5 Golden Rules of Investing

Most investors emphasize too much on choosing between specific bonds and shares. According to Alan Safahi Orinda, a successful entrepreneur and startup founder in San Francisco, the core principles dictate your wealth-building strategy’s success or failure. Check out these five golden rules crafted by Alan Safahi to create your investment plans for long-term value accumulation. Read on!

1. Focus on the Power of Compound Interest

According to Alan Safahi, it is crucial to make the interest work for you. You earn interest on your capital when you invest money. Likewise, the following year you earn interest on your initial capital and the first year. So, this continues, and you earn interest on your original capital and the first two years’ interest.

Safahi says that even Einstein acknowledged the effectiveness of compound interest. Because Einstein calls the compound interest the “eighth wonder of the world,” you must remember its power.

2. Combat Risk with Diversification

Alan Safahi advises investors to diversify across sectors, assets, styles, managers, and securities. Diversification is a fundamental investment rule, allowing you to create a balanced path and take a middle road through the harsh market performance.

In addition, diversification enables your investment to grow steadily with smaller changes or fluctuations along the way. It is an efficient and quick way to manage risks. Remember, diversification protects you from losses in any investments.

3. Understand the Return Tradeoff

No one can neglect the significance of asset mix. If you fail to get the right asset mix, nothing else matters. Likewise, if you want to meet your goals and objectives, make sure you streamline your asset allocation processes.

According to Safahi, asset allocation explains 70% to 90% of your portfolio’s total returns. Regular investments require you to trade off a high expected return with greater risks. The immediate solution for this problem presented by Alan Safahi is getting your asset mix and the amount of each asset right.

After deciding the appropriate asset mix for yourself, make sure you stick to it. However, you can make modifications when the circumstances change. Safahi advises investors to perform a regular review with their financial investors to address fluctuating circumstances.

4. Avoid Looking At Past Performance

Safahi’s extensive research shows that past performance does not indicate future performance. Bear in mind that looking at the past performance is an ineffective guide to your future performance.

Most investors think that if an investment manager has done well in the past, they are clever and carrying out effective operations. It means they will do well in the future as well. Unfortunately, past performance has limitations and limited use because new circumstances mean the past strategies won’t outperform.

5. Stay in the Market

Safahi says “time is your best ally” and has exceptional properties. For example, time reinforces the power and effectiveness of compound interest. It also reduces the risk of adverse outcomes. Because “share” markets are usually volatile, investors require significant average returns for investing in shares.

It is crucial to focus on the range of historical returns for each asset class because it can guide you on the range of returns that you can expect for a given period. Safahi’s research shows that the equity market has short-term volatility. However, they rise consistently over the long term.

Final Words

You would call an architect if you wanted to design your luxury, modern, and dream house. Likewise, if you want a sophisticated investment portfolio, you need to understand the rules of investments. That way, you can best fit your needs.

Remember, high-quality and practical investment management advice and tips do not come cheap, leading to poor decision-making and risking your investments. Thanks to Alan Safahi, you can leverage the power of these five golden rules to streamline your investments.

Originally Posted: https://vocal.media/trader/the-5-golden-rules-of-investing

Gig Economy Explained

The modern financial landscape and the world economy are ever changing due to the constant fluctuation of all the factors involved. From unfathomable technological advances, changing of political and social structures, to climate change, the factors are endless that contribute to the ever-growing world economy. We’ve seen plenty of new developments and concepts take root due to the unique characteristics and lifestyle changes that have come about in the last five decades or so. However, everything was put into hyper-drive with the advent of the internet and the “information age.” Amongst the many new concepts that this new era brought forth, the gig economy stands out.

While the term gig-economy can be traced back to 1915 when jazz musicians coined the term “gig” to refer to performances. The terminology now means something entirely different. Since 2009, the term has been used to describe a very modern concept of work. We at the Zed Network work in the financial sector and have been closely observing its effect in the domestic and world economy in general for quite some time now. So we thought we should put our research and observations out there in public to aid you in further understanding this very modern concept. 

According to Zed Founder and entrepreneur Alan Safahi, the effects of the gig economy are felt throughout the financial sector. Gig economy workers are considered as the driving force behind the fast-tracking of payment modernization. So what is it? Why is it such a big deal? Well, that’s what we will talk about in the following passages. By the end of this article, our goal is to provide you pertinent information about the gig economy. So let’s dive in and check out this modern concept that took root in the last decade.

What Is The Gig Economy?

The basic idea for a gig economy is where temporary, flexible jobs are widespread and where companies look to hire independent contractors and freelancers instead of full-time employees. The gig economy and its workers directly undermine the traditional economy of full-time workers who often focus on their career development. It’s a versatile economy that is usually more adaptable to the needs of the moment and the demand for flexible lifestyles. From workers, businesses, and consumers, it can benefit everyone involved. However, it’s not all roses. There are downsides to the gig economy too. It usually stems from the erosion of traditional economic relationships between workers, businesses, and clients.

Understanding The Gig Economy

A considerable part of the population works part-time or in temporary positions or as independent contractors. Therefore, it tends to encourage cheaper, more efficient services. The direct result of the gig economy is market-changing companies like Uber and Airbnb. Now, if you don’t use technology-based services, then you won’t be able to enjoy its perks benefits. Large urban areas and big cities are usually the places where you will see highly developed services and are the most entrenched in the gig economy. Now, identifying gig economy workers can be a bit hard as almost every job has the capability of being part of the gig economy. 

However, here are some of the most common examples of gig economy workers driving for Lyft or delivering food to writing code or freelance articles. In addition, you can see the gig economy at work in the educational sector. Adjunct and part-time professors, for example, are contracted employees as opposed to tenure-track or tenured professors. So universities and colleges can easily cut costs and hire and match professors according to their academic needs by hiring more adjunct and part-time professors.

Factors Leading To The Gig Economy

Going by the estimates, we can see that a third of the working population is already in gig capacity in one way or another within the US. That means the United States is already on its way to establishing a gig economy. Experts are already suggesting that the numbers will only rise from here as these positions allow for independent contracting work with many clients, and management won’t need them to come to the office usually. Freelance gig economy workers usually look for part-time workers and to work from home. 

According to Safahi, businesses tend to get a wide range of applicants that they can consider without worrying about how near the office they are. Add to the fact that a craze for automation is afoot, with many computers now strong enough to do many different jobs. And with the COVID-19 Pandemic coming into full flow last year, it has made working from home quite a popular choice. There’s a growing population that wants to work from home—plenty of economic factors that contribute to the ever-growing gig economy. The Pandemic, travel restrictions, and the general health hazard that started back in 2020 have been felt throughout industries worldwide. 

Now, many employers won’t be able to afford to hire full-time employees, with many established businesses even having to furlough or lay off staff. While the Pandemic isn’t a cause of the gig economy, it has brought it to the forefront. Before, freelancers and other gig economy workers were a niche where companies would hire part-time or temporary employees to take care of busier times or specific projects. 

But now, with the world static, there is a high need for the versatility a gig economy can offer. Now, that’s from the employer’s point of view. So now, let’s look at it from the employee’s perspective. People usually have a hard time finding something to do and then sticking with it. We often find ourselves having to move or take multiple positions to afford the lifestyle we want. It can even lead to multiple career changes in our lifetime. The gig economy is just that but on a much larger scale. 

As we’ve said earlier, the Pandemic has put the spotlight on the gig economy with gig workers delivering necessities to home-bound consumers, and the people who lost their jobs have turned to part-time and contract work for income. Like everything else in the world, the gig economy too had to change and adapt during the Pandemic, and it has transformed into something even more prominent. So employers will have to plan for the future about the overall workforce, including the gig economy workers, once the Pandemic dies down.

The Gig Economy And Its Criticisms

It’s not all roses with the gig economy. There are obvious downsides to it. While not all employers will hire contracted employees, but the general gig economy trend can hurt the full-time workforce. They can find it very hard to build a career since temporary employees are usually cheaper to hire and more flexible in their availability. We’ve already seen that workers who like to follow a traditional career path and the stability and security of it are already being crowded out in some industries. 

Not everyone is the same, and for many, the life of a gig economy worker can do more harm than good. Work flexibility can disrupt many aspects of life like the work-life balance, sleep patterns, and activities of daily life. It can even lead to them spiraling downwards mentally and physically. Add to that the fact that flexibility can often mean being available anytime a gig comes up, regardless of whether you need it or not. But that’s not all. 

As a gig economy worker, you will always need to be on the hunt for the next gig. With increased competition and no assurance of unemployment insurance (the CARES Act made an exception for the Pandemic) after the Pandemic, the gig economy can become a toxic environment for many of the population. If you look carefully, you will notice freelancers or other gig economy workers have more in common with entrepreneurs than traditional workers. 

Now, yes, that may come with greater freedom for the individual worker. Still, things like security of a steady job, regular pay, benefits like a retirement account, and the daily routine that has defined work for generations are all on their way to becoming extinct. Another criticism that often pops up is that there is significant chance transactions and relationships, long-term relationships between workers, employers, clients, and vendors can simply deteriorate due to the fluid nature of the gig economy. 

Now that means the benefits of building long-term, meaningful relationships and trust will no longer be there. It can even eliminate the stalwarts of the traditional work economy like customary practice and familiarity with clients and employers. That can even mean investment in relationship-specific assets might be discouraged that would be otherwise profitable because no party has an incentive to invest significantly in a relationship that only lasts until the next gig comes along.

The Gig Economy & The Payments Modernization:

Now, even though there is an individualistic shine to the gig economy, it works as a global tool. It is connecting more and more people worldwide, even though it might be for one project. With so many new interests and ways to make a living, the time for thinking domestically is long gone. Anyone can start a Fintech company or a FOREX brokerage with the right resources and expertise. That means needing a comprehensive payments orchestration solution that can keep up with the modern world but is scalable for the future. 

Well, if that is what you need, then we here at the Zed Network can help you out. We work with FOREX and CFD brokerage firms, Fintech companies, Legal tech companies, and other international institutes and provide them with the best payment orchestration solution in the market. Not only does it let you conduct fast international money transfers, but it is also optimized for gig economy payments. 

So if you need a market-leading payment orchestration solution or have any more questions about the gig economy, please contact us or drop your questions in the comments below. Also, hit us up on our socials and send in your thoughts and suggestions on improving our services to better cater to your needs. And with that being said, that’s about all we have for you today. We will come back with something new for you soon. Until then, see ya!

Originally Posted: https://zed.network/gig-economy-explained-introduction-to-a-modern-concept/

Best Position Fintech company for 2021

Fintech is a fast-growing company expected to hit a total valuation of 310 billion dollars by 2022. Back in 2020 February, there were about 8,775 Fintech startups in America alone, with thousands more throughout the world, according to Statista. In 2018, it showed a staggering growth of 120%, making it a very lucrative sector to ply your trade.

Additionally, plenty of other established financial institutions are also looking to get into Fintech already making it a sector for the future. We here at the ZED Network work with Fintech companies all the time, providing them with comprehensive payment orchestration platforms for safe and smooth operations.

Our experience in working with Fintech companies has given us a unique perspective on the sector, and we think we can help guide your Fintech company to success in the future. If you already have a Fintech company, then there are three things that you already established. They are:

• You have successfully identified a problem and devised a solution to it.
• You have created a product or service that has global benefits.
• You have already impressed a bunch of investors with your thoroughly researched business plan.

In a highly contested niche, standing out is hard. To ensure your Fintech company is in the best position for growth in 2021 and beyond, you need a comprehensive marketing strategy. So how do you turn your target into leads and then to paying customers? Well, it’s easy. All you need to do is create a strategy that compels action, instills long-term trust, and differentiates itself.

Remember, you are not a hometown bank, so your approach should not be like one. Unless there are some geographical restrictions, you will more or less be able to operate worldwide, being able to reach every corner of the earth. So you need to think big and then think even more significant than that. Now, how do you do that? Well, that’s what we will talk about now, so let’s begin!

Understanding Customer Profiles

Defining and understanding your customer profile is vital if you want your Fintech company to succeed in 2021. According to Zed Founder and entrepreneur Alan Safahi, you must have an in-depth knowledge of the profile and should be able to identify customer pain points and needs. When you understand whom you are marketing to, the rest will become easy.

One of the reasons you need to do that is because you have to grow out of your perceptions. That will help you create a marketing strategy that generates engagement. As a Fintech company, you will usually have an extensive reach, so making a precisely targeted strategy is the easiest way to ensure sustainable growth.

Building Relations

If you are a Fintech company that offers one of the essential financial services out there, it won’t matter if there’s no one to buy it. Simply acquiring leads just doesn’t cut it. You have to make sure you convert, nurture and retain them. Building rapport and trust of the customer is the only way you can ensure long-term success.

Your job is to create a highly optimized marketing strategy that turns an applicant into a customer and a fully engaged customer. According to marketing studies, fully engaged customers generate 50% more revenue and sales than their disengaged counterparts. In another report, the numbers show that if you can increase customer retention by 5%, you will see around a 25% upgrade in profits.

Remember, traditional businesses have personal physical interactions to build trust and relationships with customers. As a Fintech company, you need to ensure you touch customers at every possible touch point to ensure you achieve the same goal as traditional financial institutes.

Easing The Customer Journey

One of the biggest hurdles that Fintech companies face is ensuring more and more people sign up for their services. In 2021 you should be looking to ease your customer’s journey. Not only should you look to optimize your site navigation but also ensure that people know about your service.

If you want to set your Fintech company up for 2021 and beyond, then you must make sure that you remove any friction when signing up. Talk to UX/UI experts if you are having a hard time optimizing your customer’s journey. It would be best if you also encouraged self-service on your platform whenever you can. Educate your audience about your frictionless experience when signing up with your content marketing effort, and you will start seeing the results.

Automation Is Key

Fintech companies usually emphasize innovation, and odds are you do too, as you should. However, most Fintech companies tend to overlook automation, which is a vital part of sustainable growth. Automation incorporates everything from automating the onboarding process to rolling out the marketing strategy and everything in between.

According to Alan Safahi, you need to ensure your audience is engaged and invested in your vision with highly targeted emails, valuable content, and strategic retargeting. While static reminders and generic language worked before nowadays, people want to form an emotional connection with companies whose services they take up.

So you can use automation to ensure your customers experience the product naturally. It can help you make your audience active and willing participants, which guarantees prolonged engagement.

The Future Is There For The Taking

So there you have it. These are all the things you can do to ensure your Fintech company is in the best position for sustainable growth in 2021 and beyond. Along with ensuring all the stuff at the top, you also need a dynamic payment orchestration platform for your company that allows for seamless transfers. If you are looking for payment orchestration solutions, then we can help you out. Feel free to contact us for any queries regarding payment orchestration, and we will answer every last one of them.

So with that being said, we arrive at the end. Tell us your take on positioning your Fintech company in 2021 and beyond in the comments below. Or hit us up on our socials with any developing trends. We will come back to you with something new soon. Until then, see ya!

Originally Posted: https://zed.network/best-position-your-fintech-company/

Comparing Payment Orchestration Platforms: ZED VS Currency Cloud

Money transfer services are now one of the most in-demand parts of every business. The increase in demand for international money transfer needs being pivotal for trade and commerce as the online community is a global community. As the need for complete payment solutions become necessary to function in the modern world. There’s significant demand for customized payment orchestration platforms that meet the businesses’ demands and fulfill their needs. Because of this demand, there are plenty of payment orchestration platform providers popping up, providing different types of services. 

However, not all payment orchestration platform service providers will be able to meet your needs. So finding one that fits your needs is a must. Odds are the reason you are reading this is that you are on the hunt for the correct payment orchestration solution yourself. Well, you’ve come to the right place. Zed Network is a payment orchestration platform provider that works with FX traders & businesses, businesses that work in the cryptocurrency niche, and many other companies. 

So we thought we would give you a simple comparison between a popular payment orchestration platform in Currency Cloud vs. Zed Network to show you our complete prowess over the domain. But before we dive into the comparison. Let’s talk about what a payment orchestration platform is and the two companies up for discussion!

What Is Payment Orchestration?

So in simple terms, payment orchestration is how payments are collected through and where they settle. It also entails specifically who processes the payments. Let us break it down a bit more. So payment orchestration platforms are middleware payment facilitators that connect into one or more payment service providers (PSPs), acquirers, and banks. These software solutions are universally optimized for checkout, fraud software, intelligent payment routing, cross border payments. 

In other words, payment orchestration platforms are all about finding the best way to route a payment from checkout through to bank settlement and increasing payment conversions. It is vital for businesses as a seamless money transferring platform usually results in increased revenue, which means more money. Now that you know what the payment orchestration platform does, let’s talk about the two companies that provide this service. 

Currency Cloud

Currency Cloud is a payment orchestration platform provider that delivers multi-currency account infrastructure to businesses that want to execute and expand their offering. It provides quick access to virtual accounts that allows people to collect, convert, pay and manage multiple currencies simultaneously worldwide. Their policies are in line with the US, UK & EU regulations, making it a safe and secure option for businesses that transact globally. 

They offer in-depth support and ensure regulatory compliance for businesses. Currency Cloud was launched back in 2012, with the London office being their headquarters with additional offices in New York, Cardiff, & Amsterdam. Since its launch, the company has processed more than 65 billion dollars in over 180 different countries while working with some of the most prominent names in banking and Fintech. They’ve worked with several other high-end companies like Starling Bank, Penta, and Lunar while partnering up with the likes of Visa, Dwolla, Mambu, and Carta to build simple, clear financial infrastructure solutions.

Zed Network

Zed Network is a relatively new startup stemming from the minds that worked on ZipZap, a P2P remittance company that aimed to eliminate the exorbitant cross-border remittance costs. According to Zed Founder and entrepreneur Alan Safahi. the ZipZap team saw that helping the Money Transfer Operators (MTOs) with building efficient platforms will significantly impact. Within the first year of operation, the team realized the major problem plaguing MTOs and other companies is banking, cash flow, and technology issues.

The problem for many MTOs, FOREX & Cryptocurrency trading platforms, Fintechs, Legaltechs, and corporations is scaling up seamlessly and integrating dozens of corridors for sending and receiving payments. Simply partnering up with a payout partner takes around 6-12 months, and then the technology for integrating comes, which can take up additional months. So ZED Network partnered up with AEFX to create an API solution that allows merchants to connect to the same vast global payment network of large MTOs and trading platforms with much better rates. 

ZED focuses on domestic and cross-border payment acceptance (collections) and payouts (disbursements) with solutions that help clients avoid directly integrating with multiple payment processors, managing various platforms, and ingesting non-standardized reporting files. The purpose of this payment orchestration platform provider is to help FX trading platforms, Fintech & Legal Tech companies, MTOs, and multinational corporations have a seamless payment platform so that all their transactions go through seamlessly regardless of a border. The company mission is simple. It is to liberate foreign exchange transactions, removing the opacity, hidden fees, and complexity that has traditionally plagued them, and significantly improve cross border payments to minimize costs and make them simple, user friendly, and transparent.

ZED Network Vs Currency Cloud:

So now that you know the companies involved, we will now get into the main reason for today’s discussion and see how the two payment orchestration platform providers stack up to one another. You will find a table with metrics and features vital for all companies that work in the following. The values will be listed for both in their respective columns. We have divided the criteria into six different segments. They are:

• Coverage
• Payment Options
• Licenses / Compliance
• Technology
• Cost
• Other Aspects

So now that you know what criteria for the comparison will be, we can start looking into the tables themselves to see how both companies fare. Without delaying any further, check out the following tables:

Coverage

According to Safahi, for a payment orchestration platform provider, international coverage is vital. Things like available currencies, countries for acceptance and payout, liquidity or inventory, and settlement time are crucial metrics to check out when choosing a payment orchestration platform provider. 

Make The Right Choice

So there you go, that’s all there is to the Zed Network vs. Currency Cloud comparison. We covered every criterion you needed to know to decide which one is the best option for you. Remember, your business needs an experienced payment orchestration platform provider with versatile options. So choose wisely. If you want to know more about Zed Network, then feel free to contact us. 

Or if you have any other questions regarding payment orchestration, then leave them in the comments below or hit us up on our socials. We love hearing from you, so do hit us up. So with that being said, that’s about all we have for you today. We will come back with another payment orchestration platform provider comparison soon. If you want us to cover something else, please drop your suggestions in the comment section. Until next time, see ya!

Originally Posted: https://zed.network/comparing-between-zed-and-currency-cloud-payment-orchestration-platforms/

How Outsourcing Is Helping FinTech Startups

Financial Technology or FinTech outsourcing is a business strategy used by financing technology companies to hire a third-party service provider to handle the various technological operations. Outsourcing reduces the workload for a company’s in-house team and therefore is considered effective for startups and small businesses.

The Fintech market will rise to $309.98 billion by 2022, according to the Business Research Company. The startups are growing faster as the FinTech industry is advancing day by day. According to Inflexion, mobile transactions are expected to rise to 88% of all banking transactions. As with traditional banks and other financial institutions, they can’t offer that much efficiency by default. Therefore, they have also started grasping the concept of FinTech. According to Zed Founder and entrepreneur Alan Safahi, the US is the most prominent FinTech market, consisting of the largest number of startups. After the USA, comes Asian countries like China and India who made themselves familiar with the idea of FinTech.

Benefits of fintech outsourcing

Easy and efficient workflow

Most of the responsibilities are taken up by the contractors for an efficient fintech operation. They are responsible for developing, disposing, and extending technical support of your software and apps.

Cost-efficiency

You don’t need to spend plenty of money to develop techs and apps from scratch. You can do so by outsourcing, which can be done at a significantly low cost. 

No staff management expenses

Outsource companies select and train the staff for handling the tasks for your company. Outsourcing doesn’t only let your work done efficiently but also cuts the expenses of hiring and managing your team.

Fully professional relationship

A contract forges outsourcing partnership between the client and the company. As a client, you require to sign an agreement stating all the terms and conditions from both sides. This is to encourage a safe and secured partnership between the two.

You will only pay after seeing the results

While an in-house employee may waste a lot of time acting busy, outsourced professionals don’t. They are always focused on their goal completion. You don’t need to the contractors beforehand. You are only expected to pay them upon the final results of the task.

How outsourcing is helping fintech startups

Bigger companies tend to have in-house technology; however, in-house setups might sound a little intimidating for startups. In today’s world, spending a huge sum of money establishing and updating financial technology on regular terms seems impractical for startup businesses. That’s why outsourcing the tech needs is the fastest and cheapest method for startups. FinTech companies can use these outsourced technologies as building blocks to create their products and services. Outsourcing saves time and energy by taking off the loads that your company would have taken otherwise and developing your business. 

By cutting down the cost

Outsourcing technology is cheaper than developing it in-house. As I have mentioned earlier, it’s expensive and time-consuming. You need to cover the payroll, supplier payments, computer costs, administrative and management fees, vendor payments, etc. You also need additional office space, which can be a little challenging if you have just started your business. By turning to outsource, you can easily cut down the expenditure and limit your budget. A report has shown that 59% of companies outsource technology for cutting the cost and skip the hassle of building technology from scratch. Using outsourcing technology, you can operate a lot of functions that are already built into the system. 

By ensuring flexibility and scalability to the business

Flexibility is necessary for any business, and startups need it more. When you outsource the technology for your company, they make sure you get what you need to run a successful business. According to Safahi, you don’t need to hire additional employees or designers to create plans or try out the new framework. The outsourcing company already has resources to assist you with everything. Speaking about scalability, FinTech startups can scale up and down to meet their goals, unlike full-time staff. A survey has been conducted that FinTech startups use 20% of outsourced tech companies for delivering innovative capabilities.

By speeding up the market time

As we know, outsourcing companies tend to contain more specialized employees and experts, which allows them to enable the service across the network. Enabling a more efficient service means speeding up the time to market. This speeding up doesn’t happen in the in-house development. A specialized outsource company consists of high quality, pre-made software like APIs, frameworks, industry-related libraries, etc. The greater your technology is, the higher your market value. The team’s wide range of expertise helps provide a better and more advanced technology than in-house ones.

Conclusion

Outsourcing tech solution is a smarter way of saving your money and working efficiently. That’s why most startups prefer this method to the traditional one. Outsourced technology companies help startups adapt and evolve and let them stay a step ahead of the competition.

Originally Posted: https://zed.network/how-outsourcing-is-helping-fintech-startups/

A Quick Guide to Forex Trading

The foreign exchange, currency trading, forex, or FX market is the fastest-growing market in the world. According to Alan Safahi, an experienced Forex trader, a professional entrepreneur, and the founder of a startup company in San Francisco, the daily turnover of the forex market is more than $2.5 trillion.

Safahi’s research shows that participation in the forex market is central banks, commercial banks, corporations, hedge funds, institutional investors, and private individuals like you. “Goods” in the forex market are currencies of different countries. You can buy U.S dollars with Euro, or you may sell Australian dollars for Japanese Yen.

Forex? What Is It, Anyway?

The primary advantage of forex trading is “leverage,” the ratio of investments to actual values. For example, using a $1,000 to purchase an FX contract with a $100,000 value means leveraging at 1:100 ratio. Alan Safahi Orinda says that the $1,000 is the amount of money you invest and risk. However, the profits you make are many times greater.

How Does One Profit In The Forex Market?

The general rule of thumb, according to Alan Safahi, is “buy low and sell high” to profit in the forex market. The potential of profit comes from changes or fluctuations in the foreign exchange market.

The stock market requires traders to purchase shares, but forex trading does not work this way. It does not require the physical purchase of a currency or currency pairs. It involves contracts for amount and rate of exchange for currency pairs.

How Risky Is Forex Trading?According to Alan Safahi’s research, traders can lose more than their initial investments, also known as the “Margin.” Although you can make unlimited profits, you will never lose more than the margin in the forex market. However, Safahi advises not to risk more than you can afford to lose.

How Do You Start Trading?

You can start forex trading by using different trading platforms. It is crucial to register and deposit the amount you want into your account. Remember, this is your investment. Ensure you register with a reputable platform that accepts payments through PayPal, Western Union, and all major credit cards.

You will start trading after the trading platform receives your deposit. Some FX trading platform offers operations online, anywhere, and anytime. It means you will have complete control and management options to monitor your trading activities. Likewise, you can check different scenarios, change terms in your deals, close deals, and withdraw profits.

What Are Components Of A Forex Deal?

Alan Safahi’s research highlights that a forex deal is a contract between the market-maker and the trader. The contract is composed of the following key components:

●       The currency pairs

●       The principal amount

●       The Rate

●       Time Frame

●       Spreads

●       Margins

●       Margin Level

●       Leverage

●       Risks

Final Words

Forex trading is a massive topic, and we can discuss it for days and months. However, this is a quick guide that gives some basic information to beginners. Remember, forex trading is an enormous liquid market, allowing people to trade a wide range of currencies. Because it is a volatile market, you can avail numerous profit opportunities.

It is crucial to study the forex market in detail before you start trading. You can read other blog posts on our website to learn about forex trading and benefit from Alan Safahi’s in-depth knowledge that he shares with his readers.

Originally Posted: https://alansafahi.weebly.com/blog/a-quick-guide-to-forex-trading

7 Tips Keep Track of Investments

Monitoring your investment is essential whether you work with an adviser or broker or perform all the trading activities yourself. When you keep an eye on your investment, it allows you to prevent smaller problems from turning into bigger issues.

1. Keep all Documents

Read and keep all documents and reports you receive from your mutual fund, investment advisor, or broker. Check these documents to ensure your account statements are accurate. According to Alan Safahi, an experienced entrepreneur and San Francisco-based startup company founder, it is crucial to communicate with your adviser or investment professional. The purpose is to identify and fix problems if any.

2. Get all Confirmations

Alan Safahi Orinda recommends getting all confirmation and account statements. Make sure you receive these documents directly. If you fail to look after your investments, you will experience a wide range of complications. Therefore, get copies of your confirmations and account states and send them to someone you trust if you can’t look after them yourself.

You can send these documents to a family member, accountant, or lawyer. The purpose is to have a pair of independent eyes that look after you. Follow up if you don’t receive confirmations or account statements. Remember, you have all the rights to this information. Not receiving these documents indicates a sign of trouble. So, be careful!

3. Ask Questions

It is essential to ask questions about the documents or information you receive about your investments. Ask questions if you don’t understand something. For example, sometimes, you will see unauthorized investments on your confirmations and account statements. In that case, you should communicate with your advisor or broker to analyze and fix the problems. Do not wait to see how your investments perform.

4. Get Access to your Online Account

If you don’t perform trading activities online, Safahi recommends registering or getting access to your online account. It enables you to review your account 24/7 and keep track of your investments.

You can verify the information sent by your advisor or broker and analyze your confirmations and account statements. You can also request them to send you confirmations or account statements via email.

5. Avoid Making Checks

According to Safahi, it is crucial to avoid making checks and other payments payable to your adviser, broker, or anyone else for your investment. In most cases, you should send money to your brokerage firm or another financial institution, such as a clearing firm.

Meeting with your investment professional and visiting the firm is significant because investments are important financial undertakings. It means you should have some degree of investigation and caution to streamline the process.

6. Conduct Independent Research

Conducting independent research on investments is an excellent way to keep track of your investments. You can read prospectuses, research reports, annual reports (Form 10-K), and quarterly reports (Form 10-Q) that companies make with the U.S Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). In addition, Safahi recommends accessing forms 10-K and 10-Q on the SEC official website.

7. Review Your Portfolio

Review your portfolio periodically and ensure your account’s securities meet your investment goals. According to Alan Safahi Orinda, it is crucial to understand and stay comfortable with your investments’ costs, risks, and liquidity.

Check the information on the file at your brokerage firm about your accounts as part of this review. Safahi recommends checking your new account agreements, margin agreements, discretionary account agreements, option account agreements, and other correspondences.

It is your right to know the information about you on the file. Ensure the brokerage firm’s records accurately reflect essential details about your age, income, financial status, net worth, long-term goals, and investment objectives.

Final Words

Tracking your investments is an excellent way to streamline your trading or business operations. If you see a mistake in your account or feel something is wrong, it is crucial to act quickly. Question any entry or transaction that you did not authorize. Good Luck!

Originally Posted: https://safahi.com/7-tips-to-keep-track-of-your-investments-17903f0504d2

Essential Steps Making First Trade in Forex

 According to Alan Safahi, a professional entrepreneur and founder of a startup company in San Francisco, forex is a global market that allows people to trade 24/7 with lower transaction rates. It is a high-liquidity market and suitable for beginners, allowing them to purchase or sell currency pairs, depending on the market conditions.

However, if you don’t have enough knowledge of forex trading, making your first trade would become challenging. Safahi has conducted extensive research, and based on his experience and knowledge, he has come up with easy steps that can help you make your first forex trade. Read on!

1.     Select a Currency Pair

According to Alan Safahi Orinda, forex trading has a unique nature, allowing you to exchange one currency value for another. In simple words, you will purchase one currency and sell another simultaneously. Safahi says a forex trader always trades a pair of currencies.

In addition, beginners should start by trading commonly offered pairs of currencies. However, you can trade different currency pairs if you have enough money in your account. Safahi recommends trading in Euro and U.S dollars.

2.     Analyze the Market

Alan Safahi advises beginners to make research and analysis the foundation for their forex trading endeavors. If you fail to perform your research and analysis, you will operate on emotions, leading to a wide range of complications.

Safahi says you will find a wide range of forex resources when you start researching. Although it will seem overwhelming initially, when you study a particular currency pair, you will find valuable resources that you can use to streamline your analysis.

Make sure you look at the historical and current charts, monitor news for financial and economic announcements, consult indicators, and carry out other analysis activities. The purpose is to gain details about the currency pair that you want to trade.

3.     Focus on the Quote

In general, you will see two prices for all currency pairs. For instance, the first rate is the currency pair’s selling price, and the second rate is the price at which traders buy the currency pair. It is crucial to understand the concept of the “spread,” which is the difference between the first rate and second rate.

Spread is the amount that a forex dealer will charge for conducting the trade. Bear in mind that “spreads” vary from dealer to dealer. So, make sure you find a dealer who offers a competitive spread on different pairs of currencies.

4.     Pick Your Position

According to Alan Safahi Orinda, if you have traded financial products, such as bonds and stocks, you will know that you can speculate on one market direction – i.e., “UP.” However, forex trading is slightly different from other types of trading. Because you buy one currency and sell another simultaneously, you should speculate on the “UP” and “Down” movement in the forex market.

When you pick a “Buying” position, you think that the base currency’s value will rise compared to the quote currency. For example, if you opt to buy Euro and Dollar, you believe that the Euro’s price will go strong against the dollar.

On the other hand, when you pick a “Selling” position, you believe the base currency’s value will fall compared to the quote currency. For instance, if you want to sell the Euro/Dollar, you think or analyze that the Euro’s price will weaken against the U.S dollar.

Final Words

Forex trading is an excellent opportunity for beginners if they make efforts and improve their currency trading skills. The steps give above will help you make your first forex trade. Until Next Time!

Originally Posted: https://alansafahiorindaca.wordpress.com/2021/07/23/essential-steps-making-first-trade-in-forex/