The traditional way of investing your money was by buying up physical assets that you could quantify and then selling them on in years to come making a good profit. However, the internet has opened up so many more routes for investment, that you would be doing yourself a disadvantage if you didn’t at least take into consideration the many options available to you at this time.
You don’t even need to leave your home to invest. However, it is highly recommended you do your homework before you part with your money and not invest on a whim or under pressure.
CryptoCurrency
Most people have heard of Bitcoin before. There are many other online currencies for you to invest your money in. Cryptocurrency is a digital asset. It is a real money alternative to be used as a medium in digital transactions. All records are stored online – as traditional money is in a bank. There are no coin alternatives for cryptocurrency. It is all virtual, and assets are held digitally.
You can deal in cryptocurrency via online platforms, and trading sites called a crypto exchange. As you would expect with the stock market, cryptocurrency is liable to fluctuations due to the market. Making sure you know what you are doing is advised before trading and making transactions in digital currency.
E-commerce and Subscription As A Service (SaaS)
As we have seen recently with the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more companies are making the move to virtual services and looking at ways to remain connected from various parts of the world. The online marketplace is always growing, and as the demand for a product or service rises, so do the number of new startups who can offer this.
Investing in a new e-commerce business or SaaS is a great way to keep your finger on the pulse of changing business dynamics online. Looking for gaps in the market and following new trends can help you determine which type of company to invest in and how you invest in that company. A great way to find new and emerging companies is to look at sites such as CrowdCube.
Peer to Peer Lending
As with the above, Peer to Peer Lending (P2P) is the practice of matching individuals or businesses with lenders. Unlike traditional loan methods, this isn’t a typical bank loan. Instead, the lender – or investor will wire the funds directly to the recipient. This practice is monitored, and all lenders can see information about the person or company they will be lending it to and can make an informed decision going forward.
There are risks with this type of lending – the creditor can always default as they would via other loan methods, and you may lose your money, but the lender is in control of whom they loan money to and the interest rate and frequency of the repayment.
As with any type of investment, there is always the risk you will end up losing more than you invest initially. This route isn’t for everyone, and if you are unsure, it is worth holding off until you are happy with the type of investment.
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