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What can we do for you?
- Identify the many Myths in the financial system, including the dream of “beating the market” through individual stock selection.
- Identify the key factors to becoming better do-it-yourself investors AND identify those which are under your control, such as an optimum allocation of your investments across appropriate asset categories.
- Accompany you each step of the way in the saving and investment process- see our User Guide.
- Help self-investors to better control their costs, what Warren Buffett calls the financial system’s friction costs.
- Help you better use your tax-exempt (
 RRSP) account.
- Show you how to minimize your tax-related investment costs.
- Give you access to information to help you better manage a portfolio intended to constitute an important source of retirement income.
- Identify areas where the financial system does not adequately take into account the interests of independent investors.
- Encourage reforms to the regulatory system.
HELP-US
Help us to help you become a better independent investor. Your comments are appreciated and welcomed on our commentaries or on any other aspect of the site- not only what you find but also how it is presented. In addition, we specifically ask for your input at various points throughout our site.
Technorati Profile
Stock Quotes
For more details on the choice and meaning of the symbols click here.
| S&P/TSX |
12144.92 |
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| Dow Jones |
10447.93 |
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| S&P500 |
1104.51 |
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| Dollar |
0.00 |
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| XIU.TO |
17.79 |
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| IVV |
111.29 |
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| EFA |
52.49 |
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| EEM |
42.03 |
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| XBB.TO |
30.00 |
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| AGG |
108.02 |
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| XSB.TO |
29.23 |
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| XRE.TO |
13.41 |
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| RWR |
58.72 |
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| RWX |
37.00 |
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WELCOME to our site for the independent investor which was officially launched March 18, 2008. Become a member (it’s free) and enjoy full access to the site + receive on a preferred basis our weekly newsletters. Our site has been described as one of the few educational websites that offer the unbiased, clearly written material that busy investors need (The Globe & Mail 30 05 2008) and as a site dedicated to providing individual investors with independent, objective, free advice and information (The Gazette, Montreal 31 03 2008). See In the Media under the tab Media on our home page. MEMBERS-PLEASE NOTE: Depending on your software and internet provider, it may be necessary for you to add http://independentinvestor.info to your list of safe contacts in your spam filters. Otherwise, you may not receive our newsletters. Our newsletters notify our members in priority of our commentaries on current events and other topics of interest. If you miss a newsletter, it will eventually be filed on the site at a later date under Information on the home page. We are also on Twitter under DIYInvestor.
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News accessible to all
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 One of our readers, Eileen B., recently wrote to us: ‘’There are Vanguard ETFs now available from Canadian online banking/investing sites. These do not get the same positive recommendations in the Canadian media as do the iShares or Claymore offerings. Can you think of a reason for that? Why do Canadian investors not hear more about Vanguard? ‘’This commentary seeks to explain and help fill that information gap. Even though it is a US entity, there are many reasons why Canadian investors should take the time to learn about Vanguard and its products.
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 The Dick Davis Dividend is a book published in 2008 that synthesizes 40 years of stock market experience by Dick Davis, a well-known US finance newsletter editor, columnist, lecturer, teacher, former broker, and media reporter. Charles Martineau , who is completing a master’s degree in International Affairs (specialization in International Finance) at HEC business school in Montreal, has written this enthusiastic review. If you are one of the many of our readers who enjoyed Charles’s earlier contribution to our site (Survey of Canadian Discount Brokers ), you will likely enjoy his review.
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 On May 25th, 2010, respected academic and ex-financier Paul Woolley gave a seminal lecture at the London School of Economics. He laid out policies designed to dramatically increase investment returns of the world’s biggest public pension and charitable funds combined with such social gains as more financial system stability, faster economic growth, and a less bloated and less exploitive banking and financial system .Although targeted at giant funds, you should become familiar with the manifesto since, in our opinion, several aspects could also help individual investors in managing their own portfolios.
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 Do you have a small portfolio because you are just starting out investing? Perhaps you have been too busy paying down that mortgage, or, like many other people, for all kinds of other reasons, you simply have not been able to save very much. Whatever the reason, small investors face special challenges, but these are not insurmountable. Here are some suggestions.
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 On May 26, 2010 the Minister of Finance of Canada released a draft bill for a new Canadian Securities Act. In his press release he states that the proposed regime will provide better and more consistent protection for investors across Canada; improved regulatory and criminal enforcement to better fight securities-related crime; new tools to better support the stability of the Canadian financial system; faster policy responses to emerging market trends; simpler processes for businesses, resulting in lower costs for investors; and more effective international representation and influence for Canada. What’s not to like? In this commentary IndependentInvestor.info examines the weaknesses in investor protection in existing Canadian federal and provincial legislation, how the draft bill deals with those weaknesses, and the benefits for investors claimed in the Minister’s release. Are those benefits truly found in the draft bill? Read on.
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 Once in a while a video on investing comes along that not only is not trying to sell you investment producys but is both entertaining and informative. This month one such video was released, in which Burton Malkiel, a
PhD in finance, well-known Princeton professor, ex-Vanguard director and former Yale business school dean, and a regular financial author (notably of A Random Walk Down Wall Street) gives a wonderful 42 minutes presentation (plus a 49 minute Q&A) on why the timeless lessons of investing still remain valid, notwithstanding the recent difficult markets.
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 This review will help you find the appropriate discount broker that matches your needs.Costs are important for all financial products and services. Every dollar you pay in fees and commissions for your financial transactions is a dollar inevitably lost to you and reduces your compounded rate of return. Picking the correct discount broker is a crucial element of investing. Services and commission costs are different for each discount broker. We are happy to publish a review of the most important discount brokers in Canada put together by Charles Martineau, a young man
who is pursuing a master’s degree in International Affairs (specialization in International Finance) at HEC business school in Montreal.
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Congratulations!
Your efforts have paid off. You have ended up on a site which is focused on delivering investment information, not selling you financial services or products. Our site is not associated with, and accepts no financing, advertising or other financial assistance from:
- Banks
- Insurance companies
- Investment dealers or
- Financial advisors.
OUR MISSION
- Help you become a better independent self investor.
- Be a source of free, objective, independent and unbiased investment information for self-investors.
- Build on our past to earn the trust of Canadian and non-Canadian do-it-yourself investors. Our founder has several years experience with a securities regulatory agency and over a quarter century of experience with two blue chip Canadian securities issuers.
- For more, see Who are we?
Learn more about us
- we are on Twitter under DIYInvestor
- Take 15 minutes to read the Summary.
- To assess the credibility of our site. It’s the best investment decision you will make today.
- The information on self investing is divided into 44 sections (and counting) which are organized under eleven main headings or topics. Click on Themes at the top of this page for a short summary of the information covered under all of the topics.
- For a list of the sections under any particular theme, click on the name of that theme at the top of this page.
Who should visit our site?
- You are an independent investor looking for investment information focused on the needs of do-it-yourself investors.
- You are a novice in investment matters, but are considering becoming more independent in your investing.
- You trade in reliance on a financial advisor, but wish to better use his services, or perhaps understand the other alternative trading methods.
- Perhaps you see self investing as a retirement project, or are merely curious about the world of investing.
- Perhaps as a result of your professional activities (institutional investor, broker, professor or journalist), you seek access to a non-industry source of objective investment information.
We intend to regularly circulate by email newsletters to our members. To access our newsletter, click here. We are also on Twitter at http://twitter.com/DIYinvestor. Our Newsletters typically contain an in-depth commentary on a timely subject. The most recent commentaries are on our home page. Older commentaries can be found in our Archives, where they can be found by scrolling through the headings or by using the Search function.
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