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Investing inflation protection in material assets Instructions

Inflation protection: How you can invest in material assets

The economy is struggling, governments are sending money to stimulate it. The magnitude is not in the billions, but trillions. But it's not as if the states haven't been in debt for a long time. Fortunately, states can create money easily. But if money is simply printed on such a scale, one must assume that the value of the money supply in circulation will decrease. So, as investors, we have to ask ourselves what is an appropriate inflation hedge and whether this is a necessity for you. In today's article, we will therefore talk about how to invest in tangible assets and what you should bear in mind.

If you have any more questions on the topic, we look forward to an exchange in the comments!

Why inflation protection is important

  • Rising inflation: If the money supply increases disproportionately, money loses purchasing power. Opportunities for alternatives are then offered by material assets such as gold or, as in World War II, for some coffee grinders. There are basically no limits to the imagination, but the implementation should be simple.
  • Lack of investment opportunities: Even though passive investors should not really matter which market phase it is at the moment, nevertheless there are always enough investors waiting for more favorable share prices. Those who simply leave their money in the checking account must assume a loss in value due to monetary policy. Inflation protection through an investment in tangible assets can now make sense.
  • Portfolio addition - asset allocation: Only buying shares in an investment portfolio does not constitute a balanced portfolio. An admixture of gold, cryptocurrencies or property, for example, should always be considered above a certain amount.
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How to protect against inflation?

With tangible assets against inflation protectors Gold ETF Inflation protection

  • Protect against inflation with real estate: Property is often referred to as "concrete gold" and not without justification. The leverage of real property investments can be a major advantage here. However, one should never forget that taxes can be changed by the state or that expropriations have already occurred in history. If you don't have large sums of money available for property investments or don't want to have too much risk in your portfolio, you can use REITS. These are virtually properties in paper form and are therefore easier to trade, available from smaller sums and there is no minimum holding period.  
  • Gold as protection against inflation: Gold was already on earth when there were no humans and will probably still be there long after we are gone. Gold is considered a safety anchor by many investors and has proven itself time and again in the past. Physical gold (real coins and bars) is the safest and always accessible option. A gold ETF is easy to trade, but in the event of a total system crash, will the bank really guarantee that you can still trade your gold ETF? If you really want gold to protect you in a worst-case scenario, the only option is physical gold in a good hiding place of your choice.
  • Invest in whiskey, classic cars or luxury watches: Your creativity is open to many things when it comes to tangible assets. During the Second World War, some people hedged their bets with Italian coffee grinders, for example. Nowadays, you can also read about people investing in rare playing cards or Lego sets. Whether it's vintage cars, Bordeaux wines or Rolex watches, you should have an understanding of the respective market. Not all vintages of a wine are popular and not every watch increases in value or retains its value. Changeability, storage risk and volume should also be taken into account. Whiskey can go bad if stored incorrectly and investing several hundred thousand francs in coffee grinders will push you to certain logistical limits. But there's nothing wrong with a watch that you enjoy looking at, or a vintage car that you enjoy looking after and that also retains its value. So you can invest in tangible assets, pursue your hobby and enjoy your inflation protection.

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Gold ETF's, Reits and crypto currencies

Old is gold: My portfolio also contains "modern" additions such as Bitcoin and the like. Cryptocurrencies, Gold or stablecoins are very exciting. However, only as an admixture and for several reasons.

If you want to protect yourself against inflation, a gold ETF can offer easily tradable access to the precious metal. However, if you also want to protect yourself against a systemic crash with a gold investment, you should opt for physical gold in your own vault (or other safe place) instead of paper gold. Because when banks close, the bank safe deposit box is also no longer accessible. The past has shown this time and again. What is currently happening in the area of REITS or blockchain-based gold is exciting! I would be interested to know whether such asset classes would be a conceivable option for you? Let me know in the comments if you would like to invest in real assets in this way!

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Conclusion: Investing in tangible assets as protection against inflation

Parking your money in the bank until better times come with more favourable investments doesn't always make sense. To prevent inflation from taking several percent of your cash holdings each year, you may want to consider inflation protection. There are many ways to invest in tangible assets, as we have shown above. We would be interested to hear what you think about this!

Do you have any more questions or suggestions on this topic?

Leave us a comment there!

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4 Responses

  1. Hello Eric
    Are gold Verneli enough? I've heard that you can't get rid of these coins because nobody wants them.
    How always there with the physical gold (bars)?
    If you buy and store gold via Goldavenue, you would have problems getting the gold in case of a system crash, even though it would be mine, right? Where would you convert gold back into cash?
    By the way, great homepage and many thanks for your work.
    Glg Moni

    1. Hello Moni

      Thanks for your positive feedback 🙂 There are various reasons and scenarios to invest in gold.
      If you want to prepare for the "worst case scenario" (hopefully it never happens), you should probably have physical gold in a place that is always accessible. A safe deposit box or managed by Degussa, Goldavenue etc. would then, as you rightly say, not be the right place. After the 2nd World War there were such scenarios by the way - also a gold ban.
      In general, it can be observed that small quantities (coins/bars) are more expensive than larger ones. This is due to the production. So you get more gold per franc, the bigger the bar is. Should you then really want to pay with it, it is of course easier if it is smaller units. Or you can take a small saw or file and cut off a few grams of gold for the bread at the bakery 🙂
      Gold vreneli are 10% copper and 90% gold. So the gold content is not pure, but I do not see a problem here in the tradability.

      Bitcoin enthusiasts today would argue, of course, you should use the "digital gold" buy, but that's another topic again 🙂
      Much love!

  2. Does it make any sense at all to invest in Pillar 3a if we are assuming inflation? So is investing in tangible assets really the only solution to protect your money against inflation?
    Why should it make sense to pay into the 3rd pillar in spite of inflation or a possible threat of currency reform?

    1. Hello, Pascal,
      it even makes a lot of sense to invest in pillar 3a. Of course you have to look at how long your investment period (until retirement) etc. is. For example, if you have at least 5 more years to go, I think it already makes sense to invest in securities under the 3rd pillar.
      If you really assume strong inflation, it makes little sense (there are of course exceptions) to simply hoard unnecessarily much money in your account. Because there is no interest there, but inflation constantly reduces your assets. If you invest money in securities in the 3rd pillar, which you don't need for the next few years, you can achieve a return that is higher than inflation. This way you can save taxes and inflation is counteracted by the excess return.

      Best regards 🙂

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