To think is easy. To act is hard. But the hardest thing in the world is to act in accordance with your thinking.

Goethe

This is my ninety-third monthly portfolio update. I complete this regular update to check progress against my goal.

Portfolio goal

My objective is to maintain a portfolio of at least $2,870,000. This should be capable of producing an annual income from total portfolio returns of about $99,000 (in 2024 dollars).

This portfolio objective is based on an assumed safe withdrawal rate of 3.45 per cent.

A secondary focus will be achieving the minimum equity target of $2,300,000.

Portfolio summary

Vanguard Lifestrategy High Growth Fund	$861,536
Vanguard Lifestrategy Growth Fund	$44,380
Vanguard Lifestrategy Balanced Fund	$78,502
Vanguard Diversified Bonds Fund	$91,760
Vanguard Australian Shares ETF (VAS)	$544,300
Vanguard International Shares ETF (VGS)	$722,096
Betashares Australia 200 ETF (A200)	$315,649
Telstra shares (TLS)	$2,094
Insurance Australia Group shares (IAG)	$9,565
NIB Holdings shares (NHF)	$7,512
Gold ETF (GOLD.ASX)	$165,774
Secured physical gold	$26,132
Bitcoin	$973,512
Raiz app (Aggressive portfolio)	$24,201
Spaceship Voyager app (Index portfolio)	$3,980
BrickX (P2P rental real estate)	$4,704
Plenti Capital Notes Market Loan	$43,000
Total portfolio value	$3,918,689 (-$157,604)

Asset allocation

Australian shares	31.6%
Global shares	28.7%
Emerging market shares	1.2%
International small companies	1.5%
Total international shares	31.5%
Total shares	63.1.% (-16.9%)
Total property securities	0.1% (+0.1%)
Australian bonds	2.9%
International bonds	4.1%
Total bonds	7.0% (+2.0%)
Gold	4.9%
Bitcoin	24.8%
Gold and alternatives	29.7% (+14.7%)

Presented visually, the pie chart below is a high-level view of the current asset allocation of the portfolio.

Comments

This month the portfolio underwent significant losses at the headline level, with a loss of around 3.0 per cent, or $158,000.

This was largely a function of a fall in the value of Bitcoin holdings.

This has left the overall portfolio of traditional financial assets virtually unchanged on a monthly basis, and still comfortably above the portfolio goal.

Equities performance across the month were mixed, with a capital growth of 2.2 per cent for Australian holdings, and a small loss of around 0.4 per cent for international equities.

Gold appreciated around 1.4 per cent over the same period while Bitcoin holdings, as mentioned, declined around 14 per cent.

The bond holdings of the portfolio continued to recover as global rates eased, reaching their highest absolute value in more than two years.

This month no new investments were made, with the regular income produced by the Plenti Capital Notes being added to a contingent cash reserve.

Continue reading “Monthly Portfolio Report – August 2024”

The house of delusions is cheap to build but drafty to live in.

A. E. Housman

This is my ninety-second monthly portfolio update. I complete this regular update to check progress against my goal.

Portfolio goal

My objective is to maintain a portfolio of at least $2,870,000. This should be capable of producing an annual income from total portfolio returns of about $99,000 (in 2024 dollars).

This portfolio objective is based on an assumed safe withdrawal rate of 3.45 per cent.

A secondary focus will be achieving the minimum equity target of $2,300,000.

Portfolio summary

Vanguard Lifestrategy High Growth Fund	$855,315
Vanguard Lifestrategy Growth Fund	$43,951
Vanguard Lifestrategy Balanced Fund	$77,576
Vanguard Diversified Bonds Fund	$90,252
Vanguard Australian Shares ETF (VAS)	$542,025
Vanguard International Shares ETF (VGS)	$735,030
Betashares Australia 200 ETF (A200)	$314,298
Telstra shares (TLS)	$2,100
Insurance Australia Group shares (IAG)	$9,375
NIB Holdings shares (NHF)	$9,036
Gold ETF (GOLD.ASX)	$167,038
Secured physical gold	$26,286
Bitcoin	$1,127,990
Raiz app (Aggressive portfolio)	$24,310
Spaceship Voyager app (Index portfolio)	$3,980
BrickX (P2P rental real estate)	$4,731
Plenti Capital Notes Market Loan	$43,000
Total portfolio value	$4,076,293 (+$177,439)

Asset allocation

Australian shares	30.3%
Global shares	27.9%
Emerging market shares	1.1%
International small companies	1.4%
Total international shares	30.5%
Total shares	60.8.% (-19.2%)
Total property securities	0.1% (+0.1%)
Australian bonds	2.8%
International bonds	3.9%
Total bonds	6.7% (+1.7%)
Gold	4.7%
Bitcoin	27.7%
Gold and alternatives	32.4% (+17.4%)

Presented visually, the pie chart below is a high-level view of the current asset allocation of the portfolio.

Comments

The portfolio reached the highest level in its history this month, with a growth of 4.6 per cent, or around $177,000.

This has been achieved in significant part by an increase in the value of Bitcoin holding, with holdings in equity making up the rest of the movement through the period.

Even ascribing no value at all to the entirety of the Bitcoin holdings, the financial portfolio still remains about the portfolio target.

The monthly movement of various asset classes outside of the Bitcoin holdings were not particularly significant, with increases of 4 per cent in Australian equities and slightly larger increases in the value of gold holdings (around 6 per cent).

An interesting feature to note is that quite frequently, directionally, the subcomponents of the entire portfolio has tended to move in a correlated manner, with this month, for example, bonds, equities and gold all advancing – even if with different strengths.

This month, the same as last, I invested some surplus funds that would in the past have been invested in equity index funds, into a further purchase of Plenti Capital Notes, at an approximate yield of 9.0 per cent.

As previously highlighted, yields of this kind are not available without a material risk to the safe return of the capital. At this stage and in my personal circumstances, however, this is a useful relatively short-term vehicle for funds I am happy to put at some risk, and which I have no need to access. Importantly, it represents only around 1 per cent of portfolio holdings.

Continue reading “Monthly Portfolio Report – July 2024”

Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Twice a year I prepare a summary of total income from my financial independence portfolio. This is my sixteenth portfolio income update since starting this record. As part of the transparency and accountability of this journey, I regularly report this income.

My primary goal is to maintain a portfolio of at least $2,870,000. This should be capable of providing a passive income of around $99,000 (in 2024 dollars).

A secondary focus is maintaining a minimum equity target of $2,300,000.

Portfolio income summary

Investment	Amount
Vanguard Lifestrategy High Growth (retail fund)	$20,096
Vanguard Lifestrategy Growth (retail fund)	$907
Vanguard Lifestrategy Balanced (retail fund)	$1544
Vanguard Diversified Bonds (retail fund)	$199
Vanguard Australian Shares ETF (VAS)	$8,149
Vanguard International Shares ETF (VGS)	$18,386
Betashares Australia 200 ETF (A200)	$4,622
Telstra shares (TLS.ASX)	$48
Insurance Australia Group shares (IAG.ASX)	$127
NIB Holding shares (NHF.ASX)	$180
Raiz app (Aggressive portfolio)	$316
Spaceship Voyager app (Index portfolio)	$0
BrickX (P2P rental real estate)	$16
Total Portfolio Income – Half-Year to June 30, 2024	$54,993

The chart below sets out the income or distributions received on a half-yearly basis from the financial independence portfolio over the past eight years.

Continue reading “Portfolio Income Update – Half Year to June 30, 2024”

And therefore I have sailed the seas and come
To the holy city of Byzantium

W. B. Yeats, Sailing to Byzantium

This is my ninety-first monthly portfolio update. I complete this regular update to check progress against my goal.

Portfolio goal

My objective is to maintain a portfolio of at least $2,870,000. This should be capable of producing an annual income from total portfolio returns of about $99,000 (in 2024 dollars).

This portfolio objective is based on an assumed safe withdrawal rate of 3.45 per cent.

A secondary focus will be achieving the minimum equity target of $2,300,000.

Portfolio summary

Vanguard Lifestrategy High Growth Fund	$852,923
Vanguard Lifestrategy Growth Fund	$43,791
Vanguard Lifestrategy Balanced Fund	$77,301
Vanguard Diversified Bonds Fund	$89,201
Vanguard Australian Shares ETF (VAS)	$524,203
Vanguard International Shares ETF (VGS)	$730,180
Betashares Australia 200 ETF (A200)	$303,515
Telstra shares (TLS)	$1,929
Insurance Australia Group shares (IAG)	$9,046
NIB Holdings shares (NHF)	$8,820
Gold ETF (GOLD.ASX)	$157,415
Secured physical gold	$24,605
Bitcoin	$1,009,797
Raiz app (Aggressive portfolio)	$23,565
Spaceship Voyager app (Index portfolio)	$4,011
BrickX (P2P rental real estate)	$4,552
Plenti Capital Notes Market Loan	$34,000
Total portfolio value	$3,898,854 (-$64,355)

Asset allocation

Australian shares	30.9%
Global shares	29.0%
Emerging market shares	1.2%
International small companies	1.5%
Total international shares	31.7%
Total shares	62.6.% (-17.4%)
Total property securities	0.1% (+0.1%)
Australian bonds	2.7%
International bonds	4.1%
Total bonds	6.7% (+1.7%)
Gold	4.7%
Bitcoin	25.9%
Gold and alternatives	30.6% (+15.6%)

Presented visually, the pie chart below is a high-level view of the current asset allocation of the portfolio.

Comments

This month an important series of benchmarks were narrowly passed, despite a fall in the overall portfolio headline of over $64,000.

The portfolio has now passed its target level, when only traditional financial assets are counted.

Previously – taking into account the substantial current value of Bitcoin holdings – the overall target was easily met, but from this month, even excluding the entire value of these volatile holdings, the target has been met.

In other words, assessed as a more conventional portfolio, the journey of asset accumulation has this month reached its notional end point.

It did this through some small movements in Australian shares, and through a slightly larger growth in the value of international equities (around 2.4 per cent).

Gold continued to fall slightly this month, and there was significant fall in the value of Bitcoin holdings – of around 12 per cent. Bonds produced a capital gain of around 1 per cent.

This month I invested some surplus funds, which would in the past have been invested in equity index funds, into a further purchase of Plenti Capital Notes, at an approximate yield of 9.0 per cent.

It deserves noting that yields of this kind are not offered without an appreciable risk to the capital. At this stage and in my personal circumstances, however, this is a useful relatively short-term vehicle for funds I am happy to put at some risk, and which I have no need to access.

Continue reading “Monthly Portfolio Report – June 2024”