While you might have heard the saying that you need to have money to make money, you probably didnโt stop to think that any money that you havenโt borrowed from a bank is your money. Itโs money that you can use to, well, make more! This is especially the case now because investing has become more accessible to the Average Joe (and Joanne), who can start an investment fund with ยฃ100 or less.
Think about what you have at your disposal. Do you have a few hundred pounds hanging around in a sluggish savings account? Maybe you have some unused online gift vouchers or even some coins in a savings jar. Tot them up and then see what you can do with them.
You could buy some bullion
Believe it or not, you can buy bullion for pound! You might have to start off with silver because itโs much cheaper than gold, but you can pick up little bars from Golden Eagle Coins for ยฃ10 or so.
Look at an online investment platform
There are many platforms of this type now; they all work in the same ways and if youโre careful and do lots of research, youโll do alright. Take the time to look at each platform and provider before settling on one โ you might want one that only invests your money in ethical enterprises, for example.
Most of the transactions and work is actually done by algorithms and software, but thereโll be customer-service people to talk to when you need them. Youโll almost certainly be asked to complete a questionnaire about your plans, hopes and risk appetite, then youโll have a portfolio type assigned to you. Itโs not quite custom-designed, but itโs tailored to people like you. There are management fees, but theyโre usually a small percentage of your earnings.
Join a peer-to-peer lending club
If you join a P2P lending club โ as a lender โ then youโll probably make a profit out of it. Some clubs will ask for just ยฃ25 to start off, although some ask for more, of course. You might not fancy yourself as a moneylender, so you could always see yourself as someone who invests in people with great ambitions and ideas.
Invest in yourself
You donโt even have to spend any money to invest in yourself โ you can invest some time instead. If youโve let your German grammar slip in recent years you can brush it up, or you can finish up that diploma you lost track of. Adding a few extra skills can add an extra dollar or so to your hourly rate; at the very least itโll rejuvenate your resume and your enthusiasm.
Start off a low-minimum, long-term investment fund
Very often an investment fund will need you to have several hundred dollars in before you start seeing some decent returns and this is why the minimum opening deposit can be $500 or more. Other funds let you start off with much less than this, so find some and pick one that suits you. Itโll be a slow-burner, especially if youโre only adding a few dollars each month, but itโs there and itโll start working once youโve got a few tens in.
Do you have any top tips for saving money on a shoestring? I would love to know in the comments below.

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