10 Best Reasons to Invest in 2024
Updated August 15, 2024
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51% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with eToro. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
A list of the Top Brokers for Your Investments for October 2024
Description of the Best Brokers for Your Investments for October 2024
1. eToro
Pros
- Regulated by FCA, ASIC
- No withdrawal fee for US clients
- 0% commission on stocks
- Social and copy trading
Cons
- Not available in every US state
- More expensive than most of its competitors
- No MetaTrader platforms
eToro is a prominent brokerage platform renowned for its innovative approach to online investing.
Founded in 2007, eToro has since evolved into a global leader in the financial technology sector, serving millions of users worldwide.
What distinguishes eToro is its user-friendly interface and commitment to making investing accessible to all.
The platform offers diverse investment opportunities, including stocks, cryptocurrencies, commodities, indices, and more.
eToro's social trading features set it apart as a top investment broker. The platform allows users to engage in social trading, where they can interact with fellow investors, share insights, and even replicate the trading strategies of successful traders.
Moreover, eToro prioritises security and regulatory compliance, providing users with a safe and transparent investment environment. The platform is regulated by reputable authorities, instilling user confidence and ensuring adherence to strict industry standards.
Overall, eToro's blend of intuitive design, diverse investment opportunities, social trading features, and commitment to security positions it as one of the top brokers for investments.
Whether users seek to build a diversified portfolio, explore new investment avenues, or engage with a vibrant community of investors, eToro offers a comprehensive platform to pursue their financial goals.
To find out more, read our eToro review.
51% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with eToro. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
2. Pepperstone
Pros
- Extensively regulated
- No minimum deposit
- Low fees and mostly free withdrawals
- Good customer service
Cons
- No investor protection for clients outside UK, EU and EEA
- Withdrawal fee for international bank wires
- CFDs only
Best for: Tight spreads and low fees
Pepperstone requires no minimum deposit and offers low trading fees.
It offers fantastic market analysis and trading ideas.
While the educational tools are adequate, the news flow is basic.
Customer service is available via phone, email and live chat, and all queries are answered promptly.
It is regulated by the FCA, ASIC, CySEC, BaFin, DFSA, CMA, SCB.
Pepperstone uses TradingView, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and cTrader platforms. MetaTrader is considered one of the best CFD platforms.
It provides access to 25 major stock indices, more than 900 shares CFDs, 21 cryptocurrencies, over 100 ETFs and 17 top commodities. All assets are in the form of CFDs.
3. AvaTrade
Pros
- Worldwide regulated
- Multiple platforms – MT4, MT5, etc.
- Negative balance protection
- 20% welcome bonus
- Educational content
- Wide rage of payments methods
- Fixed spreads
Cons
- You can’t buy stocks
- Quarterly and annual inactivity fees
- Custumer support is not available 24/7
- No bonus for EU based clients
- No US clients accepted
- Imitated crypto assets
AvaTrade is a CFD Regulated broker with +1,000 financial instruments and multiple trading platforms. It has been operating since 2006.
It offers a 20% welcome bonus up to $10,000, according to regulation and a free 21-day demo account with $100,000.
Instruments include:
- Metals
- Commodities
- Stocks
- FX Options
- Oil
- ETFs
- Options
- Crypto currencies
- CFDs
- Indexes
- Shares
- Spread betting
- Indices
- Forex
- Bonds
AVATrade EU Ltd is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. (No.C53877) Ava Trade Markets Ltd. is regulated by the B.V.I Financial Services Commission. It is also highly regulated in Australia, South Africa, Japan, Middle East, Cyprus and Israel
You can not trade with AvaTrade in the US, North Korea, New Zealand, Iran or Belgium.
Mínimum deposit of $100, no withdraw limit and no fees.
4. XTB
Pros
- Regulated by the FCA
- Low forex fees
- Fast withdrawal and deposit with no fee
- Live chat customer service
Cons
- No US clients
- Limited product portfolio
- High fees for stock CFDs
Best for: International trading
XTB is a trusted all-around broker, established in 2002. It is regulated by the FCA and listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
There is no minimum deposit for opening an account.
XTB uses its xStation 5 platform, which offers good customisation, search functions and modern design.
As a platform, it has all the standard educational resources and research tools.
It has over 2,000 stocks, though all cryptocurrency trading is paused on weekends.
Overall, the only negatives of XTB are that its fundamental data is limited, and there are high fees for some CFD trades.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
5. IG
Pros
- Highly regulated
- MetaTrader 4 (MT4)
- Over 10,000 instruments
- Available in the UK and US
- 24/7 customer support
Cons
- High fees
- No deposit compensation scheme for US accounts
- No copy trading
- Inactivity fees
IG is a great share trading platform for beginners thanks to its user-friendly interface and extensive educational resources.
Pros of IG include a wide range of trading instruments and markets, as well as the ability to access multiple account types and trading platforms. The platform also offers a demo account for beginners to practise trading strategies before investing real money.
However, IG isn’t the cheapest share trading platform, with relatively high trading fees and a minimum deposit requirement of £250 when paying by credit/debit card or PayPal.
In terms of additional fees, IG charges a commission fee for share trading, starting from £8 per trade. There’s also a custody fee of 0.25% per year for holdings of £250 or more.
Overall, IG is a solid choice for beginners looking for a user-friendly platform with extensive educational resources, but investors should be aware of its fees and minimum deposit requirements.
6. Tradex
Tradex is a premier financial services firm that has created a social investment community. With a full range of help available depending on your needs, you can invest and manage your portfolio yourself with the online platform and tools or have face-to-face contact with your Investment Manager.
With Tradex, you choose and buy your stocks, guided by your Investment Manager. These will sit in your portfolio, which is then managed by the Tradex team based on your financial goals, with a strategy devised to help you achieve them. Their smart strategies and sophisticated technology give you broad exposure to different market sectors so you can diversify easily and have more chances to build a strong portfolio.
The membership plan can be paid monthly (25 Euros) or annually (250 Euros). The membership includes:
- Personal portfolio manager
- Client Portal
- Recurring membership
- Portfolio management
- Personal investment portfolio
- Stock recommendations
- Weekly appointments with an advisor
- Stock trade ideas
- Investment set up
Aside from the membership plan, the Tradex blog has a vast range of educational articles about everything from investment basics to things like NFTs and cryptocurrency so you can improve your knowledge and learn more about different investment opportunities.
Earning an income through investment may seem like a financial dream, out of most people’s grasp, or a process too risky to consider.
However, making a well-informed, suitable investment can mean the difference between complete reliance on your pension to support your future or financial independence and the ability to retire early.
Investing is the process of generating income, and possibly increasing the value of held assets, over a period of time.
It involves an initial outlay, generally financial, with the goal to earn extra income.
When the word ‘investment’ is mentioned, you may think of stocks and shares, but an investment can equally be property, bonds or even your business.
The key factor is the intention to hold your investment over a period of time during which the invested finances cannot be used elsewhere.
While putting money away in a savings account may carry less risk and effort, it is always reliant on the whims of the Federal Reserve and its Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) who decide the interest rates.
A low-interest rate on your savings may well see the true value of your savings depreciate when faced with a higher percentage inflation rate.
What about the short-term targeting of volatile investment markets in pursuit of high profits?
This is often bundled up with the term ‘investment’ but is actually a different strategy called ‘speculation’.
While speculation follows the same markets and vehicles as investment, it is an altogether riskier process.
Investment, by comparison, absorbs the level of risk through its longer-term strategy.
Want to keep an eye on your investments on the go? Have a look at our Top 12 Stock Trading Apps.
Top 10 Reasons to Invest in 2024
If you have been through our checklist and think you could be ready to invest but still have doubts, we may be able to help with our top 10 reasons to invest.
1. Protect Your Purchasing Power
One of the benefits of investing over leaving your money in a savings account is the opportunity to protect your purchasing power against inflation.
A country’s inflation rate is an indication of the health of its economy and how much prices have increased.
Since 2016, the year-on-year US inflation rate has varied as follows:
- 2.1% in both 2016 and 2017
- 1.9% in 2018
- 2.3% in 2019
- 1.4% in 2020
- a predicted rate of 1.4 to 1.8% in 2021
From a consumer’s point of view, this means that the cost of living and price of goods, such as food and clothes, increase in alignment with the inflation rate.
You will be able to buy less with $100 in 2021 than you could 10 years ago.
If the inflation rate is 2%, your savings account interest rate must match that to maintain the ‘value’ of your savings.
If the interest rate is lower than the inflation rate, then your savings will begin to lose value. Your saved $2,000 will buy you less than it did the year before, and before that.
By investing in a diverse portfolio of assets that out-perform levels of inflation, you can protect your purchasing power.
2. Grow Your Capital
At its most basic definition, your capital is the amount of wealth you possess.
Generally, capital will include the funds you have access to, such as the money in your bank account, and liquid assets – assets that can be easily sold and turned into cash.
Many of your investments (for instance, shares) will be deemed liquid assets because they can be sold within a reasonably short amount of time.
There are also capital assets, such as property, but these are separate from your capital due to their lower liquidity.
Investment increases your capital by:
- Adding to your liquid assets
- With careful handling, increasing the value of your liquid assets
- Increasing your funds should you sell investments at a profit
- Adding to your funds in the case of assets that pay dividends
3. Achieve Your Financial Goals
Your financial goals might include buying your forever home, moving to an electric car instead of a petrol or diesel vehicle, setting up a college fund for your children, or arranging a reliable income for your retirement separate from your pension.
Investing can help you achieve bigger financial goals than you could otherwise afford, or it can help you to achieve those goals more quickly.
4. Earn More Than From a Savings Account
Putting money away in a savings account may seem like the obvious way to safeguard your financial future. However, the performance of your savings is always reliant on how well the account’s interest rate compares with inflation.
Investing that money instead offers you the opportunity to not only beat inflation but also provide a greater percentage return than you would receive from a savings account.
It offers you the chance to take control of your finances rather than rely on the decisions of the Federal Reserve and FOMC.
5. Diversify Your Income
Investment allows you to create multiple streams of income.
For instance, you might earn money from:
- Your regular job
- Selling homemade jewelry or crafts on Etsy or eBay
- Investing in shares that not only increase in value but also pay regular dividends
The benefit of multiple streams of income is the buffer they provide should one source of income stop.
If you lose your regular job, your investments may well provide a financial bolster until you can find new employment.
6. Save for Retirement
Increasingly, people are discovering that their retirement pension will not be sufficient to maintain their current lifestyle.
Their choice is then either to return to work or become accustomed to a lower quality of life.
Investing allows you to increase your capital while you are working to build a portfolio that will support you in later life.
There are various types of investments that are more suited to planning for retirement.
For instance, the purchase of dividend shares will provide a regular dividend income, an amount that you can reinvest before you retire and rely on as an additional income after you retire.
The earlier you begin to save for your retirement through investments, the more compounded the effect will be, and the more your retirement pot will grow.
7. Lower Taxable Income
We all have to pay the taxman, but did you know that by investing your money, you can reduce your tax liability?
Investing pre-tax money in an employer retirement fund, such as the 401(k), or an individual retirement account, will allow you to both build your pension and reduce your taxable income.
8. Help Others Achieve Their Goals
The main way that you can help others to achieve their goals is to invest in companies and brands that appeal to you.
Your interest may go further than a specific company, extending to the industry it is involved in, such as farming or computing.
On a more personal level, you can use your investment income to build a college fund for your children or your grandchildren, help your wider family, or leave a financial legacy after your death.
9. Support Causes That Are Meaningful to You
If you are interested in a cause, such as green energy or ending poverty, you can support it by investing in related companies and brands that are making a positive difference.
Many shares come with voting rights too, so beyond your financial investment, you can play a part in shaping the direction of that company.
10. Gain Knowledge and Stimulate Your Mind
If you want to succeed at investing, you have a lot to learn, and the learning process is continual.
The markets are various and fast-moving. There are many types of investment. Market conditions change on an hourly, daily and yearly basis. The related legislation is updated regularly.
On top of all of that, real-world current events trigger more changes, whether those events are a pandemic, a financial crisis or a war.
Investing is a venture suitable for minds that are enthusiastic to learn and that seek stimulation.
Interested but want to learn more before you invest? Read The Best Stock Trading Courses for more information.
How to Know You’re Ready to Invest
If you have been thinking about making an investment but you’re still unsure whether to commit, follow our checklist below to help you decide:
Step 1. You Know Your Goals
Investment should not be entered into with a vague idea of making a profit. Your goals will always determine the different factors involved in making your investment:
- Your investment vehicle; for example, shares, property, bonds or foreign currency
- The length of your investment
- How much you invest
- Whether you diversify your portfolio; for example, buying both shares and bonds
What are your goals?
- Do you want to buy a new car two years from now?
- Are you saving towards your children’s education?
- Do you want a guaranteed income during your retirement?
If we look at the last goal – an income during retirement – investing in shares that pay dividends would be ideal because as long as that company remains standing, you will know how much dividend income to expect each year.
Equally, if you know that the new Tesla model you are interested in acquiring will be released in two years’ time, the asset you invest in must be sufficiently liquid and likely to rise in value that you will be able to sell it in time and for the target amount of the car, or more.
Step 2. You Have Savings
Investing carries the risk that you may lose money, especially over shorter periods of investment, so it is imperative that whatever funds you invest you can afford to lose.
Ideally, you have savings that are not intended for a specific purpose, or you have money left over every month once you have paid your bills and other essential outgoings.
It is also recommended you have some level of financial buffer so that should you lose your job, you can continue to pay your bills for the next three to six months while you look for fresh employment.
This buffer may also come into play should a large, unexpected expense occur, such as the need to replace your car after an accident.
If you have savings or spare money after paying your monthly bills, and a financial buffer in place, investment may be the right path to take to build your wealth.
Step 3. You Don’t Have Debt
Most people will have a mortgage. Many people will take out some form of loan to purchase a car. The most prevalent form of debt in the US, however, is credit card debt.
The interest charged on your debts will generally be higher than the amount you can earn through investment but because certain debts, such as a mortgage and student loan, are tax-deductible, it is worth examining the situation in detail.
Before you consider investing your money instead of paying off debt, calculate:
- What your debt costs you after tax
- What your after-tax earnings are, or are likely to be, from investment
- Which is the greater
Investment is rarely the answer to huge debt problems. If in doubt, pay off your debts first.
Step 4. You Have a Responsible Attitude to Growing Your Wealth
Investment is a long-term process that requires careful planning and monitoring.
It should be guided by:
- Your investment goals
- Your financial situation
- Safeguarding the present as well as the future
Rather than a way to earn a quick buck, or a quick thousand bucks, investment should be seen as a method to grow your wealth over time.
If you are worried that you don’t have sufficient money to invest, you may find Stocks vs. CFDs: The Key Differences an interesting read.
Step 5. You Have the Motivation to Learn
If you want to make a success of your investments, you will be expected to learn about the industry. It is not enough to invest and then leave that investment to roll.
Even with the help of a financial adviser or broker, you must be able to react to movements in the market and adjust your investments to suit your changing needs.
Investors who continually learn about the subject generally do better than those who merely dabble.
Investment is a complicated industry but to improve your chances of making a success of the process, you must be prepared to learn and continue to learn for as long as you invest.
Investing your money is one of the best ways to grow your wealth over time.
By investing, you can potentially earn higher returns than you would by simply saving money in a bank account.
Additionally, investing can help you achieve your financial goals, such as saving for retirement or buying a house.
Investing in stocks can be a great way to earn returns on your money over the long term.
Historically, stocks have provided higher returns than other asset classes like bonds or cash.
Additionally, owning stocks can give you a stake in the ownership of a company, allowing you to potentially benefit from the company's growth and profitability.
Online trading can be a good investment for those who are knowledgeable about the markets and understand the risks involved.
It can provide investors with easy access to a variety of financial instruments, including stocks, options and futures.
However, it is important to do your research and have a solid understanding of the markets before diving into online trading.
Investing in trading comes with several risks, including the potential for loss of capital.
The markets can be unpredictable and it is possible to lose money on investments.
Additionally, online trading can come with risks such as technical glitches, internet connectivity issues and fraud.
The best trading platform for investing will depend on your specific needs and preferences.
Some popular options include Robinhood, E*TRADE, TD Ameritrade and Fidelity.
It is important to consider factors such as fees, research and analysis tools, ease of use and customer support when choosing a trading platform.
When choosing an investment, it is important to consider factors such as risk, potential returns, liquidity and diversification.
It is also important to do your research and understand the underlying assets and markets in which you are investing.
Diversifying your portfolio means investing in a variety of different assets and asset classes to spread out your risk.
This can include investing in stocks, bonds, real estate and other assets.
Additionally, you can diversify by investing in different industries and sectors, and by using different investment strategies.
Timing can be important in investing, but it is difficult to time the markets perfectly.
Instead, it is important to focus on long-term investing strategies and to avoid trying to time the markets based on short-term fluctuations.
Some common mistakes to avoid when investing include investing based on emotions, failing to diversify your portfolio, trying to time the markets and investing in assets you don't fully understand.
It is important to do your research and have a solid investment strategy in place.
The amount of money you should invest will depend on your financial situation and investment goals.
It is important to only invest money that you can afford to lose and to have a solid understanding of the risks involved.
While it is possible to make money quickly through online trading, it is important to be cautious of promises of quick riches.
The markets can be unpredictable, and it is important to have a solid understanding of the risks involved in trading.
The most popular broker for investing will vary depending on the specific market and asset class.
Some popular options include Robinhood, E*TRADE, TD Ameritrade and Fidelity.
It is important to consider factors such as fees, research and analysis tools, ease of use, and customer support when choosing a broker.
Final Thoughts
Investment can seem a risky process until you realize that it is all about taking control of your money, now and in the future.
It requires foresight, learning, patience and a responsible approach but if done successfully, it can put you in the driving seat, ready to choose your own direction.
WikiJob does not provide tax, investment, or financial services and advice. The information is being presented without consideration of the investment objectives, risk tolerance, or financial circumstances of any specific investor and might not be suitable for all investors. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing involves risk including the possible loss of principal.
51% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with eToro. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
