3G·

That's me! 🙋🏽‍♂️

Hello everyone,

My name is Antonio, I'm almost 27 years old and I'm from Bremen. I currently work as a train manager at Deutsche Bahn. Anyone who knows the job knows that chaos is almost guaranteed here. If a train is on time, everyone wonders what's going wrong. Delays, strikes, unforeseen events - you get used to the fact that nothing goes as expected. And that's exactly how I felt on the stock market: constantly chasing hypes, always on the lookout for quick profits, and in the end I never knew whether the train was still on the right track. I experienced just as much chaos on the markets as I did in my day-to-day work - but fortunately I've learned from it and am now looking for a fresh start where everything is a bit more orderly and predictable.

I've made a lot of mistakes on the stock market in the past. And not too few - unfortunately. Like many of you, I had the idea that the stock market would make me a quick buck. I let myself be led by hypes, trends and the desire for immediate results. I wasn't interested in investing for the long term or building a solid foundation for the future, I was only ever interested in making a quick profit. Leveraged products, knock-out certificates - it was all there. It felt like a casino where the loss was usually the only "win". And so it came as it had to: I not only lost money, but also confidence in my own decisions and the markets.

But today, in 2025, I have realized that it is time for a fresh start. I have learned from my mistakes. It's been a long road and I've thought a lot about why I was so quick to go for the quick buck instead of investing patiently and focusing on long-term success. I learned the lessons I needed to become a better investor. Patience, diversification and a long-term perspective are now my principles. I want to create something tangible, not just a portfolio full of numbers, but also a solid, long-term strategy that will help me to continuously build my wealth.

My portfolio: A solid foundation

The portfolio I have now built up is a mix of different asset classes and asset classes. My aim is to diversify broadly and not miss out on potential growth opportunities, while spreading risk across different sectors and regions. Here is an overview of what my investment strategy looks like:

ETFs (€1000/month)

I have deliberately opted for a broad diversification and invested in different geographical regions and markets. This diversification should ensure that my capital benefits from the markets that have the greatest potential in the coming decades.

- IE00BMTX1Y45 ( $I500) (-0,33%)

- LU0908500753 ( $MEUD (+0,95%) )

- IE00BYXVGY31 ( $FUSA (+0,6%) )

- IE00BD1F4M44 ( $IUVF (+0,96%) )

- IE00BKM4GZ66 ( $EIMI (-0,16%) )

- LU1681041973 ( $CD9 (+1,97%) )

- LU0486851024 ( $D5BL (+1,01%) )

- IE00BYQCZN58 ( $DXJZ (+0,5%) )

- IE00BF4RFH31 ( $WSML (-0,07%) )

- IE00BG0SKF03 ( $5MVL (-0,03%) )

- IE00B652H904 ( $SEDY (+0,04%) )

- LU2089238385 ( $PRAJ (+0,3%) )

- DE000A0H0744 ( $EXXW (-0,09%) )

- IE00BFXR5W90 ( $LGAG (-2,27%) )

- LU0779800910 ( $XCHA (-0,81%) )

- HANetf Future of Defense UCITS ETF ($ASWC (-1,79%) )

So many ETFs? Does he still have all his wits about him?

Some people will think exactly that when they look at my ETF list. And yes, I admit that the portfolio is pretty broadly based - perhaps too broad for some. But that's exactly my goal. I don't want to catch the one sector or the one region that is going through the roof. I want to have everything! If a market explodes somewhere in the world, then I want to be there. Be it through large caps, small caps, growth, value, technology or emerging markets, my approach is not to miss out on potential opportunities and at the same time not to put all my eggs in one basket. Some call it overdiversification, I call it my personal "all-world approach"

The idea behind the selection of these ETFs is that I want to focus on global markets and growth regions without missing out on important sectors such as technology, healthcare and energy. The USA (with over 55% of my portfolio) remains the central component due to its economic importance and innovative strength. At the same time, I am also focusing on Europe, Asia, China and emerging markets, which are increasingly among the growth markets of the future. Small caps also play a key role for me, as they often have the potential to grow faster and offer opportunities that are often overlooked by the large institutions.

Cryptocurrencies (€100/month in Bitcoin ( $BTC (-3,14%) ) €50/month in Ethereum ($ETH) (-3,8%)

I also invest in Bitcoin and Ethereum as I am convinced of the future of these digital currencies. Even if the volatility is high, I see the long-term potential of these technologies. For me, it is an opportunity to participate in the development of a new financial world.

Gold (50 €/month EUWAX Gold ($DE000EWG0LD1 (-0,31%) )

In uncertain times, I have realized how important it is to have conservative assets such as gold. The last few years of inflation and economic fluctuations have made me realize that gold can have a stabilizing effect, especially in times of crisis.

Individual stocks - My dividend strategy

I have also selected a few individual stocks that should not only offer me security, but also regular income through dividends. The reason for this is simple: I need something tangible, something visible. It's not just the pleasure of seeing the portfolio grow, but also the dividend that gives me the feeling of actively participating in the companies and benefiting from their success.

- 3M Co ($MMM (-1,59%) )

- Allianz ($ALV (+0,07%) )

- BioNTech ($BNTX (-2,29%) )

- Booking Holdings( $BKNG (-1,03%) )

- Coca-Cola ($KO (+0,93%) )

- LVMH ($MC (-2,24%) )

- MSCI Inc ($MSCI (-1,22%) )

- NextEra Energy($NEE (+3,4%) )

- Philip Morris ($PM (-2,47%) )

- Realty Income($O (+1,39%) )

BioNTech in particular, as a company that has promising potential not only during the pandemic but also beyond, is a long-term winner for me. Likewise NextEra Energy, which plays a key role in the renewable energy sector, and Booking Holdings, which should benefit from the global tourism trend. These companies not only pay dividends, but also show that you can benefit from a company's success with a long-term perspective.

Pension fund

I also invest in the DEVK pension fund (DE000A2PT1X3) through my employer $DE000A2PT1X3 . This fund is particularly important to me because of the generous contributions made by my employer and the solid returns. Even though the costs are somewhat higher, I see it as a long-term addition to my strategy.

Why this portfolio?

I built my portfolio this way because I believe in the potential of long-term global diversification. Rather than chasing short-term gains, I am looking for continuous value growth over many years. I want to support the right companies, benefit from promising markets and at the same time have a regular source of income through dividends.

I am no longer interested in making a quick buck. I have learned that true success in wealth accumulation lies in patience. And that's what it's all about: I want to create a solid foundation for the future - for myself, for my pension and perhaps for a house in a few years' time.

What do you think?

I'm really looking forward to hearing from you. What do you think of my strategy? Do you see any areas where I could diversify even more? Are there any asset classes or ETFs missing from my portfolio that would make sense for me? I am very keen to hear your opinions and advice.

Thank you for taking the time to read my story and strategy! I look forward to your feedback.

Best regards,

Antonio

19 Commenti

Uwe@SchlaubiSchlumpf

Hey, thanks for sharing. To say it up front: you are probably well diversified with your etfs and will probably achieve more with them and your savings rate than the average person.

First of all, individual stocks: you can do that. Personally, I've said goodbye to it, as my selection of individual securities has rather slowed me down. But I can understand the need for control.

Crypto and gold: why not. My weighting is smaller, but it depends on my personal risk affinity. risk affinity.

On the ETFs:
First, the presentation method: Please include the percentage weighting. Then you can better evaluate what you are doing. It would also have been nice if I didn't have to click on each one to see what's behind it.

On diversification, you may have overdone it a bit. While you're probably solidly diversified depending on your weighting, your approach has quite little method in my view. You walked through the supermarket, said please everything once and got 3 different packs of toilet paper, bought peppers and pointed peppers. You should consider whether you could have achieved your goal more easily with an MSCI World and emerging markets and small caps variants. Then you have a few value and dividend etfs, which are probably okay. If you actually had a value tilt in mind. But then, in my opinion, you should rather take value ETFs instead of dividend ETFs, as these are also available as accumulating ETFs. But in neither case are you really more diversified if you have several US big caps ETFs.

Europe is similar. You have the Stoxx Europe and MSCI Europe, a Europe Imi and Europe Value (if I have seen this correctly)

Maybe you could do the same with a
MSCI World, MSCI World Value, MSCI World small caps. If necessary, you can then overweight a region with an additional ETF or 2.

It should be similar with EM.

The advantage: with EM and World you could do without the Pacific and have a similar country diversification.

•

Antonio🐝@TonyMelony1998

Thank you for your detailed feedback, @SchlaubiSchlumpf!
I really appreciate you taking the time to go through my portfolio and share your thoughts on it. You're certainly not wrong that there are a few overlaps - but I also see clear advantages in my ETF selection that are important to me.
Sometimes I just need the peppers for the farmer's pot and the pointed peppers for the goulash - and if I'm in the mood, I take the snack cucumber in addition to the salad cucumber because they are easier to snack on.

Why so many ETFs? Quite simply: I really want to take everything with me. A classic MSCI World + EM + Small Caps would of course be a simpler solution, but I don't have the targeted control of certain focal points. I don't just want to cover emerging markets across the board, I want to weight China specifically, for example. I don't just want to include standard large caps, but also small caps, value stocks and dividend stocks.

I may also share my portfolio here again at a later date as soon as the weighting and the next savings plans are complete.

In my view, my ETFs cover the following aspects, which also coincide with my planned strategy:
✅ Regional balance - USA as the main driver, but Europe, Asia, Japan and emerging markets are specifically included.
✅ Value & growth mix - With my additional value and dividend ETFs, I deliberately include a more conservative side, while growth is in the classic indices anyway.
✅ Small caps & factor strategies - The historically higher returns of smaller companies is an argument that I don't want to ignore, which is why small caps have a firm place.
✅ Dividend component - In addition to the classic ETFs, I also want to take regular distributions in order to have a certain "visibility" of the investments.

Of course, I could achieve a similar allocation with fewer ETFs, but for me it's also about fine-tuning and targeted management. I want to remain flexible and not think to myself in 10 years' time: "I wish I had invested more specifically in emerging markets or small caps back then".

On the individual stocks:
I totally understand that this doesn't make sense for everyone, but for me it also has a psychological component. When things get turbulent on the stock market, it helps me immensely to see that my companies continue to pay their dividends. This gives me stability and the certainty that my money is not just a number in my portfolio, but that it will bring me regular cash flow. Of course, individual shares are often no more efficient than ETFs in the long term, but it simply gives me a good feeling. And that's not unimportant for long-term investing.

There's no question that it's currently a challenging market phase for a new start - high interest rates, geopolitical uncertainties and an unclear economic situation don't make it easy. But that is precisely why I am now positioned for the long term and diversified. Crises are always also opportunities, and I believe that my broad-based portfolio helps me to benefit from the various developments worldwide in the long term.

Thanks again for your honest assessment! I think it's great that there is an objective exchange here - that's exactly why I'm here. And who knows, maybe I'll optimize my portfolio again if I realize that I'm making things too complicated for myself. But at the moment it feels just right! 😇

•

Uwe@SchlaubiSchlumpf

@TonyMelony1998 That's how it should be. Learning processes never end anyway. Since you already have one foot in with value, take a look at factor diversification. Quality or momentum could also be something for you. Although I wouldn't fully recommend even more etf 😅
Incidentally, value and dividend have a large overlap, as many companies with a low P/E ratio are not classic growth stocks and therefore pay out more dividends. Just as an approach. Dividend is therefore not a factor in its own right, but rather a value proxy.

I also have the dividend thing on a very small scale, as I have 4% of my portfolio in $O. It's my only single stock. I tend to add 1-2 REITs to reflect the real estate sector.

•

Thesaurus@Thesaurus

@SchlaubiSchlumpf have a fairly similar investment strategy 😅

••

Uwe@SchlaubiSchlumpf

@Thesaurus to that of @TonyMelony1998?

••

Thesaurus@Thesaurus

@SchlaubiSchlumpf Was a bit out of context sry. Meant our two investment strategies.

••

Uwe@SchlaubiSchlumpf

@Thesaurus so multifactor +x? I am running multifactor +10% gold myself. I am building up crypto and am currently at around 4% with a long-term target of 5-10%. My factoretfs target the factors SC Value, Value, Momentum and Minimum volatility. Momentum and SC Value are the biggest.

••

Novius@Novius

Hi Antonio, great report! Thank you for sharing your experience with the stock market here in the community. This might help one or two readers (newbies) to rethink their own view of "quick money" on the stock market. Yes, when I listed your ETF collection, I actually thought what you wrote. In this context, I would like to recommend this article to you, which may give you a different perspective: Being involved without losing track.
Good luck with your long-term wealth accumulation. At your age, you still have plenty of time 😉
Here is the link to the article:

https://getqu.in/nN2cDl/ https://getqu.in/nN2cDl/

•

Antonio🐝@TonyMelony1998

Thank you for your great feedback, @Novius🙌 I know my ETF portfolio isn't exactly clear - and that's exactly why I had to take up the question myself. 😄 But to be honest, I simply love dealing with the stock market and my investments. For me, it's not just about accumulating wealth, it's also become a real hobby. Of course, I may rethink my strategy in a few years' time, but at the moment I want to take this broadly diversified approach and see how it develops.

Of course, it's not the easiest market phase to start again - high interest rates, geopolitical tensions and uncertainty everywhere. But I am confident! In the long term, patience has almost always paid off in the stock market, and I'm finally at the point where I'm no longer hoping for a quick profit, but want to build up sustainably.

I'll definitely take a look at the article - thanks for the tip! And thanks again for your motivating words, that really makes me happy! 😊

•

Novius@Novius

@TonyMelony1998 das wichtigste m.E. ist, dass man eine Strategie und einen Plan hat den man dann mit Überzeugung konsequent verfolgt. Das scheinst Du ja zu haben und die verfügbare Zeit (mit 27) bis zur Rente spricht für Dich 🙂

••

Aktien-Investor@Aktien-Investor

I had a customer today who was just in Japan. The trains there have an annual delay of !4! seconds...

•

asset_architect_2025@asset_architect_2025

@Aktien-Investor and then they apologize 1 hour before people for such a delay. Here in DE:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JlM7ZTHF_Gg

•

Basti@DeltaV

The absolute opposite of keep it simple.
I'm looking forward to the portfolio performance.

•

Joschi 💎.@ETF_Jesus

Am I stupid or did I just read that on Reddit

••

Antonio🐝@TonyMelony1998

@ETF_Jesus You are stupid 😅🤣

••

Joschi 💎.@ETF_Jesus

@TonyMelony1998 ah no it was Facebook I found it again hahaha

•

Antonio🐝@TonyMelony1998

@ETF_Jesus This is possible 😛🙈

••

Andreas M.@thor88

I would advise you as following: spare yourself the pain and choose an index fund, keep DCAing in to it each month and you will be fine long term... $VWCE

••

Ludwig@tesla_diesel

Hello colleague! 😜

••