretty safe. These digital investment management platforms use military-grade encryption, and most are heavily invested in data protection. From a security point of view, most experts consider robo-advisors a safe way to invest. But there are other risks to consider before you invest with a robo-advisor. One of the more obvious is that this is relatively new technology built around a relatively recent trend toward passive investing. Robo-advisors broke onto the scene in 2008; the industry is barely 10 years old. In addition, although passive investing has been available for decades, it’s only recently become a popular way to invest. In 2000, a mere 10% of mutual fund assets were in passively managed funds; today, that figure is approaching 50%. There has been a stunning outflow from actively managed mutual funds to passively managed index funds and ETFs over the past five years; some $600 billion in 2017 alone moved from active to passively managed funds. This seems like a perfect storm, since both of these developments have existed exclusively in a bull market. The U.S. stock market is in its 10th year of a sustained bull market, the longest stretch in history. A significant body of evidence demonstrates that actively managed funds outperform their passive counterparts in a bear market. It remains to be seen how robo-advisors, and their clients, will fare when the market enters an inevitable downturn. Another risk is the manner in which robo-advisors assign clients to portfolios. The online questionnaires vary significantly between the different robo-advisor platforms, suggesting that some may do a better job than others at accurately assessing an investor’s risk tolerance and investment goals, and matching them to an appropriate fund portfolio. This lack of standardization across platforms points to another risk, which is in the regulatory realm. Although robo-advisors are subject to the same fiduciary rules governing all registered investment advisors under the SEC, there are other regulatory and compliance concerns, specifically related to the algorithms used to build the pre-set portfolios. The SEC issued regulatory guidance aimed at robo-advisors in 2017, which focused specifically on disclosure rules, the provision of advice based on online questionnaires, and compliance regarding the use of algorithmic codes. It is obvious that robo-advisors will remain under SEC scrutiny as the business model expands. Another risk relates to the buy-and-hold strategy most robo-advisor portfolios are built around. As mentioned above, index funds are a good choice in a bull market for a buy-and-hold investor. But they may be inferior to individual equities in a range-bound market, where the market as a whole trades in a narrow band, moving very little in either direction. By definition, most index funds will deliver lackluster returns—they aren’t designed to beat the market, merely to track it. And that points to the final risk with robo-advisors. They only keep pace with the market. If the market takes a beating, so will your portfolio. They are not equipped to utilize sophisticated hedging and risk management strategies designed to limit losses and amplify gains. Some platforms are expanding their product offering to include more options for investors looking to beat the market. Betterment has a smart beta portfolio that tilts toward a more active approach to achieving gains. Wealthfront is parking a percentage of its investors’ money in a “risk parity” fund, which uses complex derivatives to goose returns. But generally speaking, the robo-advisor business model is built around low-cost, low-fuss, passively managed ETFs, which, despite their current massive popularity, do have disadvantages for investors. One final thing to keep in mind if you’re thinking of using a robo-advisor: It’s as easy to sell shares in your robo-advisor account as it is to buy them. In other words, there’s no human being managing your investments and executing your trades. If the market suffers a correction and you’re a risk-averse investor, it’s extremely easy to liquidate your position and substantially harm your returns and investment goals. A human advisor would counsel you against a bad financial move.

If you use a robo-advisor to manage your money the chances are your portfolio will be filled with ETFs. Five years after Betterment launched the robo-advisor concept in 2008, nearly 100% of all assets under management were in ETFs. Today, 10 years into the robo-advisor era, more robo-advisors are tapping into other niches, including individual stocks and other asset classes such as real estate, P2P lending, and infrastructure. These robo-advisors are a distinct minority however. The ETF is still the investment of choice in most robo-advisor portfolios. This actually aligns with the investing public as a whole; in 2010, ETFs accounted for just $800 million compared to $3 trillion by the end 2017. There are many reasons for that. Perhaps most significantly, ETFs are inexpensive to hold. Most have expense ratios below 0.10%, and there are many that cost as little as $40 per $10,000 invested. Since low cost is a primary factor behind the success of robo-advisors, it makes sense that they would choose assets that are similarly cost effective for their clients. Second, ETFs allow broad exposure to a particular basket of stocks or other asset classes. The ETF market is large and diverse, with funds tracking major domestic and international indices and asset classes. ETFs make it relatively easy to build a diverse portfolio. ETFs are also more tax efficient than other mutual funds. Generally speaking, an ETF will only create a taxable event when it sells off an equity that has been removed from an index. Other structural differences between ETFs and mutual funds contribute to the overall tax efficiency. One study revealed that mutual funds generated capital gains equal to about 7% of NAV, while index funds generated just 0.02% of NAV in capital gains. Another advantage of ETFs over other types of funds is that there are no account minimums to invest in an ETF. This aligns with many robo-advisor platforms, which require no minimum deposit to open an account. The minimum investment for an ETF is the cost of a single share. Obviously, there are risks associated with a portfolio constructed solely of ETFs. Most robo-advisors look for the cheapest funds and overlook considerations such as tax efficiency and liquidity. Less liquid funds have larger bid-ask spreads which can affect overall performance. Finally, most ETFs are passively managed, in that they simply seek to mimic the performance and composition of the underlying index. There is an element of tracking error inherent in the ETF model, which means that ETFs will almost always underperform the index to some degree. Although there are some actively managed ETFs that do seek to beat the market, they tend to have higher expense ratios, and as such, are rarely included in robo-advisor portfolios. There are some robo-advisor platforms that do focus on actively managed funds in an attempt to boost returns. One is Qplum, which uses artificial intelligence to shape its trading strategies. Their Flagship Portfolio has 45 actively managed ETFs across several sectors and asset classes and has consistently outperformed the S&P 500. The bottom line is that ETFs make sense as part of a well balanced portfolio, and they work especially well in robo-advisor portfolios aimed at small or inexperienced investors and those in the earlier stages of wealth building. But it’s also important to consider moving beyond an ETF-exclusive portfolio to reduce systemic risk, and robo-advisors who offer additional asset classes may have the advantage.

A Green Candlestick is an illustrative way of reflecting positive Price Action over a given time period. Structure The horizontal bars of a Green Candlestick represent the opening and closing prices and the box between these two levels is referred to as the ‘body’ or ‘real body’. A Green Candlestick body reflects that over that time period the closing price was above the opening price. The vertical lines represent the range of price action during the period. The highest point of the upper shadow reflects that period’s trading high and the lowest part of the lower shadow reflects the low of the time period. Short shadows denote a price action to have been within a small range, longer shadows denote a greater price range. [It’s worth noting that color choice is arbitrary, and some follow the practice of coloring the bodies of positive candles white instead of green.] Signal Strength Candlestick charts are simple in design and present a way to clearly and quickly convey price action. It is also possible to grade the strength of the signal. The Candlestick on the far-right hand side is the most ‘Bullish’. It has a long lower shadow that suggests at some part of the trading period bearish traders sold heavily and drove prices down. By the end of the time period strong buying pressure had taken price back above the opening price and continued to make new highs. The closing price being close to the high point of the period suggesting buyers finished the session on top.   Uses Candlesticks are a method of understanding prices action and their use can be extended over all markets and tradeable instruments. Trading strategies based on Technical Analysis take things one step further and might use Green Candlesticks as guides to enter into long positions and, or close out short positions. It should be noted that trading solely off Candlesticks while possibly profitable would not be taking account of other market information that is readily available. Many other signals, such as traded volumes, Pivots and Support and Resistance levels can be incorporated into your strategy to act in conjunction with the candlestick analysis. Moreover, the information is widely available free of charge including from Broker Platforms. Time Periods Different time periods can be selected. Those typically available range from 1m (one minute) through to 1y (one year) but the design characteristics of the candlestick are constant regardless of the time period or instrument to which they are applied. A Green Candlestick formed by data taken over a longer time period is considered to offer a more reliable signal. This is on the basis that more market participants have been involved in generating the buying pressure to make prices rise.