I like it. How about asking Spike to create a forum for discussions on Online Trading?

And while you're at it, ask him to create another folder called "U.S. Economy & World News". Cause as you can see, there is much interest -- and we're trying to fit these type of discussions under "Household Finances". ... :-)

Allright! I gotta bite! I'd be more than happy to ask spike about the new forums. I would also be greatly inrerested in U.S. Economy and world news too. I want to learn more about twin deficiets and the shrinking dollar. Is putting a few bucks in a swiss acount in perhaps British pounds while the dollar receeds a better vehicle to obtain return on your money than CD's or Money Markets? I want to talk about this stuff.
I think spike will spring for it as long as it's a subscriber forum. I read the "Please read This" header at the top of the page and it seems that some forums are not panning out. If I gotta choke up fifteen bucks to make it happen so be it. I really enjoy some ofthe other forums and have been rewarded many times over by friendly speedy response. I'm in!

LOL! Yep, I bit.

I'm already a paid subscriber here, so hurry up and get those two forums created. I've got a lot of yapping to do. :-D

Hi all,

I use a discount broker, but haven't done online trading.

They claim that their systems are well encrypted ...

... but I feel that if they can crack the Pentagon's and NASA's codes, they can crack those used by the stockbrokers.

While it was a much less sensitive system that they were using, they sure messed up the computer systems of several companies a couple of years ago.

I don't do online banking, bill paying, etc. either - certainly don't disclose credit card info to any agency that I don't know.

By the way, sportsmom, I hope that you haven't had trouble with your account, after having diclosed its number on here. I wouldn't have done that on such a public place, either.

Maybe I'm just being a super-cautious old fart.

Good wishes for a memorable New Year.

joyful guy

Well, I do online trading (8 years) and online banking (2 years) and so far so good. I love the convenience and certainly the pricing for on-line trading. Not a day-trader, though. I use Brown & Co. as well as Fidelity. Each one has plusses and, of course, some minusses.

Not many mutual fund managers successfully outpace the market in general over substantial periods.

In the U.S. they mostly charge 1.5% or so for equity-based funds, where one has the best opportunity of asset growth.

In Canada they usually charge about 2.5%.

The average growth rate of the market is about 7 - 8%.

Which means that they get something like a fifth to a third of the growth - if their growth rate equals that of the market average.

But - if they do less well ... they get paid anyway.

Seems to me a good idea to buy a fund that buys a cross-section piece of the market, or of various components, such as utilities, financial, oil and gas, mining, etc.

Annual fees are much lower.

Some years ago I talked to a personal financial advisor advertising in the yellow pages, who had a business, had done some investing and whose friends had asked him if he would manage some of their money. He agreed to do so, with a minimum $10,000. account, confirmations going to the client and to him.

He charged 10% of the growth that his choice of investments developed, annually. When I asked what happened if his chosen investments produced losses, he said that he had been able to bill every client, every year.

I thought that I should have given him $10,000., then set up a parallel system with clients that I had.

joyful guy