Wrapped Up
The retail market for trading and investment apps has exploded over the last few years, bringing the financial world to our fingertips. So how do you navigate through all the noise?
- Investing can require disciplined strategies, as you expose your hard-earned money to market risk. But with an overwhelming selection, consumers are facing a dilemma: which platform is most aligned with their goals and interests?
- Trading apps require you to choose stocks that you believe will experience price rises or falls and effectively bet on that outcome.
- Investing platforms limit your choices, with default portfolio selections pigeonholing individuals on their risk tolerance, with little or no room for the expression of your passions or interests.
- Savings accounts are being struck by rising inflation, which is eroding the real value of your money, with interest rate hikes providing little relief.
At Gather, we offer a SOLUTION. Our selection of Investment Playlists, guided by one of the world’s largest asset managers, brings a curated list of unique investments that allow you to express yourself. Think of us as an investment democracy, breaking down the barriers to investing and bringing the best opportunities to you.
Investing for a secure financial future is a serious business that can require a disciplined strategy. You wouldn’t dream of walking into your local casino and putting everything on a spin of the roulette wheel, and you would be ill-advised to hand over your cash to a stranger.
Yet many people are doing just that, effectively gambling with their money on trading apps or leaving it to someone they don’t know or even trust. Others are reluctant to do anything at all with their money, so it sits there, effectively devaluing in a bank account or, worse still, filling up the biscuit tin.
Gather offers a different way of attempting to build your investments over time so that you can potentially have enough funds for a significant later life change, such as your well-earned retirement. From as little as £30 a month, you can choose investment strategies portfolios that are powered by BlackRock, the world’s largest money manager.
You can do so while being part of the world’s first investment democracy, an idea that resonates with all our customers. It’s built on our belief that the best investment opportunities should be available to everyone, not just the elite wealthy few that any independent financial adviser would applaud.
But before we tell you more about why Gather may be the right option for you, let’s highlight why other methods most certainly may not. This is not us trying to score cheap points – it is plain advice.
You Are Not Starring in Wolf of Wall Street
You may have seen the proliferation of trading apps like eToro, FreeTrade and Trading 212. In these apps, you are required to choose stocks that you believe will experience price rises or falls and effectively bet on that outcome. Of course, some may make money, but generally speaking, the majority of retail investors, approximately 77% in fact, end up losing money when trading CFDs*.
If you are not an experienced stockbroker or trader or have a lot of time to research assets, then, with all due respect, you are unlikely to become a successful dealer in stocks and shares. Not only might you risk your initial investment, but you may lose a lot more, too.
Many of these trading-style apps make money each time you make a trade. They don’t tend to care if you win on that trade or not so long as you keep buying positions. They gamify their apps to keep you spending, but this only encourages more impulsive trading when it’s unlikely you have the necessary financial knowledge or strategy.
Default Portfolios
Not all apps are quite so pushy. Some, like Nutmeg or Wealthsimple, offer a more rounded approach. They have set portfolios created for you to invest your money in.
But are they guided by BlackRock? No. Do they allow you to express your passion by investing in sectors and issues that interest you, like climate change or diversity in the boardroom? No. Gather’s innovative Investment Albums do this by offering a selection of professionally guided portfolios that you can be proud to invest in.
Stick Your Money in the Bank and Watch It Disappear
Say you’re someone who finds the idea of investing unnerving. There was a time when sitting back and leaving your money in a savings account was all the work you needed to do. High-interest rates coupled with low inflation made savings accounts a relatively profitable and safe solution to increasing your wealth. However, in more tumultuous times when inflation is at an all-time high, do they still yield the same results?
If interest rates are high, the ‘real’ value of your money is going down as inflation drives up the price of goods and services. For example, if inflation went up by 2%, the £100 in your savings account wouldn’t equal £98 if you withdrew it, but it would only be able to buy you £98 worth of goods. This is known as your purchasing power.
Interest rates are usually increased in tandem as a means of reducing inflation. However, the problem persists when the rate of interest is lower than the rate of inflation. Put simply, interest works to make you money, whilst inflation tries to erode its value.
It’s Time to Make Your Money Work for You
Investing, on the other hand, gives you the potential to make greater returns in the long run and provides a better chance of beating inflation.
Our offering of portfolios, guided by BlackRock, are paired with a hand-picked selection of our experts to share insights, trends and strategies within our community of investors.
And because we are the world’s first investment democracy, you can see what others think, follow our experts’ investment choices if you wish, or pick your own playlists from our growing selection.
New Opportunities
Not only do you get access to our Investment Playlists and Albums, but you also won’t be overwhelmed with complex decisions or any sort of hard sell. You can invest in areas that interest you and leave BlackRock to work their magic. Investing should not be a short-term commitment. By pursuing a long-term strategy, you will likely benefit from compound growth.
Join Gather and Begin Investing for Your Future
Join Gather, and you become part of a community that’s passionate about making money together. Capital at risk.