Ep307: Shan Saeed – Start Investing as Early as You Can

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Guest profile

Shan Saeed is Chief Economist at Juwai IQI, a leading property, technology, and investment company operating and advising clients in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Hong Kong, London, Melbourne, Makati, Toronto, and Dubai.

He has 20 years of financial market experience in private banking, risk and compliance management, commodity investments, global economy, and brand and business strategy.

Based in Kuala Lumpur, he is a financial market commentator cited in various news outlets around the world.

Shan graduated from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago and got his first MBA from IBA Pakistan in collaboration with the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He is also trained in Alternative Banking/Strategies from Harvard Business School.

“In order to be successful in your life, you need to work hard, have an abiding faith in Almighty God, and lastly, which I strongly believe in, your mother’s blessing.”

Shan Saeed

Worst investment ever

Shan was always impressed by his mom’s investing acumen. She had started investing in gold from the time when Shan was a kid. When Shan finished his first MBA in 1999, his mom encouraged him to read about gold and oil. However, Shan was not interested.

At the time, Shan was focusing on his career and getting his second MBA. So he was saving money for that.

Finally getting round to investing

The price of gold had been going up steadily since 1971. In 1971 gold prices were trading at $35 per troy ounce, and in 1980 it was $850. The price went down in 2001 to $257 per ounce. But in 2011, the price hit $1,923.

Even though Shan had been keeping an eye on gold and knew how lucrative it was, he did not start investing until 2007. That was pretty late, and he was indeed behind the curve. Shan’s worst investment was the ignorance that saw him miss out on some good returns from gold for at least six to seven years.

Lessons learned

Save to invest

As soon as you start working, you should allocate 10 to 20% of your saving to investing. Cut down your expenses and save that money.

Understand the market before you start investing

Before you start investing, you must first understand the market. So do your homework and get your market intelligence report. When you get to know the market well, you will be able to choose your investments wisely.

Understand your risk profile and have an exit strategy

Understand your risk profile and your risk-reward ratio. And most importantly, you need to have an exit strategy.

Andrew’s takeaways

Put aside a specific amount of money for investing

You have to be very intentional with your investment plan. Make it a habit to save by putting aside a certain amount. Do not use it for anything else other than investing. Whether it is 5% or 10%, or 20% of your salary, allocate it to investing in stocks, gold, property, or bonds. Then manage your portfolio slowly and steadily over time.

Actionable advice

Be aggressive, gather as much information about the financial market as you can. Listen to people’s advice about investing, but make your own decision.

No. 1 goal for the next 12 months

Shan’s number one goal for the next 12 months is to take a long position in gold and silver, be very aggressive in the market, and keep himself up to date.