Hi, am currently an uni student with 1-2k of spare savings to invest. Are robo advisors such as Syfe a good investment opportunity ? Looking for low risks investments. Any suggestions?

ETF DCA, low risk

I think there are three main points to consider.

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1. Your risk appetite. If you're looking for something that is low risk and safer to invest in, you can try your hand at unit trusts. Super diversified and you don't put all your eggs into one basket.
2. Liquidity. Do you see yourself using this amount of money in the near future? If you do, what is is going to be for? Alot of people say that they are using it to set aside as an emergency fund, but really its just deferred spending. Just in case anything happens you will use this money. So then its not really a matter of investing, but of using it for the future.
3. Fees. The amount of fees you're paying the robo or other platforms are perpetual. i.e. to say that if you're looking for long term investing the amount of fees payable is a lifetime's expense. Look for limited paying fees if you want long term investing 👍🏻

Syfe reits, a good choice to look into

Hi,

Robos are great for people with a low starting capital. Syfe and StashAway does not have any minimum sum to start investing with them, and their management fees are pretty manageable at the start.

The portfolio that a robo-advisor recommends you is pretty diversified , as they focus more on asset allocation rather than selecting a specific stock or bond. Once they decide how much of your entire sum they should be allocating to stocks or bonds, most would usually invest in a fund that is diversified across the entire asset class.

As such, they have a 'lower risk' compared to investing in individual stocks and bonds. However, low risk doesn't mean no risk! It is still possible for you to lose money with a robo-advisor.

As you are investing with a robo-advisor, I would suggest to understand their investing strategy. You may or may not agree with their strategy, and once you've become more confident with investing, you can consider doing DIY investing.

Robos are great as a start. However, once you have a larger amount to invest each month, it may be more cost effective to invest via a broker instead.

For more information about robo-advisors, you can read my article which answers 13 questions you may have about them.