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Nguyen Tuan Anh, founder of Finpeace, shared lessons from his experience in 2008–2009 on a Personal Finance podcast hosted by VnExpress, describing how he lost nearly 30 months’ salary after adopting a “fast in, fast out” approach during a period of high market volatility.
At the time, he invested almost all capital into stocks, which he viewed as the highest-profit channel, and repeatedly used leverage to accelerate growth. He also directed cash flow into running a coffee shop business and continued borrowing from banks to scale up investments. After only a few months, the market reversed, resulting in substantial losses in 2009.
He identified the main causes as a lack of experience and misjudging the environment, which led risk levels to exceed what he could withstand. Although his living costs were about 500,000–1 million VND per month, he did not build an emergency fund lasting 10–20 months. As a result, after roughly 9 months, he slid into heavy losses.
In the current investment environment, he said fluctuations are harder to predict—for example, oil prices can rise by as much as 50% within a few days. To respond, he reorganized his portfolio into two groups.
The first group includes assets that provide steady cash flow, such as rental real estate or high-dividend stocks. These are intended as long-term holdings to help maintain consistent income.
He cited a benchmark: if a person earns 50 million VND per month from work and also receives 50 million VND per month from rental assets, that alignment indicates a level of financial freedom.
The second group focuses on reinvesting cash flow generated from the first group to accumulate more assets. He noted that channels such as gold and savings are already allocated to cover the equivalent of one year’s living expenses or a child’s education costs, so no additional top-ups are required.
Any remaining funds are invested in stocks on a regular monthly schedule. When savings reach about 2 billion VND, he uses that amount to buy real estate. He said this cycle continues regardless of market conditions.
After more than 13 years applying this approach, he said the portfolio structure has become more stable and less volatile. He added that he previously leaned toward short-term trading to capture price differences, but over time he shifted toward long-term asset holding and reduced turnover.
On future investment channels, he emphasized that large losses often come from speculation and high leverage, while patient accumulation of assets over 5–7 years is less likely to produce meaningful losses.
For the next 6–12 months, he believes stocks are more suitable for long-term investors due to a solid capital base and the ability to benefit from market pullbacks. He also pointed to insider and related-party purchases as a sign that valuations may be becoming more attractive. By contrast, he said short-term speculators may face difficulties because markets can swing due to international factors, and high leverage increases risk.
He said a rising rate environment makes deposits a safer option. He described this as a transition from low rates to higher rates, which can offer more stable yield opportunities.
For real estate, he said real demand remains strong while supply is limited. He added that the trend toward housing for young people or government-participated projects is likely to continue for years. He noted that historically, real estate prices rarely fall in the long run, but the key factor is whether investors can hold through cycles based on their personal financial capacity.
Regarding gold, he said the market is currently flat, making it less conducive to short-term speculation.
He said money is shifting across channels: after a period when funds flowed strongly into stocks and real estate, many channels are now stalling while deposits are becoming more attractive. However, he cautioned that continuously adjusting asset weights to maximize profit should be approached carefully because of many unpredictable variables.
An important principle he reiterated is that large losses often stem from speculation and high leverage. In contrast, patient accumulation of assets over 5–7 years—whether in gold or other assets—is rarely associated with significant losses.
For allocation, he recommended splitting investments into two groups. First are safe assets that cover essential needs such as unemployment, health, and family responsibilities, focusing on stability and high liquidity like deposits and gold. Second are growth investments aimed at leading, solid companies with lower risk, even if growth rates may not be as high as in earlier periods.
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