Sentence with X, probably nothing...

As the good Warren used to say, rule number 1 is:

Never lose money.

And rule number 2:

Never forget rule number 1

But the most important thing is that I was better than @DonkeyInvestor 😜

But joking aside, what was the problem?

Short and sweet, $BTC (-0.79%) and $ETH (-0.48%) are highly weighted in my portfolio.

I did make a few profits at the beginning of the year with $BTC (-0.79%) and in the middle of the year with $ETH (-0.48%) but obviously not enough. 😅

The fact that the overall portfolio has remained green is due to the fact that my multi-factor strategy on the equity side has beaten the market.

Emerging markets and value stocks have massively outperformed this year.

It is therefore not surprising that the ETF that has performed best is an EM value ETF $5MVL (-0.8%)

Apart from factor funds, gold has also boosted the portfolio considerably,

although it is only part of the investment reserve. However, I'm starting to have too much of it, which is why I'm currently trying to have parts of my $EWG2 (+0.9%) and sell it tax-free. (you have to do this in Austria)

Which is going more badly than right and Flatex and the Stuttgart Stock Exchange are currently passing the buck back and forth. (for 2 months) 😩

When the process is completed, I may write a report on my experiences.

What will change in 2026?

Nothing really, the portfolio will remain as it is, in rising prices $BTC (-0.79%) and $ETH (-0.48%) sold off further until my crypto allocation is just under 10%. (it is currently ~16%)

Should crypto continue to fall and fall below the targeted 10% allocation, I can imagine $BTC (-0.79%) to buy more.

In the meantime, I will continue to $IQSA (-0.6%) position further and wait for setbacks to take new positions in $GTIS (-0.47%)
$DE000LS9UK98 (-0.25%) and $C9DF (-0.1%) build up or $U5W0 (-0.39%) buy more. 😘

Oh yes, and the annual return of the MSCI World in EURO $IWDA (-0.35%) is ~ 6.7% and not 20!

Dear getquin team. Please stop $AAPL (+0.35%) to compare with 🍐.

estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Twenty years ago, the new market crash wiped out my first stock market money and my ego. I swore off the stock market, but my pension certificate showed me that ducking out has an expiry date.

So the first attempts to start again followed. Here on Getquin, I have learned from positive critical voices from e.g. @DonkeyInvestor and @Epi that there is more to it than "just picking something". Since my last post 6 months ago, this was followed by extreme late-night brooding, Excel monsters, AI research, reading Kommer and countless "new agains".

I have tried to read up on modern optimization models such as Mean-Variance, Black-Litterman and Fama-French etc. and implement them in the best possible way.

The result was this portfolio!

As thoroughly tested as you can in a private garage, and coupled with the insight that we only have to leave the uncontrollable to chance.

And one thing first. I am convinced of this and will not change it.

I just want to share my thoughts and ideas about the direction with you. It's difficult to really explain every detail here, I'm sure I could do it better in a conversation, but that's not possible here. I can assure you that the selection and combination definitely makes sense - at least for me and the construct. Among other things, it was important to me to be able to control individual regions separately. I think I have achieved that.

Global (30%)

- SPDR MSCI All Country World, $SPYY (-0.65%)

- L&G Global Equity UCITS ETF, $LGGG (-0.7%)

- iShares Edge MSCI World Momentum, $IS3R (-1.01%)

- Xtrackers MSCI World Value, $XDEV (-0.58%)

- Invesco Global Active ESG Equity, $IQSA (-0.6%)

- VanEck World Equal Weight Screened, $TSWE (-0.56%)

- VanEck Morningstar Developed Markets Dividend Leaders, $TDIV (+0.17%)

USA (31.5%)

- L&G US Equity, $LGUG (-0.43%)

- iShares MSCI USA Mid-Cap Equal Weight, $IUSF (-0.21%)

- JPMorgan BetaBuilders US Small Cap Equity, $BBCS (-0.11%)

- SPDR MSCI USA Small Cap Value Weighted, $ZPRV (-0.06%)

Europe (17.5%)

- HSBC EURO STOXX 50, $H50A (-0.39%)

- L&G Europe ex-UK Quality Dividends Equal Weight, $LDEG (-0.04%)

- SPDR MSCI Europe Small Cap Value Weighted, $ZPRX (-0.47%)

Emerging markets (19%)

- iShares Edge MSCI Emerging Markets Value Factor, $5MVL (-0.8%)

- UBS LFS MSCI Emerging Markets ETF, $EMMUSA (-1.22%)

- L&G Emerging Markets Quality Dividends Equal Weight, $LDME (+0.52%)

- SPDR MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap, $SPYX (-0.46%)

Japan (2%)

- L&G Japan Equity UCITS ETF, $LGJG (-0.5%)

Ø TER = 0.25%

In summary, this gives the following breakdown

Regional breakdown

- USA (North America) ~ 48%

- Asia ~ 22%

- Europe ~ 22%

- UK ~ 3.6%

- Japan ~ 4.4%

Market capitalization

- Large Cap ~ 52%

- Mid Cap ~ 26%

- Small Cap ~ 22%

The portfolio deliberately allocates its capital to the regions and - where possible - to all capitalization classes. The world building blocks provide the global beta; value, momentum and quality satellites add factor premiums. In the USA, a complete large/mid/small stack provides a pronounced size bias, while Europe receives a value bias via quality and small value ETFs. The emerging layer combines large-cap value stocks, quality leaders and a small-cap module - a diversification anchor beyond the developed markets.

Due to the almost equal weighting of the 18 positions, the Herfindahl index of ETF weights falls to ~633; indirectly, the portfolio contains several thousand individual stocks. The weighted TER is ≈ 0.25 % p. a., spreads below 0.1 %. This means that, compared to a $GERD (-0.85%) a favorable multifactor portfolio myself.

The factor tilts (value 42 %, size 35 %, quality/div ≈ 12 %, momentum ≈ 8 %) increase the expected volatility moderately to 18-20 % p.a.; however, historical data on small and value indices indicate 1-2 percentage points additional return over long horizons. Large caps remain present at around 52 %, mid caps at 26 % and small caps at 22 % support the size premium .

With my "multi-factor all-cap portfolio", I combine global market coverage with five proven premiums, without cost or concentration ballast. Of course, I will have to endure additional fluctuations, but I believe that I have created a robust source of returns over the long term.

I have tried to consider everything and leave nothing to chance, except the uncontrollable.

Anyone who has made it this far. Thanks for reading.

I'm looking forward to your feedback.

PS:

YES, I have Bitcoin😉 and also two themed ETFs. They just stay like that.

- ARK AI & Robotics ETF, $AAKI (-0.76%)

- HanETF Future of Defense ETF, $ASWC (+0.25%)

- ETC GROUP CORE BITCOIN, $BTC1 (-0.67%)

---

no investment advice; DYOR

Thanks also to @VPT , @Mister_ultra , @Ph1l1pp , @ShrimpTheGimp , @MoneyISnotREAL , @Staatsmann and @Smudeo for commenting and providing approaches.

Over a three-year period up to the end of February, 19 out of 52 active ETFs outperformed the respective benchmark index after costs.

In the global equity sector, 91% of active funds listed in euros underperformed their benchmark index, and the proportion is even higher in the long term. Corporate bond funds delivered better results, at least in the short term.

According to the Fondsconsult analysis, the "Invesco Quantitative Strategies ESG Global Equity Multi-Factor" $IQSA (-0.6%) outperformed the market the most. Over the past three years, the ETF delivered an average annual return of 15.4 percent - 3.5 percentage points more than the benchmark index MSCI ACWI. Compared to the somewhat narrower MSCI World, the outperformance amounted to 2.3 percentage points.

The actively managed equity fund is based on the composition of the MSCI World and filters according to ESG criteria, i.e. environmental, social and corporate governance standards. The remaining shares are weighted using a multi-factor approach. This is based on how favorably the shares are valued compared to the market, how their balance sheet is viewed and how profits are developing.

The Invesco ETF manages one billion US dollars and costs 0.3 percent annually.

Observers expect the upswing in active ETFs to continue in the coming years. At the end of December, 54 billion euros were already managed in more than 120 active ETFs in Europe. In the USA, the market is growing even faster: ETF experts from the US financial services provider State Street estimate that active exchange-traded funds will account for ten percent of all inflows into the market this year.

Many active ETFs are still young, and in case of doubt the returns will only become apparent after years.

Source (excerpt) / graphic: Handelsblatt

I have decided to switch my MSI World shares into the $IQSA (-0.6%) (Invesco Quantitative Strategies ESG Global Equity Multi-Factor UCITS ETF - USD ACC ETF, ISIN: IE00BJQRDN15).

Reasons:

• I am convinced by the ETF's active management approach in view of the "stormy times" I expect in 2025 with lower costs compared to active funds
• continued investment in the world equity basket with a different weighting of equities in the investment horizon in the three areas of value, quality and momentum compared to the MSCI World
• I would like to reduce my risk with regard to the seven large tech stocks (which are currently too heavily weighted in the MSCI World but also in the FTSE ACW), as the share basket differs significantly
• Good historical performance comparable to the MSCI World
• Investments according to certain ESG criteria (sustainability is not my main goal, but I would like to invest part of my portfolio in this direction)
• Disadvantage: additional costs (0.5 instead of 0.15), which in my view are not an obstacle to investing, considering the historical performance.

Have you perhaps already looked at this active ETF? How did you rate it?