How to *Actually* Invest in Crypto

Maddy: [00:00:23] Hello and welcome to You're in Good Company, an investing podcast striving to disrupt the norms in the finance industry. I'm Maddy, and as always, I'm in some very good company with my co-host Sophie. 

Sophie: [00:00:34] Hello, Maddy. It is our third and final crypto currency for our mini series, and coming up on today's episode, we actually talk about how you invest in crypto. You've finally decided that you want to do so. 

Maddy: [00:00:48] We also discuss what you can do to keep your crypto investment safe and different ways that you can get exposure to this whole area in line with your risk tolerance. 

Sophie: [00:00:58] But before we jump into today's episode, we would like to acknowledge and pay respects the one people of the Colola Nation, who are the traditional owners of this land. We pay our deepest respects to the elders past and present, and to the next generation who we hope to create a different future for today. 

Maddy: [00:01:12] We are so excited to welcome to the show, one of the newest members of the Equity Mates community and host of her brand new podcast, Crypto Curious Tracey Plowman. After 15 years in senior management as a sales and marketing leader, Chase became an early adopter and investor of crypto before joining Bamboo to become the CEO of the crypto micro investing app. Tracey, I've listened to your brand new podcast, and as someone who is very new to the crypto space, I loved it and found it very easy and nice to understand. You guys have gone straight to number one on the business chart, so I'm very happy to have you here today, somewhat of a celebrity. Welcome to You're in Good Company.

Tracey Plowman: [00:01:52] Thank you. Thanks for having me. It's always a pleasure to come and talk about crypto. And, yeah, really excited to go to number one. That was very unexpected. So, yeah, exciting times. 

Sophie: [00:02:02] Very exciting times. Now we always start the podcast the same way, just so we can get to know you a little bit more. And the first question is, what's the best thing that's happened to you this week? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:02:12] Well, I don't know if you heard, but I started the podcast. 

Maddy: [00:02:15] I was going to say, if you don't give this answer, I mean, that 

Tracey Plowman: [00:02:19] has to be the highlight of the week. Look, it's so much work into it. And, you know, it's a little bit nerve wracking when it goes out there. So to get the feedback from it's been, it's been great. It was a whirlwind, and that's definitely the highlight of the week so far. 

Maddy: [00:02:33] Love it. And Tracey, if you could have it dinner with anyone, who would it be and why? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:02:38] It's the great question. If we're talking about just a casual dinner, that's, you know, a few laughs, then I'm not going to go too heavy. I used to always say Bill Murray, but I'm going to change that. I'm going to go with Will Ferrell. I'm just crazy. Like a laugh. Pharrell, let's have a laugh. 

Sophie: [00:02:54] And if you could be a stock or company, who would you be and why? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:02:59] Okay. Look, I think keeping with the theme from this week with you guys, I'm going to have to answer that one with a crypto and I'm going to say Ethereum. Yeah, look, the centralised and programmable blockchain running on smart contracts. I mean, does that sound fun and exciting? 

Sophie: [00:03:18] It sounds like a whole bunch of jargon, and I might need to go listen to your forecast 

Tracey Plowman: [00:03:24] on a massive Ethereum fangirl. So if I had to be, you know, if I had to be one company or stop in keeping with crypto, I'm going to go with Ethereum, which sits No.2 to bitcoin, being number one at the moment on the charts. So definitely going to hit you up with the Syrian for that answer 

Maddy: [00:03:38] on the crypto charts. I love it. So before we go any further, I would love to hear in your own words, what is your new podcast crypto curious all about? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:03:50] OK, so look, the best way to sum it up, I guess, is when I jumped into crypto or fell into crypto four years ago, there was nothing around to teach me what I was needing to learn. So you kind of fumbled your way through the internet and picking up a few things here and there and asking loads of questions. So for people now hearing so many things about crypto on bitcoin, it's in the media. This is going to give you everything you need to know. I guess. So if you're that little bit crypto curious, but you don't know where to go, this is kind of going to get you on the ground floor and teach you everything from the beginning. So we kind of not add all those jargon terms because there are so many, there's so many acronyms, there's so many different words. So this is going to this is going to help you from the beginning, I guess. 

Sophie: [00:04:36] I feel like in the crypto space, whenever I hear people talk about it, they kind of know it all. And I'm like, I don't understand because you know it all, like, I need someone to like, give me the very basics. So I'm definitely going to be a listener indeed. And why do you love the crypto space so much? You said you fell into it four years ago? What kind of happened there look like? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:04:58] I said I fell into a four years ago and. I was incredibly green at that point, I knew nothing, and it took me a long time to it took me a long time to even pluck up the courage to ask questions at the time because it was very technical. And, you know, crypto is like the other financial sectors, very masculine. And I think women are largely left out of that whole conversation that crypto for me, has been the opposite. I think it's been quite inclusive, and I think it's an opportunity kind of to turn that on its head. And I was able to ask a lot of questions and what I found that it wasn't just me, but it was also my male peers who had no idea what some of these terms meant. So it kind of it was okay all of a sudden to ask questions. And that's what I was doing. I was forever asking a lot of questions. So, you know, I think it's been a really inclusive space for not just females, but for everyone out there to get involved. And there was no degree in crypto, although there is now, I believe so. You know, you were self-taught. So at the time, you know, you could you could teach yourself. And that was that was a wonderful thing. You know, everyone started from the same baseline and I loved that. 

Maddy: [00:06:11] I know the crypto has been around for a long time, but I do feel like it has a lot of momentum at the moment. Maybe it's just because we're doing podcast episodes on it, but I feel like all of a sudden people are talking about it more than ever. And I think that point that you touched on about females getting involved and learning more about it, it's great timing because females have never been more involved in investing and in financial markets than they are right now. And I think it's such a good opportunity for everyone to kind of get onto this crypto story together, and we can all be a part of it because it is super interesting and it's really exciting. And I think, you know, when we joined Equity Mates, one of the things that the guy said was that their mission was to make the finance media landscape more accessible. And I think crypto in particular, is one of those spaces where, you know, if you go on YouTube and you start Googling crypto like it's, it can get pretty complicated, pretty quickly. You can go down a whole rabbit hole. So I think podcasts like crypto curious where you guys, like you said, allow people to come in on the ground level and break it down really simply such an awesome idea and great opportunity for everyone to get involved. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:07:19] And then people understand there's no silly questions. You know, everyone can, you know, let's get it out there. Yeah, I think you're right. Absolutely. 

Maddy: [00:07:27] Tracey, behind every fast crypto investment, there's generally a pretty good story to be told. So can you tell us about your first crypto investment and what you learnt from it? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:07:37] Yes. Okay, mine was not a great success story, as most people maybe aren't. So, yes, four years ago, I was just bought into the hype again. I wasn't sure what I was doing that, you know, I was loving it, and I was hearing all these really amazing things at the time. Really early 2018, everyone was 10x ing and 100 exciting, and there were all these different coins with different weird names everyone was doing super well on. And I thought, what am I asked to get my first month's pay in one of these claims that these guys are talking about, which I did? And so what was I thinking? Honestly? And then this coin had just listed after an IPO, and then it tanked. And now I say that I understand what that means. But back then I didn't know what an icon was. I didn't know even that it was going to be listed. I didn't know what I was doing, you know, and had there been a podcast out there, I was explaining those things to me. I wouldn't have made that mistake, but basically my investment for that month went very quickly down to about not even 20 per cent of what it was worth. 

Maddy: [00:08:47] So, yeah, the second month's 

Tracey Plowman: [00:08:50] salary did did not. No, no, no, no, no. But I mean, it did not happen. I believe by that time I was, you know, I was, you know, well, hooked and I was, you know, understanding what was going on a little better. But I just didn't jump, didn't jump headfirst. And what I took from that as well was, you know, do a bit more research, maybe and don't get distracted by shiny things.

Maddy: [00:09:12] So I love it. And just to clarify, I see that initial coin offering.

Tracey Plowman: [00:09:18] Yeah, yeah, that's correct. Yeah. 

Sophie: [00:09:21] I love that. I had no idea what Nicea was. I was just sitting there nodding, being like, Yeah, I'm going to pretend like I know, but I don't know. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:09:28] Similar to an IPO, and again, that's a made up term for crypto because there's an IPO. And then like, we're going to call this an initial coin offering. Let's call it an ICAO is the Wild West crypto. We're going to just make it up turns left, right and centre. 

Sophie: [00:09:41] Amazing. Now we're going to jump into it. So we're going to talk to you all about today how to invest in cryptocurrency. But we're going to start with a little bit more basic. When we talk on our podcast, we talk about a lot of asset classes, whether it be stocks or bonds yet to talk about property, but maybe one day. What asset class does cryptocurrency belong to? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:10:04] Well, that's a good question. I mean, you've got, like you said, stocks and bonds, and I think alternative assets I would go with the cryptos really matured and developed over the past few years. You know, the crypto assets have grown more than 300 billion over the past decade, which has grabbed the attention of many people wanting to kind of fall, you know, in, I guess. And I don't think we can deny that crypto is a viable asset class now. But with that is a it's a high, high risk, high reward, which is due to its volatility, I guess. So in saying that, that means a lot of, you know, financial planners and asset managers, investors probably, you know, shy away from putting larger allocations into their portfolio. But that doesn't mean that crypto doesn't belong in your overall portfolio as a diversifying investment. 

Maddy: [00:10:55] Yeah, I think it's a great point and so far has done a great news story before. You know, we often think about gold as being a good inflation hedge or something that sort of doesn't move with along with the rest of your stocks in your portfolio and cryptocurrency is another great example of that. So it's a good way to, you know, if you are interested and if you do want a little bit of exposure to help diversify your portfolio into that space as well. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:11:16] Yeah, that's it is. It's just it's another, you know, a hedging strategy in your portfolio. Exactly. 

Sophie: [00:11:22] I also have heard the term a lot. A digital asset. Is that like a real asset class or is that just something that people call it because it's on the internet? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:11:29] Exactly. I think it's it's it's it's something that they've made up as well. So it's I think it will be classified as an alternative asset class, but they call it a digital asset. So again, crypto, I know our guys. 

Sophie: [00:11:43] So when I'm buying this alternative digital asset, what do you actually own when you purchase cryptocurrencies of the same example as before? You know, when we purchase a stock, we're earning a piece of a company when we're buying a coin or a cryptocurrency. What do we own now? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:11:59] This is a little tricky to answer, but in simple terms, you're buying a digital representation of a token which is representative of a portion of a network. So for example, if I'm buying an Ethereum token or one of these, this is the currency that encourages people to run the Ethereum network. So basically, you're buying a portion of that network. Or perhaps another way of thinking about that is bitcoin is a digital currency that exists in a computer file, which can only be stored on a bitcoin compatible wallet or a smartphone or a computer. And then every time you buy a fraction of a bitcoin, technically you're buying a computer file whose value is then derived by market forces. If that makes sense, 

Maddy: [00:12:52] I think I've got it. Where are you going to take a quick break for our sponsors? But we are going to be right back with Tracey to discuss how you actually invest in cryptocurrencies. 

Sophie: [00:13:04] Over the past couple of weeks, we've spoken about what is crypto and is talking about its use cases and helping people to try and understand whether they, you know, even like it or not. But when it comes down to crunch day and they've decided they want to invest. How do you actually invest in cryptocurrencies and you can use one of them to give an example? I don't know if it's all the same or if it's different, depending on the coin. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:13:27] Sure. So investing and also trading is a little bit different to investing in other assets. But there are definitely some similarities, and I think some knowledge of some crypto fundamentals is probably a good place to start, which is probably why people have been listening to these type of podcasts. That's good. But also having, you know, an investment strategy as well. Before you take that step and having your own personal risk tolerance and knowing what you want to get out of the investment is also important. It also may be stress having a timeframe in mind, too with crypto because a lot of people put money in and then they check it every day and see where it's going and what's happening. And, you know, with crypto what you see it going up and down, and that can be quite stressful. So it's going to kind of do this for 12 months or five years. And then, you know, like any investment strategy, you just know where you're going with it. But then obviously you've done all that and you're excited to get into the market. And there are many ways to get into crypto. And like you said this on these exchanges and these micro saving apps like Bambu, you can buy in person over the counter. And there's even crypto ATMs around Australia, which is super weird. But we'll chat about the most common form, which would be the exchanges, and that's probably the most common on ramp for buying crypto. And different exchanges have different onboarding processes, and some of these are relatively easy. And some of them can be a little bit more lengthy. And depending on what kind of KYC or ID process you know, some of them can take up to two or three days before you ready to go. And then when it comes down to choosing your exchanges, that's down to the individual as well. You know, you might want to have some really fancy weed coins, so you might want to get an exchange that's got a bigger long list of coins. Two really good Aussie exchanges, which I can suggest are BTC markets and independent reserve. 

Sophie: [00:15:18] I was just going to say I recently jumped into the crypto world and I really struggled to work out what exchange to jump onto because there's so no one. There's so many different names out there. And then number two, I was like, Can I trust all of these? Like, I don't know, I had this kind of weird mentality. And what helped me was, you know, talking to people that I know and seeing what they used. But, you know, is there a sentiment that not all the exchanges are necessarily safe or regulated, like a stock exchanges?

Tracey Plowman: [00:15:48] I guess so. There is a little bit of that, and there can be a little bit of, you know, you don't want to touch some of the Asian exchanges that have been hacked more than the others. And to be honest, I was exactly like that. And when I did sort of the exchanges, I went for the Aussie ones. I just felt better about it and I went with BTC markets early on. And then they are also compatible with my bank, and it was a bit easier to get funds in an in and out. And now for me, further on, it's about me and my situation, and it is about getting funds easier in and out again. And so I move to another exchange, which is called Binance. But again, it is talking to different people. And you know, it is a trust thing, but it's also your situation and knowing what you want to trade as well. Yeah. And like I said, some of them are going to have, you know, different processes on how they KYC and, you know, prices at the same time. 

Maddy: [00:16:38] Is it like the brokerage platforms that we use for stocks in that? It's quite easy to change brokers once you get started. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:16:44] I think they're very similar in in saying that I had not used a lot of stock exchanges myself, so I couldn't say that from personal experience. But I think it's probably worth mentioning that there's another whole class of exchanges that we in crypto will use. And these exchanges are a mix where you can buy your crypto on decentralised exchanges or DEXs for short. I'm not sure whether you've you've heard of those. 

Maddy: [00:17:11] Nope, that was the worst podcasting ever. We both just shook our heads. No one. No one can say yes. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:17:20] So that's another bit of crypto jargon DEXs, but traditionally traditionally an exchange is run by a centralised company or a person who is responsible for all aspects of how that platform operates. But with a decentralised exchange or DEX, this has no central authority or entity which has control. So this is kind of all made possible by code or smart contracts. I don't want to get too technical here because this is also where I kind of lose a little bit, but it's all done on, you know, it's all done on algorithms instead of human intervention. And there are liquidity pools provided by other buyers on the network. So it's not easy to wrap your head around, but the point is that these Dex's can offer all of the functionality that the centralised exchanges offer, but with much lower fees, as well as not having those K Y C or registration processes. So obviously there's risks here as well, with those being unregulated. But in the end, the hugely popular like, I use a lot of these and you probably would have heard or heard the names like this Uniswap, which is, you know, just does incredible volumes. I think it did something like three billion in the first half of this year just through their system yet. And then they SushiSwap and PancakeSwap, and I'm realising how bad all these names sound, as I'm saying them. But that's just it's just that's it. It's and so they're hugely popular. And you know, when you think about Uniswap, which I mentioned, which is probably the biggest DEX that's out there with, you know, stupid amounts of money and they've got like, you know, half a dozen staff because they are decentralised and it's all run on these smart contracts. It's pretty amazing. It's, you know, it's amazing stuff. 

Sophie: [00:19:17] So just so I understand correctly, I just want to make sure I've got my head around this because this is all new to me. Something like SushiSwap or Uniswap is like an exchange. I mean, obviously the exact same, but something like the A6 or the NASDAQ, where people buy and sell cryptocurrencies. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:19:34] Correct. That is right. There's a liquidity pool and people are putting their tokens in there and swapping and selling with each other. But it's it is decentralised. 

Sophie: [00:19:44] It's just a different world, isn't it? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:19:47] It is. It really is. 

Maddy: [00:19:48] I'm so interested in it. So when we invest in stocks and I'm sorry, I keep coming back to this because it's the easiest way for me to sort of wrap my head around it. When it comes to tax time, we pay tax on our dividends and also our capital gains. So any money that we earned by buying and then selling for a profit, what do we need to know about tax sort of just at a very high level when it comes to cryptocurrencies? Does it work the same? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:20:18] Wouldn't it be amazing if I said, no, you have to pay it? No, it does. Oh oh, Covid so good. No. Look, the inevitable tax question and the simple answer is yes. If you've made a profit trading cryptocurrencies, you'll need to declare it and in your annual return, you know. And the ATO has also now started to collect data from all of these exchanges I've mentioned, and they'll be monitoring your tax returns to make sure that your tax returns match your crypto transactions. So that's how deep it goes. So you need to know that you must disclose all your crypto earnings and you need to pay any tax on any gains that are made. 

Sophie: [00:20:55] Maybe we should make like a tax coin that has some kind of incentive that if you if you buy it and sell it, you don't have to pay tax so that 

Maddy: [00:21:02] you will be on board for that one. 

Sophie: [00:21:04] And another part of investing that we sometimes talk about is also micro investing. And now we know that bamboo does micro investing for cryptocurrency. So can you tell us a little bit about what micro investing in cryptocurrency looks like? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:21:17] Iko Investing is a great way to get your foot in the door, especially with this type of asset class. And acts like bamboo are more focussed on ease of use and not for trading, but more for savings. So bamboo is similar to micro investing share apps like Raise. So what the app does is it takes your day to day purchase and it rounds up these purchases so so if like you tend to migrate, is it you mentioned in last week's podcast, you know it round this round up these purchases to the nearest two or three Dollars. And then when you hit 50 dollars worth of round ups, then invest these into either Bitcoin or Ethereum. And the bamboo app even allows you to set your portfolio mix and offer gold or silver options as well. So it's just it's a great way to set up for the long term and save and really just sit and forget, I guess. 

Maddy: [00:22:11] So I think in the crypto space, one thing that sort of does come to mind when I think about what's maybe stopping me from getting involved or just jumping right in is I've touched on a little bit sort of these bigger concerns about like cybersecurity or whether, you know, the platform that are using is really safe. Do you have any tips for how we can really safeguard our cryptocurrency? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:22:34] Yeah, sure. I think that that is always a concern, and I think I myself keep a certain amount of crypto on the two exchange platforms that I use, and I do you trust these platforms to a degree I don't keep a stupid amount on ever. I do keep a certain amount on there to make sure that I've got, you know, best practise. I have password security set up on my PC and I have everything covered with two factor authentication. And I think, you know, when it comes to that side of things or you can do is make sure you. You've got all of those extra things set up to make sure you're fully covered. 

Sophie: [00:23:09] We talk about the fact that cryptocurrency is very decentralised, so we don't have a lot of, you know, third parties involved in it. So, you know, if something does happen, is there any third party that can prove your purchases or is it all you know, your responsibility to keep them safe? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:23:24] But that that's that's a really hard one, because I guess it's not really. The third party is not really needed because of due to the nature of the blockchain itself, which is it's fully auditable and transparent. It's all out there to be seen. As you know, you can actually go and see where everything is, so it really is all on you. But if something does happen, there are companies now that you can go to for help that will, you know, act like Magnum P.I. and help you kind of look for things if they are, if they are lost. But it really is on you to make sure that you are being careful and and you're holding things in wallets where you need to be. 

Sophie: [00:23:59] I have heard some hilarious or not so hilarious stories for the people that have lost them, but I've just heard some crazy stories about people losing like bitcoins that they had like, you know, thousands of bitcoins and they were like lost on their dad's old PC, and they don't have the password and they can't do anything about it. It's so insane. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:24:18] Yeah, I think there's some guy in the UK that wanted to dig up landfill because he had something like seven thousand bitcoins on a hard drive, you know, so I think he even said to the to the to the council, the government, I'll give you 20 percent and now a lot now might happen. So but that's another thing if you're going to have, you know, when you do have a decent amount, you want to have a hard wallet or a cold wallet, which is worth noting. And that's kind of like a little tiny, safe in the form of USB. So that's kind of where you put any large amount and that keeps your assets safe, even when your computer, the computer that you're using, isn't secure. So, you know, the it gives you an extra layer of protection against cyber attacks and phishing sites and all of that kind of thing. So, you know, and that wallet can work with multiple blockchains and you can manage all of your coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum or on the same device so that you can back them all up. And then, you know, you've kind of got one single recovery phase or password, but just don't lose it. 

Maddy: [00:25:18] That was going to be my next question is what is a Hardwell? It is. So it's it looks like a USB. Is it literally just a USB with your digital crypto in a folder? Yeah. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:25:28] So I had wallet or a cold wallet is like a little tiny mini safe. It's like a USB. You know, people call and there's like Trezor and Ledger, the other bigger brands there. So they you plug them into your computer and in you cross things across. So once they're in there and you've and you've got your bitcoins on your your little hard wallet, you then need to keep that safe. So basically, what that means is that some people even put those in the bank, which I find hilarious, and then some people put them in safes, you know, that are in there buried in their backyard. So it's just an extra layer of protection, I guess. 

Maddy: [00:26:04] And what's the alternative is there? So if if you don't have your crypto on a Hardwell, where do you have it? Is it it's soft wallet?

Tracey Plowman: [00:26:11] There also is a wallet? I know that sounds weird. Hard wallet. Cold wallet is just, yeah, all the all the different wallets. So again, like I said, I keep some money on exchange, you know, and then if you, you know, you put something on hardball. But then there's also a wallet or a soft wallet, which is like a bank account, and you generally just need your password and you two factor for that as well, so you can keep a certain amount on that wallet. It's like an app on your phone, and you can use your crypto on there to pay for things, if you like as well. So, so those are those, I guess, a cold. You like warm wallets, which you have on your phone 

Maddy: [00:26:44] call, so your options are you buy and keep your crypto on the exchange. You have a warm wallet, which is on your phone kind of like a bank account or a hard wallet, which is you USB-A. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:26:54] That's correct. 

Sophie: [00:26:55] Perfect. Thank you for summarising. I really needed that. There's so much jargon, and I would have thought that in the crypto space with all these interesting names that they come up with coins that they would have had a different name for a wallet. But here we are actually nice. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:27:10] You would think there we go now. 

Sophie: [00:27:13] We slightly touched on micro investing as kind of a way to dip your toes into buying cryptocurrencies. If you're, you know, risk appetite isn't there yet to buy, you know, cryptocurrencies in a whole or in little bits. Are there any other ways to invest, I guess, in either coins or in this technology that's really backing up cryptocurrencies? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:27:36] Yeah. Well, there's obviously the options to go direct to the companies that are involved in this and what is really happening and what's really exciting. This week, sorry, was the first crypto ETF listing here in Australia on the ASX. So, you know, that was a bit of a watershed moment for us here. And the listing by BetaShares that won't give you direct access to Bitcoin, Ethereum, but to an index of the underlying funds that will. Give you exposure to the companies that are involved there, and all those companies are at the forefront of the, you know, crypto economy and, you know, a big bunch of these companies include like MicroStrategy and Galaxy Digital and Coinbase, and these are all huge names within the industry. So, you know, as you mentioned, jumping into something like that is a good way to gain exposure without kind of going all the way in. 

Sophie: [00:28:29] I absolutely love that I was actually looking at the ETF the other day because I think for me personally, I'm really fascinated behind all the technologies that make cryptocurrencies work. And so it's really cool that there's now this option of an ETF. You know, you have someone else managing and really looking at these companies that are involved, so you don't have to have all that responsibility on yourself. But these companies that are really invested in trying to make you know, these cryptocurrencies work for, I guess, wider society. So I love that the ETF option has finally come to Australia, and I heard that they smashed a lot of records like so much, so many funds under management and like within 15 minutes, I 

Tracey Plowman: [00:29:07] think they've even gone gangbusters again today. I saw a snippet just a little while ago, so they're hitting hitting records, and I think that's just opened the floodgates. So there's going to be so many more on the way. So there's going to be even more options. So, you know, lots to keep an eye on. 

Maddy: [00:29:20] Very exciting indeed. And on that note, I think that leads us nicely to our watchlist. So, Tracey, each episode we have been asking our guests to add a stock company, news, trend industry, whatever you like to our watchlist. And the purpose of this really is to get us thinking outside the box and broaden our horizons in the investing space. Of course, we're not financial advisors and this is purely for educational purposes, but I'm very excited here. What are you bringing to the watch list today? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:29:48] Okay. I gave this a lot of thought. OK? 

Maddy: [00:29:53] It was love that sleepless nights, 

Tracey Plowman: [00:29:58] but I thought, What can I? Possibly because crypto is there's just so many weird and wacky and wonderful things that we could talk about when it comes to cryptocurrency. But I thought, I want to give. I want to give you, and I want to give the listeners something that is of the now, but also is of the future, but is also interesting. So I'm going to talk or tell you or tell you to look into NFT. Is now does that mean anything to you guys? And I say NFTs, 

Maddy: [00:30:25] nonfungible tokens, 

Tracey Plowman: [00:30:28] the game caligari. Nonfungible tokens? Yes, I 

Maddy: [00:30:33] can't know any more than that, though. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:30:35] Oh look, it's you can keep those in a rabbit hole, and this is a whole other warren of rabbit holes that you know you could go down. But there's it's it's fascinating. It's amazing. And all of this comes from smart contracts, and there's so many amazing things going on in this space. And I think that, you know, if you've got some time, check it out. You know, we've got we're doing an episode at the moment, which will be out in probably another four to six weeks. I'm not quite sure, but you know, there's so many things in this space happening that will blow your mind. And just really quickly, you said it then non-fungible token and my husband says no funds, no fungible idea. But it's it's basically unique token on the blockchain that has unique characteristics and the ownership can be verified and recorded. So there's so many different NFTs that are out there, ranging from artwork and basketball cards and digital horses and moments in time. So, you know, we could record this and make this an NFT or, you know, these tweets, even emails so you can make anything into an NFT. And it's, you know, it's a lot to do with, you know, music and gaming as well. But it's there's so much to unpack, but it's worth it. It's worth scratching the surface and finding out a little bit more. So, you know, if if your listeners can say that they heard it, we heard that on, you know, you're in good company. And if he's on the job done.

Maddy: [00:32:06] Love it. Maybe we'll have to have you back for another episode. We'll talk all things NFTs, and then we'll make the episode an NFT and see what happens or do it as an experiment. Sounds good. 

Sophie: [00:32:17] I also think what we should be adding to the watch list is just your episode on NFTs. So, yeah, we're going to understand what they are.

Maddy: [00:32:25] No, that one day when it comes out, it's 

Tracey Plowman: [00:32:28] just so much to unpack. But you know, I haven't even got my head a percentage of the way around it. It's pretty amazing. 

Sophie: [00:32:33] Well, that's why we're all here to do it together. So, Tracey, we have one final question for you, which is and I think this would be one that people should take a lot out of. But for someone starting on their cryptocurrency journey, what would be your best piece of advice for them? 

Tracey Plowman: [00:32:50] Oh. J, this piece of advice, don't you? Dollar cost averaging. That's what I would say. Averaging slowly. Don't put everything in one go. I wish I'd done that from the word go. And it's easy for me to say that and don't get distracted by other things. Just I would say, stick to your big, big ones that you blue chips, bitcoin, Etherium and average in slowly over time. But in saying that you're going to go out and you're going to buy other things, that's going to happen. But if you are going to buy other things, make sure that this is a big tip here. Make sure you understand the product and you understand what's behind it. I learnt that early on as well. If you don't know what something means and you've just heard someone talking about the fact that it's going to go to the Moon or get 10x and or, you know, you're even just like the name. That's not good enough. Do some research and understand the product that's and have some belief in it, because if you are going to hold that coin for a certain amount of time, that's going to help you to do that. You know, you're going to you're going to have strength and conviction in holding that for a little bit longer. But yeah, take your time. Do your research and dollar cost averaging slowly. 

Maddy: [00:34:02] I think I'm going to have to put that advice in a note to myself because I 100 percent will be so susceptible to saying and random name of a coin I like and thing like, oh, and getting far too excited and pumping too much money. And so I will know that down. Thank you so much, Tracey, for joining us today. And if you haven't listened to crypto curious yet, we would highly recommend it. The guys are doing such a great job of breaking down the world of crypto and we are so excited to have them as a part of the Equity Mates family. 

Tracey Plowman: [00:34:31] Thanks so much for having me. 

Maddy: [00:34:33] Thanks, Tracey. Bye. I really enjoyed that episode with Tracey, and sorry, I know you've started recently to dabble a little bit in the crypto space. I have to say I haven't yet, but after the past three episodes, I'm feeling like I'm finally ready. I'm so excited. I'm going to put a really small amount in. Happy to lose it. Happy if it wants to go 10 times. That's fine, too. But I think I'm going to do it 

Sophie: [00:34:58] very exciting times now. To round out today's episode, we are going to get a sneak peek into millennials portfolios. 

Community Member: [00:35:05] Show me the money, honey. Hi, my name is Vanessa. I'm 27 years old and work as a digital analyst. I earn about $5000 a month, and every fortnight I put away $500 into myself wealth accounts that it's ready to go. Once I hit around three to $5000, I will buy a pass into a company I've been watching or top up on one of my ETFs. I currently have small holdings in Viti and BTC, but the majority of my investments are in speculative mining companies because I prefer short to medium term holds. My current focus is on lithium, the rare earths and uranium. But my largest holding is with E.F., which was my first purchase two years ago and has also been my biggest profit maker, and I plan to retire with it one day. Today, the total value of my portfolio is around $68000. Since I've been investing, I've made a profit of one hundred and ninety percent. 

Sophie: [00:35:53] I love getting a sneak peek into what other people are putting into their portfolio. If you feel like you want to do that as well, please contact us. You can email us YIGC at Equity Mates.com, or even just jump into our DMs on Instagram, where YIGC podcast and send us a message and we'll send you some extra details. 

Maddy: [00:36:11] If you have any questions from today's episode, pop them in our Facebook group YIGC investing podcast discussion group. And as always, if you enjoyed today's episode, we would love if you could subscribe and leave us a review on your favourite podcast platform. It really helps us get noticed by others 

Sophie: [00:36:27] and to hear from us next week. Thank you so much. Bye.