Bure Valley Group is an investment introducer business which links successful investors with exciting, innovative UK startups seeking funding. This content is for information purposes only and should not be taken as financial or investment advice.
Investing is a huge topic and there are many methods and “levels” to it. Perhaps you’ve come across a lump sum and are wondering how to get started. Or, maybe you’ve been investing for a while and are thinking about ways to develop your portfolio. Here at Bure Valley Group, we want to emphasise that investing is a journey. Just like when learning any new skill, it makes sense to start simple and build up the complexity as your knowledge grows.
In this article, we outline a handful of investment strategies which can be appropriate to different investors at these various stages of the journey. We hope you find this content helpful. Find out more about our EIS and other investment opportunities by visiting our portfolio page here.
To enquire regarding our latest projects and funding, you can reach us via:
+44 160 334 0827
[email protected]
Starting out: keep it simple
If you’ve not invested seriously before it can be tempting to want to build a highly complex set of investments. Yet it’s important to not equate complexity with performance. Sometimes, keeping things more simple can be a great way to learn the principles of investing. For instance, buying one fund comprising multiple assets (e.g. global equities and bonds) can be an effective start for beginners. Here, you can learn about these two “core” asset classes and grow your wealth over the long term without too much management of your portfolio.
Level two: splitting funds
Once you’ve grasped some of the basics of investing by contributing to one fund over time, then it can be worthwhile moving into two funds. A common strategy here is to pick two funds which are globally diversified – one comprising equities and the other bonds. From here, you can gain a clearer understanding of how the two relate to each other at different times (e.g. during a “bull market”). It gives you the chance to learn about portfolio management by engaging in periodic rebalancing between the two funds.
Level three: move beyond the core
Most retail investors can do well by committing to the two aforementioned strategies over a long period of time. Yet it’s not very exciting, and eventually you may wish to engage in investments alongside this “core” portfolio which are more fun. Perhaps you have an interest in a particular industry/sector (e.g. legal cannabis or robotics) and wish to invest in stocks which reflect this. Here, it can be higher-risk when engaging in these types of opportunities. Yet the potential to generate a higher return is also on the table.
Here at Bure Valley Group, for instance, we offer investors the chance to invest in startups and other high-growth-potential companies which have been pre-vetted by our investment team. In addition, many of these opportunities offer generous tax benefits to investors via schemes such as the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). This allows UK investors to claim back some of the capital they invested against their income tax, shield their EIS shares from inheritance tax and protect some of their investment through Loss Relief.
Level four: advanced investing
When you look inside a laptop you can see an intricate ecosystem of wires, connections and boards which work together to make the computer function. Similarly with investing, there does come a point where looking at a portfolio feels similar to the laptop picture. There might be a range of funds – perhaps dozens of equity funds as well as bond funds. It could be that multiple properties are invested in; both individually or within a broad range of regional/sectoral funds such as REITs (real estate investment trusts). Moreover, commodities might feature within the range of assets such as gold, silver and oil investments.
Advanced investors are also likely to have a range of individual company investments too. For instance, angel investors will have a significant portion of the portfolio committed to investing in early-stage companies with high growth potential. This level of investing can be hard to make sense of – even for the person who owns the portfolio! Yet the great thing about this advanced level of investing is that it opens up a wider range of diversification opportunities. It also opens up the chance to engage more with these kinds of investments which you personally find to be the most interesting, fun and rewarding. For instance, perhaps you have a passion for a certain region of the world and the opportunities on offer there (e.g. robotics in Japan, or legal cannabis in the Americas). A beginner investor will likely not have the knowledge or capital to focus more of their portfolio on this area, but a more experienced investor can.
Conclusion & invitation
Investing is a journey and your strategy is likely to change as you move along your own journey. Here at Bure Valley Group, we offer the chance for experienced investors to access exclusive and high-potential opportunities through our network – especially in the EIS space.
Interested in finding out more? Get in touch today to start a conversation with our team and discuss some of the great investment memorandums we have available here:
+44 160 334 0827
[email protected]
