Welcome to the debut episode of the Canadian Couch Potato podcast.
Every two weeks I’ll be releasing a new episode of the podcast and announcing it here on the blog. You can stream the most recent episode using the player below, or you can subscribe via iTunes or Google Play, or using your favorite podcast software, such as Stitcher, Pocketcasts or Overcast.
This inaugural episode features my friend and colleague Justin Bender. In our interview we reflect on our experiences developing our unique DIY Investor Service, where we helped clients build ETF portfolios they could manage on their own. Here are some links related to that interview:
- Renovate Your Portfolio appeared in MoneySense in 2012. Written before I joined PWL Capital, this article featured three of the original clients of the DIY service.
- In his continuing efforts to support investors, Justin has just launched a YouTube channel called DIY Investing with Justin Bender. The first series of videos includes tutorials on how to place ETF trades at Canada’s largest online brokerages.
I’ve also created a regular segment called Bad Investment Advice, which features recent articles in the financial media. In this episode, I take issue with an article called One Place Where Passive Investing Doesn’t Rule: Bonds in The Wall Street Journal. Unfortunately, you need a subscription the WSJ to access this story online.
In the Ask the Spud segment that closes the show, I answer the following reader question:
“In your ETF model portfolios the equity component is split one-third Canadian, one-third US, and one-third international. Why is the Canadian component so high, when Canada makes up only 3% of the world market cap? And with poor sector diversification, at that.”
I’ve addressed home country bias in a past blog post and a MoneySense column. You may also be interested in Justin’s two-part discussion of the issue on his Canadian Portfolio Manager blog.
As always, if you have a suggestion for the Bad Investment Advice segment or if you’ve got an investing question you would like answered in a future podcast email me any time.
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The original version of this podcast and others can be found on the Canadian Couch Potato website, developed and maintained by Dan Bortolotti.