Japan grows enough food for only 1 in 3 of its people, reminder to appreciate food

I came across this show covering on Japan's food self-sufficiency crisis. Singaporeans love to visit Japan and rave about their food and how things are really fresh and they make many of their food with love and dedication. It is sad watching and learning that they used to had 73% of self sufficiency in terms of food but it dropped to 38% in recent years as more farmers choose to retire or had no choice due to ageing and with no successors. 

I was kind of shocked seeing this as I always had the impression that most of their produce are made in Japan however staples for them like Natto has it's main ingredient soya bean imported and also because of the past where imports were popular, some of the products were not farmed domestically and importing them was easier. But with the weakening yen, recent times have made them expensive to the locals.  

They mentioned that they have a self-sufficiency for meat at 65% however due to the feed being imported almost entirely, it brings the self-sufficiency to 17%. That is crazy if you think about it as the raw materials, the building blocks of the whole ecosystem for food is imported. Japan used to be able to farm quite sufficiently but various factors caused them to reduce. 

Rice is something that are local farmed but rice farming is something very much dependent on the weather and with changes in the climate, costs have gone up significantly. Farming rice has also become not profitable hence farmers have been switching and with that, grows a deficiency. 

I am sure that we have seen their beautiful fruits like melon, grapes and strawberries costing a bomb, with that some superficial grade where the ugly produce are sold cheaper and this brings about quality over quantity. This results in them throwing away the ugly food, causing much wastage. 

Warmer seas have also made seafood change with fishes getting smaller and reduced quantity. Really interesting to find out on all these and so the next time when I dig into a don or bento, I will be remembering the hard work of the farmers and how precious food is. We all need a reminder like that. 

Last 4 months of selling Options - USD $6294.76 earned, not sure how long this will last before I get assigned

I have been selling cash secured puts the last 4 months since mid March 2026. So far, it has been profitable as we had a upwards market and so prices have been on an upward trend meaning that the cash secured puts would be safe and usually profit after a few days as prices would go up. Which translates to me being able to close it earlier at a profit and opening a new position. You can definitely see that in May, I close and opened new positions practically every week in May as the market was just hitting new highs but June, it slowed as we saw some weakness in the market. 

However, as we end June 2026 and Micron's earning is coming out later, the market has been experiencing some weakness, due to various reasons, eg Warsh not providing any forward guidance, Banks predicting some rate hikes this year, some profit taking and Korea markets experiencing quite a drawdown as we see individuals taking on leverage and dumping all their money in as their stock market experiences one of the largest growth ever mainly due to Samsung and SK Hynix. 

Depending on how Micron's earnings is, it could dictate the market direction too as some profit taking can be seen and it seems this earnings will help solidify the memory play that has been a base for the AI story. Well, we shall see. 

Here are my profits for the past few months, I sold CSP on various stocks and mostly on those that I don't mind having in my portfolio if assigned. 

I didn't managed to catch onto the explosive memory gains like Micron, Sandisk and other semiconductors but did managed to get some spare change from selling options. For those who bought the names that exploded and held on, congratulations! Even if I had Micron, I think I would have sold it way before it hit $1000 and I would be kicking myself. Anyway, it really takes conviction to hold on and hoping the earnings goes well later. In the meantime, I will continue to sell options and update on my journey. I am currently using about 7% of my portfolio to do these cash secured puts. I don't want this to be more than 10% so I have reinvested some of the earning back. I am mostly buying index ETFs. 

Portfolio Update in June - Liquidated my REITs Portfolio in March 2026 and added it to the US market

My stocks portfolio has hit all time highs, not cos of Tesla (little bit of contribution) nor IBIT/Bitcoin but mostly because of QQQ and CSPX. I am quite surprised that QQQ is the one that helped propel the value of the stock portfolio because I thought it would be Tesla (a little growth) or IBIT, but IBIT has been disappointing as crypto goes into one of it dark times where no one is even bothering talking about it and even pivoting to AI so the downwards trend sees no support. 

QQQ is a substantial portion of my portfolio and I am adding to it as well. Other than that, I added some Nokia position, in terms of long term calls and a small stock position. Photonics have been popping up on my twitter feed, I added COHR in May 2026, it is in profit but wow, the volatility of photonics stocks are crazy, I can see stocks like LITE, AAOI, AEHR, AXTI go up like 20% and drop 20% in a day. So I do cash secured puts on them, particularly AEHR and AXTI so far and have earned pretty good premiums without being assigned, if assigned, I will sell covered calls on them. 

I liquidated my REITs portfolio in March 2026 as it was really a laggard compared to the rest of my portfolio, wasn't a big position, about $8000 so I reinvested it in the US market. I think I will reconsider REITs once I am older or when my portfolio crosses a certain amount. 

It was a volatile quarter but most days were green compared to red. It is nice chasing the highs and when ever I bought some thing, it was in profit. Feels a little surreal and dangerous so I do find that putting aside some cash while doing my DCA is a good precaution eg when AVGO released their earnings, missed top-line revenue estimates and issued guidance that failed to outpace soaring AI market expectations then the market reacted and it was a good buying opportunity although it was short-lived. 

My portfolio has not seen the huge and crazy growth as I do not hold much semiconductors and so nothing too exciting. Seems like a great area to add more bitcoin and maybe do some short term trades. 

Crypto portfolio disappointing results as it drops back to previous prices or maybe lower as 2024 and 2025. Not too much action here as crypto money pivots to AI stocks and more exciting areas, it might continue, this draining but well, we will wait and see. I will accumulate some position slowly and see how it goes. Hopefully Bitcoin can go back to above $100,000 but so far not so many positive catalysts. 

Stock portfolio reached an all time high so far as I injected some funds in and the growth of QQQ really helps. At this point, I can see the efforts of compounding much stronger than when my portfolio was at a lower value. Of course, some are saying that the market is exceptionally high and seems it's time for a correction especially since the US-Iran war has not ended, CPI is high and the world just doesn't look like it should be an all time high in the stock market but well, we shall see if it can hold and continue up or a correction is due. 

Total portfolio is not at all time high so just continuing my monthly DCA and hoping for some miracle in crypto haha. Time flies and we are concluding the first half of 2026 soon, well, hoping that 2nd half of 2026 brings more peace in the world. 

Portfolio is at all time highs but not as crazy as those on Reddit, why social media creates the FOMO feeling and intensifies it

I recently stopped using Instagram, I deleted the app and only log in occasionally eg every 2 weeks just to see and look, I find myself progressively able to live without opening it as I used to open Instagram a few times everyday, looking at the perfect and fun life everyone posted. The only downside is that I don't get updates of my friend's life and so when we meet up, they will need to update me otherwise I wouldn't know what they have been up to. 

I realised that deleting Instagram frees up quite a bit of my time. I still have Facebook, X and Reddit but I don't spend as much time on Reddit and Facebook, however I do find myself spending more time on X but not as excessive. With that, I do see a huge amount of post on gains in Micron, AMD and all the other stocks that have moonshot both in Reddit and X, in a sense, I do feel FOMO looking at them as they are all names that I have considered adding into my portfolio. Heck, I even held AMD before but I sold them at $190. What a disappointment!

With that being said, investing is really a game of emotions, QQQ has gone up quite a bit and is a proportion of my portfolio however if I were to compare that to Micron, AMD, EWY or other stocks that have went out then I would be upset. However, it is not bad growth, I have a friend who is heavily invested in semiconductor stocks and so the comparison makes me feel like my gains haven't been enough. I think buying the index is great and enough for me at the moment, I realised individual stocks do require an amount of research and conviction to hold it. 

Comparison is the thief of joy and I very much believe in it. I think being so perpetually online makes the comparison intensify and it makes you not satisfied with what you have now. I am currently trying to reduce my social media usage and see how it all pans out. This is why I am now writing more as I find that putting my thoughts down or just having a platform to share things can help me fulfil my time in a more productive way and take my mind away from all the doomscrolling. 

Will be doing a portfolio update soon, together with sharing my options (cash secured puts) strategy so far.  Time flies and we are already in the month of June, the year is passing way too fast. 

Options selling since I started in March 2026 - Earned SGD 5319, can this takeover a full time job?

It's been a crazy few months as we saw Micron and Intel hitting all time highs. Photonics was another sector I was looking at and seeing Lumentum and Coherent hit all time highs, I do feel a huge sense of FOMO for not putting more money in. Overall, FOMO not putting more money into the semiconductor industry as Nvidia hits all time high this week. 

As mentioned in one of my previous post, I am selling cash secured puts with a low 5 digit sum that I received early March, today, I like to record on the strategy so far and why actually if I had just invested, it might have provided better gains than selling cash secured puts. Some semiconductor stocks like Coherent, Lumentum, Aehr Test Systems and AXT Inc do provide some juicy premiums but like some have said that they have priced a lot of future growth in and in the long run, if we do have a bad earnings or performance, it can be reflected on their stock price so I am cautious on that as well as I sell CSP on them. 

1. Profits so far and my strategy

As of 15 May 2026, I have earned about USD $4164 which is about SGD $5319 from 19 March 2026. So it seems pretty good yea, I mostly did it on stocks that provided great premiums due to the high IV and mostly on stocks that are popular. These were the stocks that I did my cash secured puts on: BE, CRCL, SOXL, NBIS, TQQQ, MSTR, AXTI and AEHR. 

There are quite a few counters considering it was only since March 2026 but because of how the market has been on a rip upwards, I took profit often and opened new positions. I mostly opened 2 to 3 weeks positions but would take profit within the week since the stocks went up so much. 

2. Constantly looking at prices to see if I should take profit or leave it rolling 

Some trades were honestly unnecessary as I could have leave it to earn the full premium but I tend to open my brokerage app more often and this lead to me having itchy fingers and making more trades than needed. March was all right with just 2 trades but April and May 2026 were ridiculous with an excessive amount of trade and one trade just giving me a premium of $13 USD, I think I saw another more attractive trade and decided to do that instead. 

This was not very healthy as my nights were spent looking and even some nights, I had disrupted sleep. So I am trying to not make myself so addicted to checking prices and opening my app so excessively. I try to just make trades on Mondays and to close the position only if 50% profit has been made, meaning that if I buy it back, I pay 50% or less. 

3. Better to have it just invested and chill? 

There were many counters that I did CSP on that went up so much, I haven't calculated if I would have performed better holding them than doing CSP but I think it would have definitely used lesser effort. One of the ticker that I sold often was SOXL and on 19 March 2026, SOXL was at $54.85 and it grew to $186.19 on 14 May 2026. 

This means that for each SOXL stock, if I bought and held on, I would earn a profit $131.34. With just 100 shares bought at $54.85, if I held on till now, I would have earned a profit of $13,134. Of course, this is all on hindsight, if I really did hold it to be honest, I would have sold it when it reach $100 or if I had some kind of profit. 

Anw, I don't think I would want a position into SOXL considering the run up although it might still go higher since the semiconductor run is fuelled by AI which seems to be printing money now for compute and chips. But I think owning a broad based ETF is really what I want to be in currently. 

I own QQQ in my portfolio which has also seen quite a run up from March 19 2026 where it was $593 and on 14 May 2026, it is at 719, which is a profit of $126.19, I don't have enough for 100 shares but it would have been significant profit, not as much as SOXL or my options profit but would be something that can be held on for long term and compounded. So it does seem to be better to just invest that sum of money from the beginning I received it. I guess we also had a really great run up the past few months as the environment and earnings seem to show that AI is indeed a reality that we need to accept as companies are readily adopting it and spending money to improve their AI infrastructure.

What am I planning to do from now onwards? 

I like having this sum of money on the side to pump it in or do some cash secured puts on the side while I wait. I used to not have a substantial sum of cash on the side as I prefer to be 100% invested at all times but having this lump sum additionally does provide some different strategies that I can work with. 

With the premiums earned, I have pumped most of them back into the market and my portfolio is at all time highs though not like Micron and Intel kinda performance but I am going to continue to sell puts and try to accumulate and if we do see any kind of downward movement then I would consider adding otherwise my itchy fingers would anyway make me buy more index ETF or maybe get some Bitcoin. Nothing planning to do any lump sum purchase now but might do so in the future depending on the market. 

Markets have been wild but I am missing out on all the gains

FOMO feeling real strong the past week for me as I saw Micron and AMD as well as SOXL and other semiconductor shares hit all time high. My portfolio holding QQQ and Tesla ended the week well too but Bitcoin was rather all right compared to the memory stocks and AI fuelled stock's performance. 

I do feel a great deal of missing out as Micron is not a stranger to most, heck, I even held AMD shares previously but sold them at $190. But no matter what, when I think back, I know that I wouldn't have held them that long. 

The best investor is really those that buy and do not care, my mum has a small position of Micron shares and her performance of the shares has been 580%! That's crazy but the amount is really small so not like some life changing money but maybe enough for a few good meals haha. 

With that though, I also did cash secured puts on SOXL which has been rather juicy but seeing the missed out in gains especially since when I started doing CSP on it, it was less than $100 per share, the current price of it now is $176. I don't think I will be initiating any position on Micron or AMD or any of the stock that had a parabolic run but earlier in April, I did open small positions on EWY and COHR which both have performed pretty well, just regretted not putting more money in. But well, there is always next time. 

I am still DCA-ing into CSPX per month and nothing much, my options selling have been doing pretty well so will continue with that. Other than that, nothing much, the portfolio is slowly gaining some growth so will just leave it as it is. Things are pretty volatile, Trump just endorsed Dell and mentioned him and the stock went parabolic, shall see how Monday goes. 

This all feels like a game at the moment and Trump and his mates are earning the big bucks just by following his signals. Not too sure how this year will end but time sure definitely passes fast as we enter May. I don't think I will be pumping more money in at the moment except for my monthly DCA-ing into index funds. Feels a little over but well, high can go higher so we shall see how it goes! 

First month of Options selling: Cash Secured Puts - Earned

In my previous post, I mentioned that I received a low 5 digit figure, from a savings plan bought 10 years ago when I first started working and I am planning to generate some cash flow from it. It is not a huge sum of money and is about 8% of my investment portfolio so I want to see how much cash can be generated from it and if it hits the strike price and then I have to cover the positions. 

I did do this before previously but chose stocks that were very volatile like Tesla and in turn, it really kept me up all night and was like struggling to not panic when I got exercised. I think sticking to positions that you are comfortable with and not touching the base portfolio helps as I sold covered calls on my base Tesla positions and when it got exercised, I struggled to quickly get back in. So doing CSP helps as it is separate from my base portfolio and can be done separately with the wheel strategy eg if it is exercised then I will sell covered calls. Of course, it might drop to a price that is below my original cash position but at least it is separate from my base portfolio. 

I have a few stocks in mind for this as I am not able to do cash secured puts on QQQ or SPY as they are too high for my budget although I would love to do cash secured puts on them. I will list down the stocks that I am currently looking at, ok to have them in my portfolio and also low enough for me to do cash secured puts. They are not in any order and *Please note that I am not providing financial advice and that the counters below are just as a reference for myself. 

- NBIS

- MSTR

- CRCL

- RBLX

- HOOD

- PLTR

Heard that SOXL, TQQQ are also great stocks to sell CSP on as they provide juicy premiums but they are leverage ETFs so I do have second thoughts if I really do want them in my portfolio if I get exercised. 

Of course, I don't have enough capital to do it on all but I might do it on rotation, avoiding earnings season and see how it goes, I will probably take the cash generated and re-invest it back into the market or slowly accumulate and buy LEAPs (long term calls usually a year or more out). 

So far on my first month from March 2026 to April 2026, I generated about $700 and nothing much to scream about but it seems to be pretty substantial for me. It can cover my gym subscription, phone bills and even the wifi bill. I know that the market has been on a sideway trend where it goes up when Trump says the war has ended and downward when Iran says no, or when new attacks have been launched. So usually ending pretty flat. 

Great month for CSP and shall see how the following months go, might eventually use the money to initiate positions but I hope to grow it enough to a point to do CSP or covered calls on QQQ just as a separate bucket to generate income while also have my base investments as a priority and majority. Don't think it will happen that fast but slowly accumulating. Nice to have a lump sum coming in although I might have done better if I invested it instead of having it in a savings plan but since it was 10 years ago when I started, if I had the money, I would have busted it somewhere else or lost it all originally. 

There are pros and cons to a savings plan but I think the liquidity is an issue especially as you grow older since more commitments might arise. I am not planning to start another savings plan but might do a SSB (Singapore saving bonds) or have some  in IB01 as I build up the cash position. 

My Cash Secured Put for IBIT, Bitcoin ETF got exercised

In a previous post, I wrote about selling 3 cash secured puts on IBIT and using the premium to buy more well, that happened when IBIT was at $66 USD, crazy, how it dropped to around the $30 area I bought it pretty far out about 9 months (for the one expiring March 2026) and 12 months out (expiring in June 2026). 

Read: Leverage can double your gains but wipe you out too, what "dangerous" positions am I holding currently?

For the March 2026 cash secured put, I set the strike price at $49 and I had to buy 100 shares at $49 when it was trading at around $40 so I am still in the red since the current price at the moment is also around $40. I have 2 more upcoming expiring on 18 June 2026 with strike price of $40 and $45, not too sure if they will be exercised but I do have the funds and don't mind adding on. 

It has been volatile so I cannot guarantee if they will be exercised of course, I don't wish to buy them at a higher price than the market rate so hoping that Bitcoin stage a recovery and stays above the strike price or at least pretty close so that I don't lose too much. But in the long term, I believe Bitcoin is going up and no harm in adding more positions.  

In the meantime, I received a low 5 figure sum recently and started selling some cash secured puts with them since it can allow me to choose a strike price lower than the market price but with the volatility, it can mean that it goes lower than expected. In terms of the broader market, I think sticking with my DCA-ing of index funds have been good, with 50% of my portfolio in broad index funds (namely QQQ and CSPX), the crazy news hasn't brought it down as much as crypto or Tesla. 

Thoughts on cash secured puts

When I first sold this 3 puts, I didn't think that they would have a chance to be exercised but I think that definitely after doing CSP for some time, you learn. I sold them pretty far out and thought bitcoin would be well above $100,000 by now but well, we are far from that. 

I now usually sell CSP on monthly basis with 28 days to 30 days expiration dates. I tend to sell them on red days and definitely on shares that I don't mind getting if it ever hits the strike price. It is fun seeing the premiums coming in but I need to restrain myself from getting too greedy eg to sell without holding the necessary cash to cover. 

Overall, I am slowly learning and not overstretching myself so hoping to see where it brings me for this year and if I will still be continuing to sell puts after 2026. I use about 8% of my total portfolio to do this CSP system as I want to still be invested in the market. As the portfolio grows, it might also mean that this cash set aside might grow but nothing is fixed in stone.Happy to generate some income on the side in this sideway/volatile market but in a bull market, it will definitely be better to be invested so it depends. 

2026 direction for the portfolio - What am I adding, strategies for portfolio growth and where I want it to be at the end of 2026

2025 was quite a good year for the portfolio, it went up in value with my contributions and also the volatility of it provided such excitement for me. Hoping to reduce the risky factor in the portfolio by diversifying more into index funds but at the same time to make calculated bets into what I believe will grow in the coming years. 

2026 continues on the AI momentum as we see IREN, NIBS, uranium stocks as well as copper (commodity) gain interest, I do not know where to put my money in but am observing them as I feel I need to know more so that if any black swan event happens, I have the conviction to hold and not sell out. 

Tesla and Bitcoin (both quite substantial positions in my portfolio) performed not as well as expected towards the end of 2025 and I don't intend to add more Tesla but for bitcoin I will add more positions slowly. I will be receiving some money from a savings plan that I started when I was 21 so after 10 years, the money will be back in my pocket. I think I would have done better investing it or maybe I would have just lost it all so it is a good addition. When I started the savings plan at that time, I just started working and my mum wanted me to get into the habit of forced savings so it was a save 5 years and locked in for another 5 years. Turns out, time passes really fast!

Read: Savings plan - Yes or No

Since it will be a sum of about low 5 digit, I might start doing some cash secured puts on it before deciding where to deploy the money in. No concrete plans for now but holding on to it and doing cash secured puts is the current plan. 

Other than that, IREN seems to be a counter that I like to have a position in. I understand that they used to be a Bitcoin miner company but have since pivoted to doing data centers for AI using 100% renewable energy with Bitcoin mining still around. I haven't done much research into it. There seems to be a momentum for its analyst are setting a pretty high buy price for it as it recently had a contract awarded by Microsoft. I am not really knowledgeable in AI, chips and data centers but I can see the rise in excitement as well as more people talking about the relevant industries. Will initiate a small position before their earnings on 11 Feb 2026 and see how it goes. 

Besides that, CSPX monthly position is still going on and so that is my plan so far, looking at uranium shares but I don't want to be investing into so many counters that I am not familiar with so that is just something I am looking at now and not initiating any positions. 

2026 portfolio expectations

I think it will be a volatile year and the portfolio value is not something that I can control over time as it depends on many factors however, I want to make sure that I am adding in consistently and that is the plan. Of course, building a cash position is also part of the plan as I think the stock market might face some downturn although no one knows but having a cash position will allow me to take some opportunities if there is a downturn. 

Reflections on 2025 and entering 2026, wishes, plans and a letter to myself

2026 has arrived and we are now in the middle of January, I had a trip to HK just recently and it was great with amazing weather, I realised that Hong Kong does not have heaters or warmers so they go back to a cold home everyday but the coldness is bearable for a trip but if I were to stay there for long, I would get a heater. It has been tough getting back into the momentum of working as the December celebration and start of new year festive season is still strong making me lazy to get back into full working mode. I think it will take me till end of CNY to get back into it hahaha. 

Going on a trip at the beginning of the year was nice, it seemed like places weren't as crowded as compared to November and December where people were winding down for the year. I might try to make it a yearly thing if I can. 

Work 

On my work side, my job role has been transferred to the parent company where the company I worked at was bought over 6 years ago and now all corporate functions is being brought over to the parent company, the benefits are horrible where annual leave has been reduced and flexible benefits removed, even insurance coverage has been reduced.

Well, I guess jobs are not as secure as they wrecked before, happy to still have a job as I have to admit that AI is coming fast for my job role and if I lose my job, I don't think I can find one easily as the role is really easily automated. 

Not really preparing or up-skilling myself although the government and my parents are telling me to, it just seems like the AI wave is coming for everything, so what if I make the effort to upskill, would that save me? I don't know. 

I will work in this job as long as it goes and see where it brings me, lazy to go through the multiple rounds of interviews for what I think is not necessary for such an entry role job. 

Health

I guess I want to pay more attention to my mental health, I do get anxious easily and am an over thinker and worrier. I also do not have many social interactions as I work from home, hoping to improve on that in 2026 although it really takes a lot of effort on both me and my friends. 

My friends are all busier as they find their significant other and we tend to spend lesser time together and in Singapore where most relationships are transactional, it does take a lot of effort to find someone genuine and part of it is that I have got so used to being alone that sometimes, it takes a lot to let someone enter my life. 

So I want to push myself to open up and expand my social network at least for 2026, nothing too ambitious just say yes to more events and spontaneous meet ups. 

Finances

As mentioned above about my job, I think I need to really build up a more substantial emergency fund as the reality of being laid off is so real. The retrenchment benefit/package in Singapore is not even guaranteed so having a more robust liquid cash position is important for me at the moment. I actually hold really little cash as I prefer being invested but looking at the stock market, I do think that this is quite a good time to accumulate cash. Will write up another article on my plans for the portfolio in 2026. Overall finances is not a huge concern for me at the moment *touchwood* since I have no children or mortgage and health is still all right. 

2025 was not a huge year for me rather it was an autopilot kinda year, I let things happen on it's own and didn't work hard or much to achieve as it was the year I turned 30 but felt that I wanted to take a break, slow down in life and not work so hard like previous years. 

My family sure felt that as they saw me lazing around most of the time and was at one point questioning me on what I want to do with my life, I guess it is really weird in Singapore to not think about work or money or life although the younger generation is trying to change that. I think my friends could also feel the carefree attitude I had because when we met, they would talk about their work, colleagues and I would just be not talking about work as there really is nothing much going on for me on that end. 

I think I have done well in the year, it was a kinda year where I compared myself to others a lot, as I wasn't doing much in my life, it was easy to open social media and see everyone else living an amazing life but I know social media breeds negativity as comparison arises. I am hoping to reduce doomscrolling and usage on social media, hopefully get back more into putting my thoughts into words. Hoping that 2026 will be smooth and that some excitement can happen in my life too! 

Here we are, last month of the year and portfolio down due to Bitcoin

October was really the peak for Bitcoin so far, I didn't think that it would drop back below 100,000 but well things happen. Liquidity is drying up in crypto space as AI seems to be the better choice also I guess other factors too. 

In my previous post, I mentioned about holding cash secured puts in IBIT and actually it is really really close to those prices so I might have to buy those positions if it continues to drop and the option get exercised. 

Anyway, on the stocks side, we did see a slight pullback when Oracle recently announced their earnings with weaker than expected earnings and forward guidance was not too good and future plans of data centers with OpenAI seems to be delayed. 

AI is definitely advancing at a rapid pace but there is a lot of capital pumped into it and investors wants to see how that capital can translate into profits especially massive profits since AI has been marketed as world changing and will increase productivity with less labour. Tesla is gaining some momentum as it's autonomous driving is advancing although we don't know how long it will take for it to be fully rolled out. I am holding onto my position and it has been a long hold, SpaceX seems to be garnering for a record IPO in 2026 making Elon Musk reach crazy net worth. 

Bitcoin on the other hand is losing steam in its build up as we see the various bitcoin treasury companies slow their purchases except Strategy. I am cautiously optimistic for crypto as it feels like there is so much leverage and everyone is tired of it. Tired of how we were looking ahead for new highs but yet it crashes like nobody's business. Not really adding positions in Bitcoin at the moment although it is nice to pick some up at this price but no optimism or positivity yet. 

Enjoying the year end as time flies back quick and 2025 has been a crazy year, turning 30, thinking more about life and what I want to do in life. It's been a year of reflection and thoughts. As we slowly inch near the end of 2025, it is nice to see that I am advancing in terms of financial and health, feeling good and understanding that being healthy is the best thing ever, don't want to make myself too stressed over work and damage my health like how I did during Covid where I had some stomach issues. 

Understanding myself better next year as I enter 2026 is the main goal, enjoy the time with my family and friends, to be present for them. The portfolio is now slightly above $250,000 as compared to Q3 where it was at one point $300,000 so kinda sad but all right since we know how the market is, just scared and curious how low can it go. 

Leverage can double your gains but wipe you out too, what "dangerous" positions am I holding currently?

The huge crash on Friday has been making waves in the weekend as cryptocurrency market functions 24/7, there is no break and we are hearing stories of liquidations and huge capital loss due to perpetuals. Let's have some definitions first as I am also not familiar with terms. 

Leverage in investing refers to the use of borrowed money (debt) to increase the potential return of an investment. It is a strategy that allows an investor to control a larger position in a security or asset than their own capital would normally permit. Essentially, leverage acts like a financial multiplier, amplifying both potential gains and potential losses.

How Leverage Works

The core mechanism involves:

1. Borrowing Funds: The investor borrows capital, usually from a broker (through a margin account), a bank (like a mortgage for real estate), or by using financial instruments like options and futures.

2. Increased Exposure: The borrowed funds are combined with the investor's own capital (equity) to make a significantly larger investment. This larger investment is the total exposure.

3. Amplified Outcome: Because the profit or loss is calculated on the total, larger investment amount, the return (or loss) on the investor's relatively smaller amount of original capital is magnified.

The degree of leverage is often expressed as a leverage ratio, such as 2:1 or 5:1. A 5:1 ratio means that for every $1 of the investor's own money (margin), they can control $5 worth of the asset (borrowing the remaining $4).

The Double-Edged Sword

Leverage is considered a high-risk, high-reward strategy:

• Amplified Profits: If the investment performs well, the returns on the total position, after deducting the cost of borrowing (interest/fees), can lead to a much higher percentage return on the investor's initial capital.
• Amplified Losses: If the investment moves against the investor, the loss is also based on the total position's value. This can result in losses that exceed the investor's initial investment, requiring them to put up additional capital or face a forced sale (margin call) of the asset to repay the debt.

My Position

I don't hold any leverage in my portfolio as I don't spend huge amount of time in the markets nor am I a trader but I do hold some cash secured puts on IBIT which I did to generate some capital to add onto my positions and since I know that Bitcoin is on an upside trajectory long term then if it ever drops that low, I will be willing to buy. 

I hold about 3 cash secured puts that I bought in June this year expiring on 20 March, 18 June and 18 June 2026 with strike prices, $49, $40 and $45. Based on this, $49x1754=$85,946.00, $40x1754=$70,160.00 and $45x1754=$78,930.00 so if Bitcoin drops to these prices, I would need to buy the shares. 

$49x100=$4,900.00, $40x100=$4,000.00 and $45x100=$4,500.00, if we were to reach the prices above then I would need to spend $4,500.00+$4,000.00+$4,900.00=$13,400.00 (USD) to cover the positions. To me, those are my riskiest positions because I am also holding a Bitcoin position and would then need to spend my cash position to buy the positions. Seeing this Friday crash, is scary and there is a possibility for that, never say never in crypto.  

I am experimenting with options, I don't like covered calls as most of my positions are for the long term and for holdings like Tesla and QQQ, it is definitely not recommended for covered calls unless you plan to take profit and close the position. I did covered calls for awhile and always found myself losing the upside. 

With cash secured puts, I find it useful only if you have some cash on the side, after trying it, I do find it a little waste of cash positions if they are huge as it might be better having it invested but overall all right with it as my cash secured puts are not a huge amount. I think as we get older then this might be a good tactic as your portfolio has grown and you also can afford to have a larger cash holding but of course, this is in the case of you not having much liabilities For now, I won't be adding any options positions in. I am observing buying options like a call or a put but not dabbling into it yet, just learning more about it. 

Let's wait and see how the equities market will open on Tuesday, the crypto market has been devastated so sharing some tweets here for the memories. 

Yesterday’s liquidation was really rough. If it left you uneasy, you’re not alone.

I’ve lived through similar days and wanted to share a few lessons that helped me steady myself after the chaos. Maybe they’ll help you or someone you know too. pic.twitter.com/29WQZLg5GN

— Jeff Park (@dgt10011) October 11, 2025

Friday’s liquidation wiped out many traders - even those using just 1.5x leverage.

It’s heartbreaking to see so many people lose everything overnight. If you’re one of them, take a step back, breathe, and don’t give up. You can always rebuild.

Futures trading is brutal. Never…

— Bobby Ong (@bobbyong) October 12, 2025

Q3 2025 Portfolio update - Broke a new all time high but went back down again in start of Q4

I wanted to record this down as another all time high was recorded for the portfolio at the end of Q3 2025.  With Tesla gaining back traction, REITs gaining back as interest rate is predicted to fall plus bitcoin hitting all time highs, it propelled my portfolio to $300,000 at one point which was unimaginable. 

I remember starting out in my investing journey, wanting to hit $100,000 when I turn 30. I turn 30 this year and my portfolio has hit $300,000 before declining to about $260,000, I have been taking huge risks in positions but balancing it out slowly now with monthly DCA has seems to pay out so far. 

A huge part of how my portfolio has grown is due to concentration, I decided to concentrate in just a few positions, Bitcoin being one of it and Tesla as well as QQQ. All 3 has done pretty well. 

As I type this, it is 12 October 2025 and on 10.10, with China announcing rare earth export control, Trump retaliated and will be imposing tariffs.  The market reacted to it and crashed with Bitcoin seeing a dramatic drop, the crypto space has experienced huge liquidations as a lot of leverage is being use and also because the market was so bullish the past week that everyone was predicting an all time high. I have seen stories of huge liquidation on twitter and also it seems that some brokerage did close positions even when it wasn't supposed to due to the huge dips. 

My portfolio has dropped down to about $260,000 since the highs and it really shows the volatility and concentrated positions that I currently hold gives a huge high and low as Bitcoin crashes quick and dip quite substantially compared to the stock market index like S&P 500. My brother portfolio is only VOO so he experienced a lower volatility but overall, I am all right with it and am thinking of adding some positions slowly. 

Sharing some of the ATH screenshots of my portfolio so far (I hold a portion of my Bitcoin in IBIT and the rest in cold storage so my stock portfolio looks to soar much higher as it has a position of Bitcoin too:

With that, it really shows that if you start seeing ATHs and want to take a screenshot of your portfolio value then maybe it is time to take some profits or reserve cash for some buying opportunities. Anyway, with whatever available cash, I will slowly be initiating positions although I don't usually hold much cash to deploy as I use a monthly DCA strategy. I hold mainly spot positions and do not use leverage so most losses are due to decline in prices of assets which is already enough volatility for me. I am currently building up my index ETF positions and as I get older, I might shift my profits from positions to safer assets. 

Q2 2025 portfolio review | Amazing quarter for crypto but looking great ahead for Tesla?

Amazing end to the quarter as crypto and indexes has gone up significantly. The portfolio has went up and we are seeing more adoption into cryptocurrency as Trump pushes for more crypto bills. I am writing this in Q3 so not exactly accurate. I was pretty busy in Q2 so was not able to capture much of my thoughts on the portfolio. 

My portfolio is now well above $200,000 hitting $250,000 and what a difference from the previous quarter. As mentioned previously, I did a short trade on metaplanet and moved the profits into Bitcoin (IBIT), QQQ and CSPX, happy with that move.

Allocating of monthly DCA

As we see stocks and crypto make all time highs, it does make me wonder if I should be stock piling some cash and if the monthly DCA should go on. But I will be saving some cash on hand.

Stocks

Stocks were down end of Q1 namely Tesla as it struggled to gain upward momentum as Elon was not on good terms with Trump and it was even putting Tesla in trouble but writing this in Q3, stocks have gone up pretty much. Most of my holdings are actually in Tesla and QQQ as well as CSPX so it can be volatile. But overall, it has been good for QQQ, not so for Tesla. We can see some roll out of Tesla FSD and it is expanding, we also saw the Tesla diner opening. As for now, I will be holding onto the existing positions and maybe adding occasionally.

Crypto

With Bitcoin heading up, it has been great and Ethereum has also been up on a ride after a long while. Holding onto Ethereum all this time has been tough as everything has been going up while ETH stayed flat for pretty long.

My crypto portfolio has hit all time high and it’s been great. Added some BTC when it experienced a slight dip to 116,000 and 114,000 recently but other than that, nothing.

Portfolio has hit an all time high and I am thinking if I should still be adding or taking some profit but I have been liking to check it and seeing a higher value excites me. Trying not to relate it to my happiness because then a crash would make me upset.

Syfe REITs

REITs have also gathered some momentum as interest rate looks poised to be cut. The portfolio is now in profit in excess of a few hundred, nothing much. There were a few surprises as interest rate was expected to drop or for the Fed to be at least squeeze in a rate cut but so far none has been done.

I have been placing money into this portfolio monthly, about $100-$200 monthly since I started the portfolio in 2022 and it would have performed better if I placed it in QQQ or CSPX but it provides me a dividend of about $50 per month now with a very marginal profit so I enjoy this diversification but have stopped the monthly contributions. I let the dividend be reinvested so that’s all.

Overall

With the portfolio hitting all time highs and interest rates still high, looking ahead for the interest rate cuts and what it will bring. Sentiments are high for September as an interest rate cut is anticipated, we shall see. In the meantime, hoping to see the market go to greater heights.

Taking profit after making a 2X and where did I divert the profits to?

I made an investment recently, doubling it in a few months and as I always tend not to sell, I took the opportunity to sell and lock in the profits as it was a bitcoin treasury company that I invested in based on someone I follow on X.

It wasn’t a calculated move as I just felt the momentum and wave of excitement for it was phenomenal hence I knew it was a short trade. It wasn’t easy having to monitor the price and because I wasn’t well researched into the company, when the price dropped, I was quite irritated, in the end, I decided to leave with some profits and keep a small position of it.

Metaplanet

I had a low 5 digit cash on hand and decided to do a short trade on it or just sell some cash secured puts while earning some premiums. It was early May 2025 and I saw on X @vincent13031925 talking about this company called Metaplanet, I dive into research more, finding out that it is a bitcoin treasury company with 1 remaining hotel in Tokyo, Japan.

They used to own hotels worldwide but was hit by Covid and hence the CEO dived into Bitcoin. I liked Metaplanet comparatively to other Bitcoin Treasury companies as firstly, it is based in Japan! Singaporeans loveeeeee anything Japanese because we know that they are more detailed and usually think a lot about risk before making a decision.

A bitcoin treasury company in Asia and especially in Japan where the currency has been dropping means that the population might be seeking an alternative to the Japanese Yen to save as it was corroding year on year. Bitcoin could be the answer. @vincent13031925 also listed out many of the actions of the board and how they can take advantage of the low interest rate in Japan to raise funds as well as issue more shares to raise funds which dilute shareholders but increase bitcoin holdings.

It sounded smart and I knew it was gaining traction especially since they had a listing on the US OTC Markets and the Germany markets. With the traction on X, it seems that everyone was excited, I made my move and bought in my first tranche at 580 yen and added more at 619 yen and finally at 606 yen.

Selling

In June 2025, I decided to sell my position at 1508 JPY leaving just a very small position in case it goes hyperbolic, it was not easy deciding to sell as I do have some inertia in selling as I always think that it will go up more but overall it was a good one for me as I didn’t need to keep looking at the price and it was intended to be a short trade.

With the profits, I increased my position in QQQ and Bitcoin. Overall from June till now, it was a good diversification of my profits as Bitcoin has seen substantial growth this 2 weeks. It has also propelled my portfolio value.

But I definitely am not into short term trading. The metaplanet thesis still stays and they are accumulating bitcoin at a rapid pace, the CEO looks up to Michael Saylor and so they want to be like Strategy but in Asia. I am still holding a small portion but in the meantime just enjoying seeing the green in the market!

Q1 2025 Portfolio Review | Back below $200,000 and on the downtrend

The portfolio has dropped significantly in Q1 2025 compared to 2024 all time high from the Trump effect. In 2025, every time Trump appears, it seems to make the market dump as 2025 seem to be all about tariffs and how to screw the world up.

It’s been tough looking at the portfolio and seeing it drop in value as Tesla and Bitcoin both hold a significant position in my portfolio and so the fall has been ouch.

Stocks

The stock holdings in my portfolio has been falling as Tesla gets hit by auto tariffs and deliver lower numbers of cars for Q1. There has been wave of unhappiness towards Elon which is being directed to Tesla car owners.

With that, we have seen individuals scratching and damaging Tesla cars and it will have some impact on the sale of Tesla. I think the brand of Tesla do seem affected and Q1 deliveries number isn’t looking good. Almost all bets are now on FSD and Optimus so if nothing happens by June or by this year, we will need to assess.

Adding CSPX as per monthly addition, other than that, nothing much.

Crypto

Just holding onto existing positions, Bitcoin has retraced quite a bit from it’s highs but is holding up pretty well in the face of tariffs. Ethereum has been performing horribly, basically not looking at this portfolio as I think there have been better times and hopefully better times ahead too.

REITs

This portfolio has been holding up not bad, adding monthly contributions to it, not huge and could have earned more if placed elsewhere but looking at the drop in the US stock market, glad to have this around.

I will continue to add here and hold on till retirement? haha, I think it does seem more like capital preservation kinda investment and dividends is the added bonus. Does seem nice to have something not drop as drastically compared to the US stock market.

Options

Not doing much on this end as volatility is real high but I did do a few covered calls the past week to earn some small change but with this volatility, I will see how, not an everyday kinda thing.

Holding on tight

It is difficult to feel secure or think that the market will be able to recover back to it’s high but we all know that this will be over except we don’t know when. It might drop further and it can get scary when looking at your portfolio every time you open the app.

I try not to check my portfolio often and don’t think so much about it. I have already automated my buys so it will continue but I will add some buy actions to take advantage of this downturn. Will be getting in by batches.

I have heard so many people around mentioning that they should have sold it last year when the market was at an all-time high but to be honest, heck, we though 2025 will be a bull market with Trump mentioning that he thinks the interest rate should be cut but look where we are. Well, we can be grateful that all we have to think is how much money we have lost and not whether will we be able to have our next meal. Grateful for that and all in all, great buying opportunity although we don’t think how low is low and how long this will last.

Options - The solution to income and capital growth?

My friends have been doing options in the stock market, buying puts and calls based on where they think the stock will be headed. With that said, one of them have just broken even but made himself pretty busy managing the options and the other have earned some money from it.

I was thinking if I should go in and start doing options as well as the FOMO hits hard when they share about their experiences especially when the trade is profitable. But I am lazy and don’t want to be stressing about positions. I did covered calls during the bear market and overall did earn some. But the bull market is here now and I do not have much cash on hand to do cash secured puts so I am happy holding my spot positions.

My friends said it is a good time to get into options as the volatility is high and market seems to be going well but I know it’s not that easy.

Taken from ChatGPT: Options trading is a form of financial trading that involves buying and selling options, which are contracts that give the buyer the right (but not the obligation) to buy or sell an underlying asset (like stocks, commodities, or currencies) at a specified price on or before a certain date. Options are a type of derivative because their value is derived from the underlying asset.

Why 0DTE options are getting popular

One of my friend buys a 2 weeks to a month call/put but manages it daily and he says that once there is a certain profit, he will proceed to close it within the day. I didn’t really ask the details but it sounds tiring and so far he is profitable from what he shares.

Taken from Chat GPT: 0DTE options (Zero Days to Expiration options) are options contracts that expire on the same trading day they are purchased. These ultra-short-term options have gained significant popularity among traders in recent years due to their unique characteristics and potential for high returns.

I guess there is an adrenaline rush or excitement doing 0DTE options like you are earning money daily easily. I did not ask if he was earning money overall but I guess he is?

Using Covered Calls and Cash Secured Puts to earn some income?

I like using covered calls and cash secured puts as you will not lose money but in a way lose out in future gains if the stock soars up as covered call would mean that you would need to sell it once it hits the strike price and if the shares burst past the strike price, you miss out.

With cash secured puts, you miss out if the stock keeps going up and doesn’t come down to your strike price for you to get the shares at the lower price. In a way, it is a good way to earn some income although holding shares in the long term could turn out better in the case of covered calls. I have missed out in some gains for covered call so I only occasionally sell it. You don’t lose money but lose out future gains which is all right for me.

I do like the concept of cash secured puts but in that case, you would need to have some capital especially for shares that I would like to have in my portfolio.

Overall, I prefer holding spot positions and options are kinda secondary or optional in my case. What are you thoughts in using options as an income?

Is it really necessary to have a side hustle

I met up with my friend recently and she was mentioning on how she is planning to get a certificate for her career to progress to a better position or even branch out to something slightly different from her role but still in the same field.

She shared that many of her friends had side hustles that earn them a supplement income and she wants to have a side gig on the side as well but struggle to know what she can do. Not that I am an expert at it, I recommended her to start recording her travels as she loves to travel and is able to travel frequently due to the nature of her job but she was reluctant.

Do I need a side hustle

Vlogs on Youtube is a popular side hustle and some have succeeded in obtaining a following by sharing their lives. It is definitely not easy sharing your life and exposing almost everything online. It takes a certain amount of courage and I understand why my friend is reluctant in doing so. I believe many tend to give up as well as consistency is tough and the growth might not be the same as expected.

There are definitely many ways now to start something, an Instagram page or something that you are interested in on TikTok, I think there are many avenues to start but consistently having to post and think of new content can be taxing. Content creation is popular as the amount of time that each individual spends on social media is enormous compared to previous generations. I open my phone to check things like in almost every break that I take.

I do not have any side hustle at the moment and would love to have one. This blog can be considered (?) but at the moment there is no substantial income from it so I wouldn’t consider it. Maybe as a hobby or tracker for my net worth since most of my post is about my investment portfolio. As I advance in my career, I do find a 9-5 job restricting although it provides the comfort and stability. Also, it gets a little repetitive and the industry and work gets more cutthroat as you age and I might become seen as out of touch especially when you are not specialised or have not progressed to a certain level.

You don’t need a side hustle

On the flip side, some thinks that you do not need a side hustle as long as you continue to build on your main income and if it increases over time then it should work out.

I think this is more relatable to me but whether or not I am able to increase it over time is another thing as I do see things being really volatile with AI, automation and robotics being the focus for the next decade.

Anything can be a side hustle

As long as you can scale it, anything can be a side hustle. Of course, adding value to people’s life will be the differentiating factor. I guess trading or investing is also a side hustle and the building up and accumulation phrase is always the toughest of a side hustle. If you have a side business, building up the customer numbers or viewers if it’s a youtube channel will be difficult part. Do you have a number of side hustles or you are keeping it to your main job and increasing it?

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Is it all right to be staying with your parents when you reach your thirties? Why I think I will be doing that and how independent am I?

I came across a lot of videos that talk about how more people in their 20s and 30s are choosing to stay with their parents especially after the pandemic. Definitely, this is partly due to the cost of property and the rising cost of rent and living especially in the cities. In Singapore, I don’t think it is strange to still be staying with your parents in your 30s as we do not have the mentality that you should leave your home at 18 and start living independently.

It has it’s pros and cons but it definitely depends on your family dynamics and how your relationship with your parents are. After all, the property is indeed your parent’s and so there are rules that will need to be followed and if you cannot take it, moving out is the best option but can be affected by financial issues.

I would say that family dynamics are different for every individual and I am lucky to be living with a family that is close and we do blend well together with my mum being very accommodating so for me, living with her is a pro compared to moving out. But in terms of being independent, I definitely am not. My laundry, meals and essential housekeeping is not being done by me, embarrassing but I like to enjoy this as much as I can haha. Eventually, I will need to start doing them but staying with my mum means she will do them for me, I used to do them occasionally when my mum was working but after she retired, she has been doing it.

Cost/Housing system

Singapore is unique as we are a city state so that means that everywhere is accessible. We do not have to move to another city within the country to work for example in USA, some will need to move from Idaho or Texas to New York or San Francisco because there might be better opportunities or the headquarter of the office might be there.

In this way, most of us in Singapore do stay with our parents till we are able to afford rent or until we get our own property. Rent in the city is always expensive compared to the suburban as we see in the world, that is the same in Singapore, with Singapore being small, the supply might be lesser and so landlords do have the upper hand unless in unique conditions.

There are also certain conditions to be able to purchase public housing in Singapore otherwise, private is the way to go but it is not easy to have the sum of money for mortgage. This all accumulates and I just find it easier to stay with my family for now.

Freedom/Own space

I think this is a huge reason why most people choose to move out especially since in Singapore, most of us stay in flats or condo units, space can be limited for a family unit. We saw this during the pandemic as many worked from home and realised how having your own space is important. Many younger folks found it impossible to concentrate on work while having their parents go about their lives at home too due to the pandemic.

For me, it was all right, it was mainly being cooped up at home that was the issue. I don’t have a huge family so space was sufficient for us. It is nice to have your own space, I have friends who have BTOs and renovated them very nicely with a study/gym room and gadgets in the kitchen like a dishwasher, I think it is the feeling of going home to a space of your own that people yearn for.

Having your own space also means you can do things your way like not washing your dishes straightaway or buying your own ingredients to cook or to drink and heading home anytime you want to.

Independence

Similar to the above, you find yourself having to do groceries, housework and making sure that things are working at home otherwise you are the one to suffer. Settling your meals are also an essential part especially if you do not live near any food establishments and is a homebody.

Overall

It is a cost and space issue and financials play a big part since the housing space in Singapore is unique and in most cases costly. I have to say that I am very much dependent on my family and if in any case I do move out in the future, I do find that I will feel very lonely so that will be something I will need to adapt to.

Other than that, I think most people are not moving out as coast of buying a property is much more difficult and lesser people are getting married so individuals are able to stay longer with their parents and at the same time keep their spending low.

Q4 Portfolio Review | Investments has hit $200,000

Woah, another ATH hit after the previous quarter, the later half of this year especially after September has proved the power of the Trump Trade. Euphoria has flooded the market and we can see that from Tesla to crypto which I hold in my portfolio.

My portfolio has hit ATHs and went down but it is overall still higher than when the year started, the volatility is still there as we see Bitcoin hit $100,000 for the first time and moving up before going down due FOMC Jerome Powell saying that there will be one less rate cut next year. Although I did not make life-changing money, many others in crypto has made it through memecoins and leveraging, I do feel happy with achieving a $200,000 portfolio faster than I predicted/expected. It is kinda scary too so I might take some profits and move them to index ETFs or REITs, it depends. I have shifted some BTC position to ETH as we anticipate the alt season but ETH has not yet shown much strength, we will observe the bitcoin dominance as we enter 2025. I don’t do memecoins although I know that the gains there are unimaginable but I want to be able to sleep soundly in the night.

Stocks

Tesla and QQQ carried the gains for my stock portfolio. I sold my Palantir position, where my average cost was $34 and sold them for $64. Regretted that as it has since gone up substantially, I sold that and placed it into Bitcoin so it has some profits as well. Not really thinking of rotating back as Palantir is now at about $80. Well, can’t capture all the gains so that’s how I console myself. With that, the overall stock market in terms of index ETF has been great, I hold QQQ, CSPX and Tesla so pretty happy with the performance. Monthly I am just adding CSPX and saving more cash on the side.

Crypto

Crypto has been a whirlwind of emotions, we hit $100,000 twice and beyond but fell back below. Trump has not taken office and we can see the excitement for crypto as some promises were made including having a Bitcoin reserve but we will have to see if they come true. It has dropped a little since reaching it’s all time high but it has increased overall year to date. No adding any positions here right now.

REITs

REITs has been losing out in action compared to my stocks and crypto positions. It has actually decline and the portfolio value is now lower than the total capital that I injected in meaning I am losing money, including my dividends. This is a long term portfolio so I think there is no need to focus on the short term, so still contributing a small amount monthly to this.

Overall

The portfolio increased about 65% from last year’s ending value of $111,232.

Read more: End of Year Portfolio Review | Total Investments hits $100,000, marching towards $150,000 by end of 2024

There were substantial amount of capital injections but the last few months really accelerated the growth of the portfolio with crypto and Tesla. The FOMC meeting on 18 Dec confirmed one last rate cut of 25 bps for 2024 but in 2025 reduced the 3 rate cuts to 2. Many seem to be really bullish for 2025, from Tom Lee to Bitwise and Cathie Wood but we shall thread slowly and see. No leverage on my portfolio, only spot positions.

My friends have been doing options trading buying calls and puts but I think overall it is tiring and if in my case, I prefer doing cash secured puts means selling a put but it would require capital especially if you do it on stocks that you want to have. So for now, I am not dabbling into options in this volatile situation.

Overall, going into 2025, I am holding more of a wait and see position. Most people have a bullish outlook especially people with cryptocurrencies but no one knows if it will really turn out bullish, so let’s wait and see.