Investing Super Funds

You may be having great success with your short term trading portfolio and have become comfortable with investment strategies. Now you may wonder if you should apply your successful methods to your superannuation fund. Can you treat your super fund and your trading fund the same? What about calculating stops?

Stuart: I appreciate where that person is coming from, but to me they are so different, two completely different aspects of investment trading. Probably the biggest difference between the two is the amount of money in both. I have a lot more money in my super fund than my day to day trading fund. The purpose of both those funds is so different.

My investment trading fund, as much as I don’t want to, I could afford to lose it tomorrow. It wouldn’t ruin me. The last thing I want to do is lose all the money in my super fund. I am so conservative and so defensive and thinking much longer term in my super fund than I am in my day to day trading fund. So completely different purposes and to me they require completely different approaches. The size of a trading fund does affect your whole approach to trading. Whilst all the same rules of effective trading apply, most notable nipping losses in the bud and letting your profits run; you have adapt the way in which you apply those rules for maximum benefits and profits.

Your super fund should be allowed to grow over the years so when you are allowed to cash in on it, you will have a nice sum available to provide financial security.

As far as setting your stops goes, you want to nip your losses in the bud and let your profits run no matter what you are trading, but when it comes to your superfund, the way you handle your stops is going to be very different. One method does not work for both types of investing.

David: Are you using the same method of calculation on your super fund as your CFD trading fund? Obviously the width is going to be different, but are you going to be using the same method of calculation?

Stuart: The same method, no. I use a volatility base for my super fund and a technical stop for my short term trading. Investment trading often calls for different methods to be profitable. We have to be able to adapt our trading style to match our individual circumstances.

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