Guides: investing in plain language

How to read a stock rating: what a score tells you and what it does not

What a 0 to 100 stock score measures, how a score is built from its parts, and what no rating can tell you about a company or about you.

Asset allocation explained: classes, regions and sectors

What asset allocation is, how a split between stocks, bonds, cash, gold and crypto is described, and why classes, regions and sectors are different views.

Diversification: what it means and how to check the mix of a portfolio

What diversification means, three questions that show concentration in a portfolio (classes, regions, sectors) and why many holdings are not a diverse mix.

Bringing your broker's transactions into a portfolio tracker

How a tracker reads broker history from a CSV or Excel export, a screenshot or a pasted list, which exports are read directly and how rows are checked.

Holding periods and tax: how a tax-free date works

How a holding-period rule makes a gain on shares tax-free in some countries, how the date it applies from is counted, and why the rule differs by country.

Cost basis and tax lots: FIFO, average cost and why the method matters

Cost basis and tax lots: how first in, first out (FIFO), average cost and specific identification differ, and why the method changes gains and dates.

Dividends before and after tax: gross, net and withholding explained

Gross and net dividends: why tax is withheld where the paying company is based, how treaties and credits work in general, and why a fund's home matters.

Reading a market stress index: what it measures and what it does not

What a market stress or crisis risk index measures, why it describes fragility instead of predicting a fall, and how to read its level and signals.

Portfolio rebalancing explained: why a mix drifts and how to read the gap

What portfolio rebalancing is, why a mix drifts toward more risk than planned, the usual ways to close the gap and what to check first.

Drawdown and recovery explained: why a 50 percent fall needs a 100 percent rise

A drawdown is the fall from a peak to a later low. Why a 50 percent fall needs a 100 percent rise to recover, and why recovery time cannot be predicted.

Concentration risk explained: how to tell if a portfolio is too concentrated

Concentration risk means a large share of a portfolio depends on one position, sector, country or currency. Three questions show where it sits.

Currency risk when investing in US stocks as a European: how the exchange rate changes the value in euros

Currency risk means the euro value moves with the exchange rate even when the dollar price does not. The arithmetic for a euro investor, and its limits.

How to calculate your portfolio return when you add or withdraw money

How to calculate portfolio return when you add or withdraw money: one worked example, four numbers (simple, Modified Dietz, TWR, XIRR) and which to use.

Explainer with tables and diagrams · 11 min read

Importing your Trading 212 history into a portfolio tracker

How to bring a Trading 212 history export into a portfolio tracker: which columns are read, which rows are left out, and what to check before saving.

Importing your DEGIRO transactions into a portfolio tracker

How to bring a DEGIRO transactions export into a portfolio tracker: the columns read, how a sale is told from a purchase and what to check before saving.

Importing your XTB history into a portfolio tracker

How to bring an XTB cash operations export, CSV or Excel, into a portfolio tracker: how trades are recognised, what is not read and what you add yourself.

Importing your Trade Republic history into a portfolio tracker

How to bring a Trade Republic export into a portfolio tracker: how trades are told from cash and delivery rows, and which rows are refused and why.

Importing your Revolut trading history into a portfolio tracker

How to bring a Revolut investing statement into a portfolio tracker: which columns are read, how currencies come from the amounts and what is left out.

Importing your Scalable Capital history into a portfolio tracker

How to bring a Scalable Capital export into a portfolio tracker: the columns read, why unexecuted rows are skipped and how German numbers are read.