Welcome to FinancebyKD

The aim of FinancebyKD is to provide a space where people can find useful financial education and investment ideas. Some blogs will be aimed at financial professionals who are looking to refresh their knowledge on certain financial concepts. Other blogs will be intended for the general public at large and will focus on providing financial education on practical matters that many could benefit from. Whether we want to or not we are all affected by the world of finance. Whether it be our personal financial matters, our business financial matters or the financial planning for our dependents.

I am a firm believer in the concept that “Knowledge is Power” and my aim is for people to garner more knowledge in the field of finance. Through my blog posts and further research, based on the guidance provided, readers will be in a much better position to take more informed financial decisions. I do not intend to promote particular products, but rather to equip people with a knowledge to be able to take better decisions on their own.

 

In my experience (more “About Me” here) I have learnt to appreciate how uninformed people tend to be about basic financial concepts. A person may be an expert in his/her chosen field, but when it comes to financial matters they would tell me that they don’t understand the world of finance so they just leave their money in the bank. You do not need to be a financial expert to be able to recognise good from bad investment opportunities. The primary objective is to make your money work for you and not just leave it dormant.

 

Some topics that I intend to discuss will be:

• What are the main Asset Classes to invest in?
• What are ETFs and how can I use them?
• Bond vs Bond Funds.
• What is Yield to Maturity?
• Why should I add shares to my portfolio?
• Should I invest on my own or should I use a Financial Advisor?
• Are there any risks in Malta Government Bonds?
• The truth about “Capital Guaranteed” products.
• Long term investment planning.
• What is Retirement planning?
• Alternative Investments.
• Securitisation and its part in the 2007/09 Financial Crisis.
• What is Investment Advice as opposed to Information?
• What is MiFID?
• Risk vs Reward.
• How do I build my own portfolio?
• Execution Only, Appropriateness and Suitability Tests.

 

The space is aimed to be a living space where feedback from readers will be appreciated and any topic suggestions would be welcome. Posts will necessarily be influenced by current affairs at times but this will not be a place to get a weekly reviews on investments. There are many good quality sites and publications that cover that topic quite well. I will not be giving financial advice through my posts but mere information (see “Full Disclaimer” here). With the knowledge acquired readers would be more informed to make their own investment decision and to know what to ask their financial advisor(s).

 

Guest bloggers are also welcome. Since finance is such a vast topic, I will also be inviting other practitioners from specialised fields to post their own work on my site. The idea is to create a general hub for finance related articles in order to get insights from different experts in their respective fields.

 

Thanks for your time and enjoy the posts!

KD