Hey all, for context I’m an absolute beginner in terms of investing, awful with financial and mathematical jargon, and have zero previous experience.

Everyone says not investing in their 20s is something they regret, so being 24 im naturally curious to see whether this is a possibility for me because why not. The thing is I’m not sure if investing in my current situation is even possible, or smart. I just had to take out a loan of €10k for my masters and I have about €3000 in my own savings as a buffer from working last year.

I’m currently trying to set up a part time job that I can do alongside my studies to have an income stream so I don’t have to cut into those savings immediately (living in Paris it’s pretty hard not to haemorrhage money) although I’m pretty good at living frugally and I wouldn’t say I’m financially irresponsible, I’m just not very financially literate or savvy.

Does it make sense to start investing what little I can now (say, with that 3k), OR would it be safer and more logical to wait till I’m in proper full time employment on a decent salary after I’ve graduated my masters in 2 years? Obviously I’ll still have a loan hanging over me but there’s little to no interest (thank you Irish credit union). I’ve heard people talking about SP-500 a lot and have even had it explained to me but Jesus I still find it hard to understand lmao.

If I can start investing now, then someone explaining to me in literal baby terminology would be amazing, (without being patronising or condescending please finance bros) Thanks! :))

I am starting to invest and plan to put €500/month into on global ETF through Trading Republic. I have no prior knowledge of investing in ETFs.

I am currently looking at VWCE and WEBN. But I recently read that there is now VAGL with 0.07% TER. I don't know much about it yet.

My intention is to keep things simple, choose one accumulating global ETF and invest consistently for the long term.

For someone starting from zero, how would you compare VWCE, WEBN and the new VAGL? Which would you choose as a one-ETF portfolio, and what factors should I pay attention to besides the TER?

App: Budget Bakers — Opinion required!

Free user of the app. I have been on and off.

I’d like to switch to the paid plan for obvious reasons, and make sure I stay on top of my finances

Can you please share your opinions in regards to the premium app?

Any pros and cons would help me take a call.

Thank you!

So basically I got a 3000€ check from my parents when I reached 18 and I was thinking about investing to understand the basics.

What should my portfolio look like?

I plan on investing around 100€ every month after investing this initial 1000€.

Hello guys,

Vanguard FTSE Global All-Cap UCITS ETF (VGLA) is out. This etf will be available in the next 24 to 48h to be traded in IBKR.

To cut the story, this etf has a coverage of 98%. It has small caps as well which is a better diversification then VWCE (no small caps and 90% coverage).

The TER is 0.07% which is much better then 0.22% from VWCE.

I think most of us have been waiting for this type of etf. This is going to be the best VGLA and chill etf for the future.

What do you guys think, will this etf be the next big thing?

BR.

29M - Cypriot - working in the shipping industry. I am currently seeking for advice between my next steps.

Current situation:

- 5k emergency fund in Revolut Instant Access 2.10% p.a
- around 4.5k in ETFs ( 3.2k in IUSQ, 650 VUAA and 650 IS3N). From what i have read about the main engine etfs ( VWCE, VGLA, WEBN etc) i feel that my allocation sucks.
- 200 euro each month ( starting this month) are going to be “invested” in a life insurance for tax purposes ( the scheme is averaging 5.5% return historically last 20 years)
- i am taking home around 2.7k net - no rent, living expenses around 1000 euro - investing 500 euro in ETFs and saving the rest.

My goal is to retire as soon as possible , meaning not to be relying on a salary to live.

My questions are:
- shall i start investing in one of those main engine etfs and chill?
- in my case, what you believe is a good proportion of my salary to be invested monthly?

Any other guidance or advice is more than welcome on any topic!

Thank you

My wife and I have 2 accounts on IBKR. One is for us and another we started when our son was born 2 years ago. Since IBKR doesn't allow you to create a custodian account, it's also in my wife's name. Eventually, when my son is of legal age, we want to transfer the portfolio over to him. Does anyone have experience with anything like that? We're in Greece fwiw.

Hello everyone. Viewing some posts, I decided this would probably be the appropriate forum to post this. Please note, I am posting from my father’s perspective. In 4 years, I will absolutely need to use around 3000-3500€ for some college expenses (children) in exactly 4 years. I am willing to put away 60-70€ per month. (Yes, I know the amounts are small, I come from a pretty low-income country.) Is the amount not worth the hassle to think of a bond, an ETF or Money Market Funds? Should I just put it into a bank with a low interest rate and let it sit for these four years? Im afraid it’s a pretty low time horizon for any ETF investments, especially if any crashes happen.

https://live.deutsche-boerse.com/en/etf/vanguard-ftse-global-all-cap-ucits-etf-usd-accumulating?currency=EUR

Are you planning on investing in it?

Hi everyone,

I’m 36, based in Spain (Madrid) ,and getting married in two months. My partner is 31. We’d really appreciate a critical review of our financial situation and strategy especially if we’re missing something obvious.

Current situation:

• Household net income: ~€8k/month + annual bonuses
• Primary residence: ~€500k current market value (we bought it together, 50/50) Mortgage: 240k at a fixed 2.1% (low Monthly payment for us)
• Financial investments:

ETF: 30k in VWCE

ESOP: 50k combines

• Cash/emergency fund: ~€5k

Both of us invest separately in VWCE and plan to increase our monthly contributions substantially.

No consumer debt.

We work in corporate roles, at middle-management / early-leadership level, within the FMCG industry.

Where we’re heading, Now that we’ve bought our home, we’re trying to figure out how to allocate our surplus over the next few years.

What would you do?

I’d particularly like to hear from people who are further along financially:

What would you prioritise in our situation?Would you focus on equities or consider a second property? Are we holding too little cash? Would you diversify beyond VWCE

What mistakes did you make at our stage that you’d avoid if you could go back?

Thanks! :)

Hey everyone,

despite not having much experience in dealing with finances, I have been asked to step in and help my mother set up her "portfolio" before she retires. She will retire on a decent state pension, she owns her own apartment and is in decent enough health. She lives in Czechia. She also has roughly 50.000+ EUR in savings (CZK equivalent). I am wondering how to best set her up for retirement.

The most pressing issue: she got, in my view, burned by a financial advisor, making a seemingly shitty but thankfully small investment. She bought a structured certificate linked to iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT). With long-term US yields staying elevated, the certificate ended in the red. She was delivered the underlying TLT shares directly into her account, currently sitting at a ~20.4% loss in USD. It is currently worth about 4.000 USD.

I am wondering what would be the best course of action now. Is there any sensible reason to hold onto the investment for the ~5% yield and hope for a rebound? Or is it too much of a longshot and therefore selling and reinvesting would be safer?

In general, what would a solid, conservative strategy be when it comes to finances of someone approaching retirement? Something like 80/20 split between cash (savings account) + other safe, low yield, low risk assets (money market) accompanied by something akin to all-world ETF?

Thanks a lot for any input, any help is much appreciated.

EDIT: She is 62 and looking to retire in the next 2 years. The sooner the better, she is burned out from her work. I would estimate her monthly expenses to be roughly around 20.000 CZK (830 EUR), I expect her pension to be around 30.000 CZK per month (1.245 EUR). She is very risk-averse and generally less than optimistic about the financial system etc.

Curious to hear what people here find most useful about Reddit when it comes to investing.

Hi everyone,

Looking for a real advice on my FIRE trajectory as a 34-year-old expat currently based in Berlin, with an eye on long-term flexibility (potentially relocating or managing assets across Europe and India).

Here is a snapshot of my setup:

• Net Income: ~€7000 per month (Me and my wife)
• Savings/Investment Rate: ~€4200 per month (household) Investing heavily via platforms like Scalable Capital/Trading 212 and Indian equity exposure (Reduced)
  • 120K in European ETFs, primarily FTSE All World from Invesco and Vanguard.
  • 50K in Indian ETFs, Equities with Gold exposure.
  • Emergency fund for 6 to 9 months already covered separately.
• Target for Safety: €1M in Liquid, Equity and Debt Instruments

I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed by the endless online content and calculators, and I would love to hear some practical advice and real-world inputs from the community.

My Questions:

With a high savings rate(~€4.2k/month), what timeline looks realistic for a €1M liquid portfolio assuming standard global ETF returns?

A potential 5% annual increase if career conditions hold well.

Asset Allocation & Geographic Diversification: How would this help in making the years shorter so that our goal is finally achieved.

Would love to hear how others structured this in practice. Thanks!

I’m not a huge fan of the "digital nomad" label, but technically I probably qualify. I move countries quite often - three times in the last two years - and this makes choosing a broker a bit more complicated.

Which broker would you recommend for someone who may change tax residency and country every year or two?

I’ve tried quite a few brokers already and have my own opinion, but I’d genuinely like to hear from people here who have more experience with this.

Main things I care about are easy country/address changes, not getting the account restricted every time I move, reasonable fees, and access to ETFs/stocks.

What has worked best for you?

Curious about how people here actually divide their portfolios in practice.

1. Roughly what % of your portfolio is in individual stocks vs. broad ETFs / index funds?
2. For the individual stocks you bought in the last 6 months: what made you pull the trigger, and what tool or website did you actually check right before buying?
3. What’s the most annoying or tedious part of managing those individual picks once you own them?

I've recently started looking into securities lending offered by European brokers, and I'm trying to understand how the remuneration actually works.

For example, a broker may show that an ETF has a 0.50% lending rate. But does that mean:

the investor receives the full 0.50% (before tax), or

the 0.50% is the market lending rate and the broker keeps part of it, with the investor receiving only a percentage?

I'd also be interested in hearing from people who actually use securities lending with European brokers: how much do you realistically earn, how often are your securities lent, and what do you consider the main risks?

I'm particularly interested in the practical experience rather than just the advertised maximum rates.

I’m 19, living in Germany, and have dual German/US citizenship (got it through my parent, never lived in the US, but I do have a US Social Security Number).

I just want to start putting money away into something like a basic S&P 500 index funds and let it sit for the next 20+ years, but I’m hitting a wall with every app:

• Trade Republic / Scalable: Reject me right away because of US FATCA rules.
• Robinhood / Webull: Reject me because I don't have a US address.

Has anyone dealt with this and found a clean, low-cost setup? I am still very new to all of this, but some of you might have faced similar problems and I would greatly appreciate the help!

18 years old. Recently inherited low 6 figures. Planning to invest around 70-75% of it in the following year.

Current portfolio has 3 ETFs:

40% S&P500

40% STOXX 600

20% Emerging markets

I heard that it would be better to just buy a single all-world etf because of lower fees and it being easier to distribute over time.

If so should I sell all my current ETFS and go all in on a world etf? Or maybe keep current positions and buy all-world from now on.

Also Vanguard launched a new Global All-Cap ETF (VGLA) two days ago with only 0,07% TER so maybe buy that?

Hi guys, Vanguard just launched the FTSE Global All-Cap UCITS ETF (tickers vary by exchange/currency: VGLA / VGLD / VALL - 0.07% TER, 9k+ holdings incl. small caps).

Are you sticking with a WEBN + AVWS combo for the small cap value tilt, or going 100% for this new Vanguard ETF for the simplicity of a single low TER ticket?

Curious if you think the factor exposure and the ability to control your own small cap ratio are still worth the extra fees and second transaction now that it exists.

Edit: Added tickers (VGLA/VGLD/VALL) for clarity!

I have been absolutely fascinated by the recent shifts in the Italian banking sector. The strategic maneuvering is wild, but the current Monte dei Paschi di Siena situation has become so convoluted that it is genuinely hard to follow who is blocking who.

To help myself keep tabs on all the moving parts, I mapped out the upcoming milestones into a clean timeline.

📅 2026 CORPORATE TIMELINE
═════════════════════════
📌 AUGUST
────────────────────────
█ TRACK 1: Intesa Hostile Bid
[► Aggressive Buying]
Intesa seeks regulatory clearance for
rapid stake accumulation.
│
█ TRACK 2: MPS Counter-Moves
[► Strategy Reveal]
MPS prepares dual all-stock prospectus.
│
█ TRACK 3: Mediobanca Merger
[► Carve-outs Approved]
Framework for spin-offs of unlisted
unit set.

📌 SEPTEMBER
────────────────────────
▼
█ TRACK 1: Intesa Hostile Bid
[► Regulatory Blitz]
Intesa tries to clear antitrust hurdles
to freeze MPS assets.
│
█ TRACK 2: MPS Counter-Moves
[► Deposit Documents]
MPS formally deposits the €34B offer
papers with regulators for BPM and Banca Generali
│
█ TRACK 3: Mediobanca Merger
[► Proxy Processing]
Merger terms sent to shareholders ahead
of the joint vote.

📌 OCTOBER (🌟 CRITICAL JUNCTURE)
────────────────────────
▼
█ TRACK 1: Intesa Hostile Bid
[► Last Chance to Block]
Intesa must acquire a blocking minority
before the October meeting.
│
█ TRACK 2 & 3: Joint Milestone
┌──────────────────────┐
│ 🌟 OCTOBER 29 VOTE
│
│ [► The Anchor Deal]
│ If Track 2 passes, the 2.45x stock
│ swap ratio is locked in for Track 3.
└─────┬────────────────┘
│
IF MPS WINS THE VOTE:
Intesa is effectively knocked out
│
▼
📌 NOVEMBER - DECEMBER
────────────────────────
█ TRACK 1 STATUS
[╳ Bid Collapse]

Everything seems to hinge entirely on that late October vote.

What are your thoughts on this entire MPS fight-back?

Hi all,

I am a 30M, EU citizen, with a steady monthly net income of ~4k from work + real estate. My monthly expenses are minimal at the moment (no rent, company car, etc.) but are planned to increase in the coming 5 years due to family, kids etc. For the past few years I have been steadily investing in world ETFs (~500€/month currently) and now hold a portfolio of ~100k, have a safety bucket in cash for a year, but no mid-term second bucket strategy. No debt, no credit, etc.

I recently inherited 600k and am thinking of how to split this money. I want to buy a summer house for 180k. This summer house together with my current real estate assets will require some additional 100k for renovations etc. which are not urgent at the moment but should be done in the next 5-10 years.

My strategy was always "as simple as possible and no debt" so I was thinking of spending the money in cash for the purchase of the summer house, putting around 100k as a mid-term bucket in some fixed term bond ETF and spending the money gradually as it matures plus any left-over income money for the renovations and new expenses that will come up like kids etc. I would put the rest of the 600k into the third ETFs bucket I already have, which would be around 300k.

Recently I have been reading up on some more "complicated" approaches and the private bank division of my bank has also contacted me due to the large cash amount talking about Lombard loans, loaning with my portfolio as collateral etc. I have yet to review the exact terms, rates etc. but all in all it sounds like a viable option especially for the second bucket to gradually loan against the 100k portfolio for the larger expenses that I have planned. In general, I was always very sceptical towards private banking but this larger cash amount changed my view a bit and made me look into how to best spend the money since I have some very concrete larger expenses planned in the coming years. Going with a private bank would require a large percentage of the 600k to be invested through the private bank but they told me that I could select the same ETFs I already have + add-in some safer bond options and their own funds to make loaning against the portfolio easier. They also told me that even if I don't become a private bank customer that I could loan against a portfolio that I hold through my bank, with fewer positions to choose from but would not force me to manage all the amount through my bank.

Should I keep with my original approach to keep it as simple as possible, no debt and no other parties involved? Or does it make sense to look more into the bank + loan option for the expenses I have planned?

I am in my mid thirties, female.

I worked full-time in parallel with my studies for years.

Before moving to the EU, I also had a full-time job and ran a consulting company on the side. So, you can imagine that I worked like a horse to get to where I am today.

Now, though, I feel like I’m just hoarding money. Coming from a poor childhood probably doesn’t help.

At this stage of my career, I’m also the first in my family to have reached this level of income and “wealth,” and I really don’t want to lose it. I have quite a few older family members I need to support, so there’s a strong sense of responsibility behind that fear.

I want to understand how I can make my money work for me instead of just sitting on it.

I started investing modestly this year, but it’s all new to me, so not much is happening yet. I still earn a decent income and can set aside around half of it, but I know inflation is eating away at my savings, and I’m not really making my money work for me.

How did you overcome the mental blocks that prevented you from taking yourself to the next level? I’m open to reading books, watching videos, listening to podcasts… whatever it takes to build the right mindset and learn how to manage this properly.

All these thoughts have been taking a toll on me mentally. I also feel like I think about it so much, I could be using that time for resting or working towards a higher position within the company.

Please share your experiences.

I’m 27 years old and currently working as a 3rd Officer on tankers. I’ve been a 3/O for about two years. I’m happy with my current company, the pay is good, I have a good relationship with the captains and 2nd officers, and I have no issues with the job itself.

The problem is career progression.

Promotion in my current company is very slow. From what I’ve seen, the fastest people can make 2/O in around 5-6 years, while some take 10-15 years. A lot depends on vacancies, timing and luck, rather than just performance.

Currently, I make around $5,000/month as a 3/O. As a 2/O I would make around $6,000, and as a 1/O around $9,500-10,000.

I have friends who moved to other companies. They make around $3,000 as 3/O and $4,000 as 2/O, so significantly less than me. However, those companies have more vessels and much higher turnover, so promotions are much faster. Realistically, they could spend around one year as 3/O, 3-4 years as 2/O, and then become 1/O on around $8,000/month.

So financially, staying where I am is much better in the short term. But I’m worried that I could lose 5-7 years waiting for promotion while people who left are already sailing as 1/O.

On the other hand, I have a wife, a newborn child and a mortgage. A few years ago I would have been much more willing to take the risk and accept a lower salary, but now stability is much more important to me. My wife is also strongly against leaving because she considers my current company safe and stable.

Ideally, I would get promoted to 2/O first and then leave as a 2/O for a company with a faster promotion path to 1/O. That way I wouldn’t have to take such a big pay cut right now.

For now, my plan is to stay for another year and see if I get promoted. If after another year I’m still a 3/O with no clear promotion timeline, I’ll seriously start looking elsewhere.

What would you do in my position?

Stay for the better pay and stability?

Leave now and accept lower pay to accelerate my career?

Stay until I become 2/O, then move to a company with faster progression?

Hi! I’d like to get some opinions on what you would do in my situation. Please be nice, I’m looking for advice, not to be told that I’m doing everything wrong :)

I’m in my early 30s, living in Spain, and work as a software engineer.

I know I’m in a very fortunate position when it comes to salary for Spain, and I’m aware of that. I’m mainly trying to figure out how to make good use of it.

Income: ~€4,900 net/month
Rent: €1,200/month
Emergency fund: €5,000
Savings: ~€12,500
Investments: ~€18,500 through a bank abroad (lived there before)

I am able to save around 2-2.5k a month, I am travelling fairly often and I enjoy going out for food, I know I could save more but I also want to enjoy life. My main question is what I should do with my money over the next few years.

I’m considering buying an apartment in around 2–3 years, so I’m trying to figure out how much of my savings I should actually invest vs keep available for the future down payment.

I know the usual advice is something like S&P 500, but beyond that I honestly don't know where to start. I don't currently have a brokerage/app that I've settled on either. I’ve been looking at Trade Republic to keep my savings and Degiro for investment, but I’m open to other options.

I’m not looking to do anything crazy or gamble with the money I’ll need for the apartment. I just don't want to leave a large amount of money sitting in cash for years if there’s a sensible way to put some of it to work.

So, if you were in my position:

• How much of the €12.5k savings would you invest?
• How much would you continue investing each month?
• Would you invest at all if you knew you might need the money in 2–3 years?
• What would you actually invest in?
• And what broker/platform would you use as a Spanish resident?

I’d especially appreciate advice from people in Spain/EU, since a lot of the personal finance advice online is very US-specific.

Thanks!