SINGAPORE — Stocks may be the most well-known and simplest type of investment, but cryptocurrency seems to be the next big thing in recent years too. What then, should millennials choose to invest in — stocks or cryptocurrency? And is there a better option?
This is part of a series where Yahoo Finance Singapore will focus on different aspects of millennials and their finances. In this first part, we discover whether it’s better for millennials to invest in stocks or cryptocurrency.
First things first, it is important to know what you are dabbling in. Investing in stocks can include a variety of investment instruments such as exchange-traded funds, index funds, government bonds, futures, warrants, and commodities trading. They are usually done through investing a small sum of money every month.
Meanwhile, cryptocurrencies are digital assets that people can use as investments or for online purchases. How it works is basically exchanging real currency to buy “coins” or “tokens” of a certain kind of cryptocurrency.
Hence, the short answer to whether stocks or cryptocurrency is a better investment is that it depends on what your financial needs and wants are. In fact, the financial experts that Yahoo Finance Singapore spoke to advised that millennials should actually invest in both stocks and cryptocurrency.
“Ultimately, your financial portfolio should be diversified and you can always choose to invest in both of stocks and crypto because they serve different functions,” said Catherine Seah, 22, a student financial advisor.
Echoing a similar tune, Asheesh Chanda, CEO of Kristal.AI, a digital-first private wealth platform in Singapore, said: “Investing should be seen as being a variety of modes of transport for people to reach their goals. Each mode offers certain benefits and incurs certain costs.”
For example, if you can only afford to invest a small sum every month, then investing in stocks is the way to go as it is low-cost and an effective way of accessing markets. Otherwise, if you are more risk-taking, then cryptocurrency might be a better option for long-term gain.
Yet, it seems that most millennials are still leaning towards investing in stocks given without dabbling much in cryptocurrency.
According to brokerage firm Tiger Brokers, 45% of their Gen Z investors prefer long-term stocks like Apple, Boeing, and Carnival. Other data from an OCBC Financial Wellness Survey also find that about every four in 10 millennials who invest admitted that they speculated excessively in the hope of making a quick buck.
For instance, marketing specialist Gideon Lai, 28, has been investing in stocks over the last two years, after thinking of how to gain further cash and make the most of his buck.
However, he also cautions: “It is one thing to see your returns grow, but another to be greedy. I think it is important to draw a balance especially if you don’t really have solid financial knowledge.”
Similarly, 22-year-old Colette Low, a private university undergraduate, decided to dabble in stocks investment because she sees it as a “good long-term investment”. Low, who has been investing around S$5000 a year since she was 19, added that she makes most of her financial decisions after reading up about them online via social media.
“I think stocks are already considered a less risky option since they don’t require much financial commitment. It also helps that it is easy to buy and we can take advantage of the situation whenever the economy grows,” said Low.
As a guideline, experts don’t recommend young investors to stake their important life goals on investments solely and to keep it within 5% of their financial portfolio.
“At least part of the potential return from stocks is speculative, and at a minimum, there is just too much uncertainty. I recommend focusing on more important financial goals like planning for a house because that’s the reliable, tried-and-tested stuff,” said Chuin Ting Weber, CEO of MoneyOwl, a bionic financial advisor.
Despite that, it seems that cryptocurrency is also making waves globally as a possible investment option for youths. According to a Bankrate survey in June 2021, millennials (aged 25-40) expressed the most comfort of all age groups with cryptocurrency, with 49% of them being somewhat comfortable with investing in crypto assets such as Bitcoin.
In fact, other survey data from financial site Capitalize revealed that 54% of millennials say that they are intending to include cryptocurrency as part of their retirement strategy.
Fresh graduate Reuben Tay, 25, is one of those as he believes that cryptocurrency is the way of the future given how the cryptocurrency technology is built on security that can allow users and owners to remain private and anonymous during transactions.
“I feel that cryptocurrency allows for more digital access and ownership. Even people who have no access to traditional banks can enter the financial system with the help of cryptocurrency,” Tay said.
And while it is a high risk gamble where there is a strong chance you could lose all your money, Tay believes that the payoff would be worth it as long as you know what you’re doing.
“It is important before investing in bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to go in with your eyes open and always double check to make sure that you’re not falling for a scam or fake promises of high returns,” shared Tay.
In fact, with the cryptocurrency industry booming, it seems that companies are jumping on the bandwagon to allow for people to be more familiar with cryptocurrency payments.
For instance, local ride-hailing company Ryde will be accepting crypto payments through Bitcoin from the third quarter of 2022. Ryde users will have the flexibility to choose from a growing list of over 70 currencies and 10 blockchain networks to pay.
“We want to deploy non-fungible tokens in a way that generates more real world value, especially for the rapidly growing market segment of Singaporeans who hold crypto”, says Terence Zou, founder & CEO of Ryde.
Yahoo Finance’s Jared Blikre, Brian Cheung, and Akiko Fujita discuss how bitcoin investors are faring amid the cryptocurrency's recent declines.
Shiba Inu is known for two things: Its mascot, the Shiba Inu dog. The cryptocurrency surged 45,000,000% last year. When I say winner, I'm referring to cryptocurrency players that have what it takes to attract more and more users and investors.
Suspected Buffalo shooter cited the racist conspiracy theory in a manifesto posted online
(Reuters) -McDonald's Corp on Monday became one of the biggest global brands to exit Russia, laying out plans to sell all its restaurants after operating in the country for more than 30 years following the invasion of Ukraine. The world's largest burger chain, which owns about 84% of its nearly 850 restaurants in Russia, will take a related non-cash charge of up to $1.4 billion following its sale. McDonald's had in March decided to close its restaurants in the country, including the iconic Pushkin Square location in central Moscow – a symbol of flourishing American capitalism in the dying embers of the Soviet Union.
It's all about fine margins in the EPL title race, and Jurgen Klopp must make Manchester City as uncomfortable as possible to let his Liverpool have a chance at winning, says Neil Humphreys.
(Bloomberg) — Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. gained in late trading after fourth-quarter earnings topped analysts’ estimates, boosted by games such as NBA 2K22, though a forecast for the coming year suggests that an industrywide slump is poised to crimp sales.Most Read from BloombergMeet the Hedge-Fund Manager Who Warned of Terra’s $60 Billion ImplosionOmicron Is Turning Out to Be a Weak VaccineU.S. Stocks Extend Losses in Late Session Selloff: Markets WrapGoldman’s Blankfein Says US at 'Ve
In the four years I've been following it, Appian's stock price has doubled, running up 105%. While I was reviewing Appian's recent earnings report for one of the Fool's video services, I had the opportunity to dig a little deeper into the Appian story. Appian offers a cloud platform where software is simplified.
Thirty-year-old crypto billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried took aim at Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, saying it has no future as a payments network in an interview with Financial Times today. Bankman-Fried is CEO and co-founder of FTX, the second-most popular digital asset exchange by trading volume, according to CoinMarketCap. “The bitcoin network is not a payments network and it is not a scaling network,” Bankman-Fried said, arguing that the underlying proof-of-work system the Bitcoin network uses to verify transactions is incapable of scaling efficiently enough to keep pace with demand.
The stock market continues to trend lower. Before rallying on Friday, the S&P 500 had a closing low of 3,930.08 on Thursday, down 18.1% from its all-time closing high of 4,796.56 on January 3.
Pauline Pollard, 53, said her son, Mitchell, was expelled from Christ Church in Yardley Wood, Birmingham, after bringing the black and gold toy gun to the fast food chain and giving it to a friend.
A former Ngee Ann Polytechnic senior lecturer was charged for making racists remarks against an inter-ethnic couple, as well as insensitive comments about religion .
About 40,000 Russian soldiers have been killed, captured, gone missing or been imprisoned, according to Nato estimates
A Greek helicopter pilot who admitted to smothering to death his young British wife in front of their baby girl has been found guilty of murder at the culmination of a trial which shocked the country.
‘Tell them, I, Johnny Depp, I’m a victim of domestic abuse … and see how many people believe or side with you’
Whether you’re a crypto fan or not, the industry never lacks for drama. The past week was particularly buzzy after the stablecoin TerraUSD de-pegged from the U.S. dollar and sent crypto prices tumbling across the board, causing fears the space could go into total meltdown. The debacle provided more food for the crypto bears who also had plenty to feast on based on Coinbase’s (COIN) latest disappointing quarterly report. The soft start to the year being a reflection of the market’s downturn. Addi
Actor shared photos while in Las Vegas with the musician for the Billboard Music Awards
Singapore swimmer Teong Tzen Wei erased Joseph Schooling's men's 50m butterfly SEA Games record as he retain the gold medal he won from the Olympic champion in 2019.
Musk has "cold feet on the Twitter deal with the bot issue not a new issue and likely more of a scapegoat to push for a lower price," Wedbush said.
Passive income is a wonderful thing: The money comes in while you do nothing but own the stock. In this case, that means shares of a stock that pays you in dividends. As a REIT, it's obliged to return at least 90% of its taxable income to shareholders in the form of dividends, and Agree Realty does that monthly, which can make it even more agreeable to income investors.
The last few months, with the exception of some short bullish trading runs, have been brutal for the markets. Stocks are down, pretty much across the board. The tech-heavy NASDAQ index has fallen 25% year-to-date, while the broader S&P 500 is down 16%. As for causes to the market turndown, you can take your pick. Supply chains remain snarled, and the Chinese government’s anti-COVID lockdown policies and the Russian war against Ukraine aren’t helping that matter any. Inflation, which started taki
Author
Administraroot
Related Posts
