Walen School of Investing - learn how to make money and have a better life!

[transam]

If you guys have any doubt that Mac Walen does not know what he is doing, then look at how many pages (12 at this point) his post has generated. All the doubters have created so much free marketing for Mac because ThaiVisa posters are so predictable. This is why it is great to be a sponsor of ThaiVisa. I actually think his class might be worth it since he knows how to control ThaiVisa posters so well. Genius!

Yourself included..................

[tropo]

If you guys have any doubt that Mac Walen does not know what he is doing, then look at how many pages (12 at this point) his post has generated. All the doubters have created so much free marketing for Mac because ThaiVisa posters are so predictable. This is why it is great to be a sponsor of ThaiVisa. I actually think his class might be worth it since he knows how to control ThaiVisa posters so well. Genius!

Yourself included..................

All of us! We are keeping this post on the first page. Most people just read the OP, so it is brilliant marketing.

[transam]

If you guys have any doubt that Mac Walen does not know what he is doing, then look at how many pages (12 at this point) his post has generated. All the doubters have created so much free marketing for Mac because ThaiVisa posters are so predictable. This is why it is great to be a sponsor of ThaiVisa. I actually think his class might be worth it since he knows how to control ThaiVisa posters so well. Genius!

Yourself included..................

All of us! We are keeping this post on the first page. Most people just read the OP, so it is brilliant marketing.

Not from where I am sitting, but as l am not a business guy, l just look at what is on offer, guarantees, if any, or is it just a money making venture with the resources the OP has. Surely there is no problem with valid questions here and not to think a guy has made a few quid so it must be OK.

[Asiantravel]

The SEC might see it differently, no?

Securities and Exchange Act, B. E. 2535 (1992)

"Investment advisory service" means giving advice in the normal course of business to the public whether directly or indirectly concerning the value of securities or the suitability of investing in those securities or the purchase of sale of any securities in consideration of a fee or other remuneration.

If someone loses their money after relying on the advice they learn at this seminar I think there will be many lawyers in Thailand who would never miss the opportunity to find some legal avenue in which to claim restitution because he is guaranteeing his advice

Edited August 31, 2013 by Asiantravel

[MacWalen]

Got that covered. You will sign a contract in which you acknowledge that all investment decisions you would ever make as a result of this seminar are yours alone. That no investment advice was given other than general rules of investing were explained etc.

You brough out an interesting point. Appreciate it.

Sent from my GT-I9190 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[transam]

Got that covered. You will sign a contract in which you acknowledge that all investment decisions you would ever make as a result of this seminar are yours alone. That no investment advice was given other than general rules of investing were explained etc.

You brought out an interesting point. Appreciate it.

Sent from my GT-I9190 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Wish you had posted that at the beginning, saved a lot of ''chat''.

[Asiantravel]

Got that covered. You will sign a contract in which you acknowledge that all investment decisions you would ever make as a result of this seminar are yours alone. That no investment advice was given other than general rules of investing were explained etc.

You brough out an interesting point. Appreciate it.

Sent from my GT-I9190 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Where can people get a copy of this before the seminar itself because if people don't have a basic knowledge of investing they are also unlikely to have much legal knowledge either and they may not be used to reading contracts.

Theymay wish to get someone that does have legal knowledge to check on the document they are being asked to sign?

And will you be seeking the approval of the SEC regarding the wording and conditions of this contract as to the exclusions and conditions that you are seeking to impose in this document ?

Edited August 31, 2013 by Asiantravel

[MacWalen]

Saturday night guys. Time to enjoy few drinks with friends and spend some cash.

To be continued.........

Sent from my GT-I9190 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[tropo]

Saturday night guys. Time to enjoy few drinks with friends and spend some cash.

To be continued.........

Have a heart. Perhaps the people interested in this seminar don't have spare cash to splash around on Saturday night?

[GrantSmith]

Just quietly.. Why in Pattaya?

[JSixpack]

For those who are skeptical that they will gain anything of real value from your seminar, are you prepared to offer to subscribers a " moneyback guarantee " if they are not satisfied at the end of the seminar ?

Utterly ridiculous, esp. given the balloon chasing population of PTY. That would pack 'em in though. It's only 3K, fer chrissake!

I've attended a lot of seminars in my life and more classes than you can imagine and not one of them ever gave a money-back guarantee. Nor would I have expected it. Suppose the student is simply too stupid to understand the concepts? And too senile to use the trading software?

You also said in post number 69 you would guarantee that subscribers would not lose their collateral if they followed your advice? Can you please provide more specific information as to how this guarantee would be applied?

Alas, trolls have pounced on that post and gleefully misinterpreted it. He didn't say that exactly. He said he believed he could, an informal assurance. Investing in shares is based on probabilities; everybody knows that. That post #69 was an expression of his personal confidence that his methods will lead to a positive return sooner rather than later, but he mentioned no fixed time frame. So that could be the next day, or it could be in 5 years. If he guaranteed 20 years, would that do? I guess there are few exchange indices that didn't go up any 20 year period, except in places like Zimbabwe.

Now, he may mention investing in bonds (cue Naam). Treasuries are guaranteed anyway, but then what if there's a coup, the currency collapses, etc. Fixed deposits at banks have been mentioned but our dear midas will predict the coming banking apocalypse . . . .

Much will have to depend on how well the student follows the advice. That's rather unpredictable. And there's the whole problem of verification.

More silliness here, really . . . by those who have no intention of ever attending the seminar anyway I fear.

[harrry]

I'll tell you all how to invest.

Buy blue chip, only the top 10-12 companies, and of them, only those that pay the best dividends, reinvest the dividends, and watch. You won't get as rich as fast as point one of one percent of traders, but you won't get as poor as fast as 99.9% of traders!! You'll double your money in about 6 - 7 years, and possibly less if you move between companies because they don't all pay dividends on the same date.

That'll be B3000 please. I take PayPal.

When I went to University there were probably 7 major Blue Chip Companies. Many people said the same. Each of these a few years later went into some form of Bankrupcy. Section 11 or whatever. Great advice.

[AngelsLariat]

I'll tell you all how to invest.

Buy blue chip, only the top 10-12 companies, and of them, only those that pay the best dividends, reinvest the dividends, and watch. You won't get as rich as fast as point one of one percent of traders, but you won't get as poor as fast as 99.9% of traders!! You'll double your money in about 6 - 7 years, and possibly less if you move between companies because they don't all pay dividends on the same date.

That'll be B3000 please. I take PayPal.

When I went to University there were probably 7 major Blue Chip Companies. Many people said the same. Each of these a few years later went into some form of Bankrupcy. Section 11 or whatever. Great advice.

Seems like if the concept is that over time that big companies will produce good returns that you might as well just put your money in one of the Vanguard funds that tracks the S&P500 and let it ride.

[JSixpack]

I'll tell you all how to invest.

Buy blue chip, only the top 10-12 companies, and of them, only those that pay the best dividends, reinvest the dividends, and watch. You won't get as rich as fast as point one of one percent of traders, but you won't get as poor as fast as 99.9% of traders!! You'll double your money in about 6 - 7 years, and possibly less if you move between companies because they don't all pay dividends on the same date.

That'll be B3000 please. I take PayPal.

When I went to University there were probably 7 major Blue Chip Companies. Many people said the same. Each of these a few years later went into some form of Bankrupcy. Section 11 or whatever. Great advice.

Seems like if the concept is that over time that big companies will produce good returns that you might as well just put your money in one of the Vanguard funds that tracks the S&P500 and let it ride.

I wasn't aware that Vanguard offers any index funds in Thailand that track S&P 500; and if it did, I wonder how that would equate to exposure to the Thai SET and the baht? Would Vanguard accept payment in Thai baht?

I've often suspected, with some reason, that many people just walk around not knowing where they really are.

As for F4UCorsair's idea, to make you more comfortable, one could buy the top companies in the SET High Dividend 30 and sell when they dropped in the ranking. It would be a sort of reverse "Dogs Of The Dow" strategy--which, by the way, worked well (for a time) despite the threat of "Bankrupcy." Call it Top Dogs Of The 30! Brilliant!

Sorted.

Or, one could buy the index itself (ETF). It should be impervious to "Bankrupcy." Yet the advantage of buying individual companies lies in their greater volatility, not to mention saving the fees involved in buying a fund (not much in the case of an ETF of course).

Next.

Edited September 1, 2013 by JSixpack

[AngelsLariat]

I'll tell you all how to invest.

Buy blue chip, only the top 10-12 companies, and of them, only those that pay the best dividends, reinvest the dividends, and watch. You won't get as rich as fast as point one of one percent of traders, but you won't get as poor as fast as 99.9% of traders!! You'll double your money in about 6 - 7 years, and possibly less if you move between companies because they don't all pay dividends on the same date.

That'll be B3000 please. I take PayPal.

When I went to University there were probably 7 major Blue Chip Companies. Many people said the same. Each of these a few years later went into some form of Bankrupcy. Section 11 or whatever. Great advice.

Seems like if the concept is that over time that big companies will produce good returns that you might as well just put your money in one of the Vanguard funds that tracks the S&P500 and let it ride.

I wasn't aware that Vanguard offers any index funds in Thailand that track S&P 500; and if it did, I wonder how that would equate to exposure to the Thai SET and the baht? Would Vanguard accept payment in Thai baht?

I've often suspected, with some reason, that many people just walk around not knowing where they really are.

As for F4UCorsair's idea, to make you more comfortable, one could buy the top companies in the SET High Dividend 30 and sell when they dropped in the ranking. It would be a sort of reverse "Dogs Of The Dow" strategy--which, by the way, worked well (for a time) despite the threat of "Bankrupcy." Call it Top Dogs Of The 30! Brilliant!

Sorted.

Or, one could buy the index itself (ETF). It should be impervious to "Bankrupcy." Yet the advantage of buying individual companies lies in their greater volatility, not to mention saving the fees involved in buying a fund (not much in the case of an ETF of course).

Next.

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

[Naam]

Puukao, this is an investing course not a trading course. Most traders lose money and I will explain why, also most wise investors make money and I will explain why. I am confident to run such a course. I would not be making a fool of myself in front of people if I was not sure I can do a good job and give them good value for money.

By the way, do any other schools in Pattaya teach investing?

best school to acquire indepth knowledge of investing is to read the Thaivisa section "jobs, economy, banking..." where, since a decade or so, hundreds of eggsburts revealed (and still reveal) their secrets how they became successful investors.

[Naam]

For those who are skeptical that they will gain anything of real value from your seminar, are you prepared to offer to subscribers a " moneyback guarantee " if they are not satisfied at the end of the seminar ?

Utterly ridiculous, esp. given the balloon chasing population of PTY. That would pack 'em in though. It's only 3K, fer chrissake!

I've attended a lot of seminars in my life and more classes than you can imagine and not one of them ever gave a money-back guarantee. Nor would I have expected it. Suppose the student is simply too stupid to understand the concepts? And too senile to use the trading software?

You also said in post number 69 you would guarantee that subscribers would not lose their collateral if they followed your advice? Can you please provide more specific information as to how this guarantee would be applied?

Alas, trolls have pounced on that post and gleefully misinterpreted it. He didn't say that exactly. He said he believed he could, an informal assurance. Investing in shares is based on probabilities; everybody knows that. That post #69 was an expression of his personal confidence that his methods will lead to a positive return sooner rather than later, but he mentioned no fixed time frame. So that could be the next day, or it could be in 5 years. If he guaranteed 20 years, would that do? I guess there are few exchange indices that didn't go up any 20 year period, except in places like Zimbabwe.

Now, he may mention investing in bonds (cue Naam). Treasuries are guaranteed anyway, but then what if there's a coup, the currency collapses, etc. Fixed deposits at banks have been mentioned but our dear midas will predict the coming banking apocalypse . . . .

Much will have to depend on how well the student follows the advice. That's rather unpredictable. And there's the whole problem of verification.

More silliness here, really . . . by those who have no intention of ever attending the seminar anyway I fear.

for what it's worth... one of the real big exchanges, the Nikkei, did not go up during the last 20 years.

[JSixpack]

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

Cough. Well, they don't. Now is it true that a resident in Thailand, including our majority non-USA citizens, can simply, like, open a Vanguard account in the USA without actually going to the USA and/or providing a USA address? If not, the airfare alone would be considerably more than the cost of the seminar, shai mai? TV posters sitting in front of 7/11s throughout PTY are now soiling their knickers at the thought. Anyway, apart from the possible bother and expense of all that, then what would be the advantage of buying THD there over just buying a SET index fund here with Thai baht?

Now, if you think about it, this whole topic strongly appears to be about a seminar about general investing with a focus on investing in the Thai market. But as of your last post, many may skip now that they know they can simply buy a Thai index or managed fund in their home countries. Lotsa luck w/ that, guys, though Aberdeen wouldn't be a bad choice going that route.

I love this forum!

[AngelsLariat]

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

Cough. Well, they don't. Now is it true that a resident in Thailand, including our majority non-USA citizens, can simply, like, open a Vanguard account in the USA without actually going to the USA and/or providing a USA address? If not, the airfare alone would be considerably more than the cost of the seminar, shai mai? TV posters sitting in front of 7/11s throughout PTY are now soiling their knickers at the thought. Anyway, apart from the possible bother and expense of all that, then what would be the advantage of buying THD there over just buying a SET index fund here with Thai baht?

Now, if you think about it, this whole topic strongly appears to be about a seminar about general investing with a focus on investing in the Thai market. But as of your last post, many may skip now that they know they can simply buy a Thai index or managed fund in their home countries. Lotsa luck w/ that, guys, though Aberdeen wouldn't be a bad choice going that route.

I love this forum!

I think that you are arguing just for the sake of arguing.

[tropo]

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

Cough. Well, they don't. Now is it true that a resident in Thailand, including our majority non-USA citizens, can simply, like, open a Vanguard account in the USA without actually going to the USA and/or providing a USA address? If not, the airfare alone would be considerably more than the cost of the seminar, shai mai? TV posters sitting in front of 7/11s throughout PTY are now soiling their knickers at the thought. Anyway, apart from the possible bother and expense of all that, then what would be the advantage of buying THD there over just buying a SET index fund here with Thai baht?

Now, if you think about it, this whole topic strongly appears to be about a seminar about general investing with a focus on investing in the Thai market. But as of your last post, many may skip now that they know they can simply buy a Thai index or managed fund in their home countries. Lotsa luck w/ that, guys, though Aberdeen wouldn't be a bad choice going that route.

I love this forum!

I think that you are arguing just for the sake of arguing.

LOL. That's what he does. It's his "sport" as he calls it.

Edited September 1, 2013 by tropo

[JSixpack]

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

Cough. Well, they don't. Now is it true that a resident in Thailand, including our majority non-USA citizens, can simply, like, open a Vanguard account in the USA without actually going to the USA and/or providing a USA address? If not, the airfare alone would be considerably more than the cost of the seminar, shai mai? TV posters sitting in front of 7/11s throughout PTY are now soiling their knickers at the thought. Anyway, apart from the possible bother and expense of all that, then what would be the advantage of buying THD there over just buying a SET index fund here with Thai baht?

Now, if you think about it, this whole topic strongly appears to be about a seminar about general investing with a focus on investing in the Thai market. But as of your last post, many may skip now that they know they can simply buy a Thai index or managed fund in their home countries. Lotsa luck w/ that, guys, though Aberdeen wouldn't be a bad choice going that route.

I love this forum!

I think that you are arguing just for the sake of arguing.

Hey--I made some good points there in the process of enjoying myself. You did bring up the notion of investing from abroad. Since you brought it up, it should be addressed.

[F4UCorsair]

I'll tell you all how to invest.

Buy blue chip, only the top 10-12 companies, and of them, only those that pay the best dividends, reinvest the dividends, and watch. You won't get as rich as fast as point one of one percent of traders, but you won't get as poor as fast as 99.9% of traders!! You'll double your money in about 6 - 7 years, and possibly less if you move between companies because they don't all pay dividends on the same date.

That'll be B3000 please. I take PayPal.

When I went to University there were probably 7 major Blue Chip Companies. Many people said the same. Each of these a few years later went into some form of Bankrupcy. Section 11 or whatever. Great advice.

Seems like if the concept is that over time that big companies will produce good returns that you might as well just put your money in one of the Vanguard funds that tracks the S&P500 and let it ride.

You could do that, but here in Australia, fees for managed funds are high. I bailed out of managed funds years ago, and invest only directly in shares through an online broking service and pay only .2% on buys and sells, no ongoing commissions.

You could check what shares the managed funds are composed of and use the top few for you own investing. They generally are made up of a few shares that comprise 70-80% of the total, and a few speculative ones thrown in to 'balance' the fund.

[MacWalen]

You could do that, but here in Australia, fees for managed funds are high.

I invested long time ago in a managed fund through Common Wealth Bank in Australia and would not do that again. I found it very intransparent. When I liquidated it I also was not sure now much I would get as I was not able to establish what was the unit pice they actually sold it for and just had to take their word for it. Not my kind of doing business. I do like to know the numbers. I have not invested in any managed funds since. Also the fact that they take fees to manage it. I trust myself to do the job well more than I trust them to do it for me. Very good point F4UCorsair. There are some really valuable contributors to this thread. Thank you guys. Let's continue.

Edited September 1, 2013 by MacWalen

[GrantSmith]

You could do that, but here in Australia, fees for managed funds are high.

I invested long time ago in a managed fund through Common Wealth Bank in Australia and would not do that again. I found it very intransparent. When I liquidated it I also was not sure now much I would get as I was not able to establish what was the unit pice they actually sold it for and just had to take their word for it. Not my kind of doing business. I do like to know the numbers. I have not invested in any managed funds since. Also the fact that they take fees to manage it. I trust myself to do the job well more than I trust them to do it for me. Very good point F4UCorsair. There are some really valuable contributors to this thread. Thank you guys. Let's continue.

Ironic really, no, MacWalen?

[MacWalen]

You could do that, but here in Australia, fees for managed funds are high.

I invested long time ago in a managed fund through Common Wealth Bank in Australia and would not do that again. I found it very intransparent. When I liquidated it I also was not sure now much I would get as I was not able to establish what was the unit pice they actually sold it for and just had to take their word for it. Not my kind of doing business. I do like to know the numbers. I have not invested in any managed funds since. Also the fact that they take fees to manage it. I trust myself to do the job well more than I trust them to do it for me. Very good point F4UCorsair. There are some really valuable contributors to this thread. Thank you guys. Let's continue.

Ironic really, no, MacWalen?

GrantSmith, you are too clever for me, I am not getting it, what is ironic? I understand the word very well but I don't understand it in the context of my post. Can you elaborate a little more on it?

[MacWalen]

What I charge to teach people investing is peanuts if you were thinking about the fees paid to managed funds.

[tropo]

What I charge to teach people investing is peanuts if you were thinking about the fees paid to managed funds.

Managed funds do have their place. Not everyone wants to stress out about daily market fluctuations. You pay the fees to avoid that. That's the whole idea of managed funds.

A well managed fund would probably be safer compared to investing off the back of knowledge gained from a one day seminar. Sometimes a little knowledge can be dangerous.

[transam]

What I charge to teach people investing is peanuts if you were thinking about the fees paid to managed funds.

Managed funds do have their place. Not everyone wants to stress out about daily market fluctuations. You pay the fees to avoid that. That's the whole idea of managed funds.

A well managed fund would probably be safer compared to investing off the back of knowledge gained from a one day seminar. Sometimes a little knowledge can be dangerous.

And that goes for anything. Reminds me of when I first came to LOS.....................

[AngelsLariat]

I didn't mean to imply that Vanguard has a presence in Thailand. I don't know if they do or if they don't. But it's quite feasible to open a Vanguard brokerage account in the US and trade it in via the internet while in Thailand. Also would be feasible to buy SPY or DIA ETF's for exposure to the US market or THD for exposure to the Thai market.

Cough. Well, they don't. Now is it true that a resident in Thailand, including our majority non-USA citizens, can simply, like, open a Vanguard account in the USA without actually going to the USA and/or providing a USA address? If not, the airfare alone would be considerably more than the cost of the seminar, shai mai? TV posters sitting in front of 7/11s throughout PTY are now soiling their knickers at the thought. Anyway, apart from the possible bother and expense of all that, then what would be the advantage of buying THD there over just buying a SET index fund here with Thai baht?

Now, if you think about it, this whole topic strongly appears to be about a seminar about general investing with a focus on investing in the Thai market. But as of your last post, many may skip now that they know they can simply buy a Thai index or managed fund in their home countries. Lotsa luck w/ that, guys, though Aberdeen wouldn't be a bad choice going that route.

I love this forum!

I think that you are arguing just for the sake of arguing.

Hey--I made some good points there in the process of enjoying myself. You did bring up the notion of investing from abroad. Since you brought it up, it should be addressed.

There are two options really. If you have some point that you really must prove, then go to it. Otherwise you could try getting a life.

[MacWalen]

What I charge to teach people investing is peanuts if you were thinking about the fees paid to managed funds.

Managed funds do have their place. Not everyone wants to stress out about daily market fluctuations. You pay the fees to avoid that. That's the whole idea of managed funds.

A well managed fund would probably be safer compared to investing off the back of knowledge gained from a one day seminar. Sometimes a little knowledge can be dangerous.

No, it does not work like that. If you invest yourself you do not have to watch it everyday. That is what traders do, and we do not teach frequent trading and becoming poor but investing and becoming rich.