My Investments Update – May 2025

Nick Investing events, reviews 0 Comments

Here is my latest monthly update about my investments. You can read my April 2025 Investments Update here if you like.

I’ll begin as usual with my Nutmeg Stocks and Shares ISA. This is the largest investment I hold other than my Bestinvest SIPP (personal pension).

As the screenshot below for the year to date shows, my main Nutmeg portfolio is currently valued at £24,532. Last month it stood at £25,065, so that is a fall of £533.

Apart from my main portfolio, I also have a second, smaller pot using Nutmeg’s Smart Alpha option. This is now worth £3,934 compared with £4,027 a month ago, a fall of £93. Here is a screen capture showing performance for the year to date.

Finally, at the start of December 2023 I invested £500 in one of Nutmeg’s new thematic portfolios (Resource Transformation). In March I also invested a further £200 from referral bonuses. As you can see from the YTD screen capture below, this portfolio is now worth £770 compared with £783 last month, a fall of £13.

As you can see, April was a roller-coaster month for my Nutmeg investments. There were some big dips in the early part of the month, followed by a partial but nonetheless welcome recovery. Overall I am down by £639 over the month. This is mostly due to the continuing instability in world markets, caused by the trade tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump and other economic factors.

Nonetheless, the value of my Nutmeg investments is still up £838 in the last twelve months. And their value has increased by £2,920 or 11.10% since the start of January 2024. So the recent falls do need to be taken in context. Ups and downs are always to be expected with stock market investments, and over time they tend to even themselves out. In general the worst thing you can do is panic and sell up when downturns occur, as you are then crystallizing your losses. This is something I had cause to discuss recently in this blog post.

You can read my full Nutmeg review here. If you are looking for a home for your annual ISA allowance, based on my overall experience over the last eight years, they are certainly worth considering. They offer self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs), Lifetime ISAs and Junior ISAs as well.

Moving on, I also have investments with P2P property investment platform Assetz Exchange. As discussed in this recent post, the company recently rebranded as Housemartin.

My investments with Housemartin continue to generate steady returns. Housemartin focuses on lower-risk properties (e.g. sheltered housing). I put an initial £100 into this in mid-February 2021 and another £400 in April. In June 2021 I added another £500, bringing my total investment up to £1,000.

Since I opened my account, my HM portfolio has generated a respectable £245.97 in revenue from rental income. I have also made a profit of £4.78 on property disposals. Capital growth has slowed, though, in line with UK property values generally.

At the time of writing, 18 of ‘my’ properties are showing gains, 1 is breaking even, and the remaining 18 are showing losses. My portfolio of 37 properties is currently showing a net decrease in value of £54.67. That means that overall (rental income and profit on disposal minus capital value decrease) I am up by £196.08. That’s still a decent return on my £1,000 and does illustrate the value of P2P property investments for diversifying your portfolio. And it doesn’t hurt that with Housemartin most projects are socially beneficial as well.

The net fall in capital value of my Housemartin investments is obviously a little disappointing. But it’s important to remember that until/unless I choose to sell the investments in question, it is largely theoretical, based on the latest price at which shares in the property concerned have changed hands. The rental income, on the other hand, is real money (which in my case I’ve reinvested in other HM projects to further diversify my portfolio).

To control risk with all my property crowdfunding investments nowadays, I invest relatively modest amounts in individual projects. This is a particular attraction of Housemartin as far as i am concerned. You can actually invest from as little as £1 per property if you really want to proceed cautiously.

• As I noted in this blog post, Housemartin is particularly good if you want to compound your returns by reinvesting rental income. This effectively boosts the interest rate you are receiving. Personally, once I have accrued a minimum of £10 in rental payments, I reinvest this money in either a new HM project or one I have already invested in (thus increasing my holding). Over time, even if I don’t invest any more capital, this will ensure my investment with Housemartin grows at an accelerating rate and becomes more diversified as well.

My investment on Housemartin is in the form of an IFISA so there won’t be any tax to pay on profits, dividends or capital gains. I’ve been impressed by my experiences with Housemartin and the returns generated so far, and intend to continue investing with them. You can read my full review of Assetz Exchange/Housemartin here and my article about the rebranding to Housemartin here. You can also sign up for an account directly via this link [affiliate].

In 2022 I set up an account with investment and trading platform eToro, using their popular ‘copy trader’ facility. I chose to invest $500 (then about £412) copying an experienced eToro trader called Aukie2008 (real name Mike Moest).

In January 2023 I added to this with another $500 investment in one of their thematic portfolios, Oil Worldwide. I also invested a small amount I had left over in Tesla shares.

As you can see from the screen captures below, my original investment (total value £888.36 in pounds sterling) is today worth £975.36, an overall increase of £87 or 9.79%.

• Note: eToro now displays the value of investments in your native currency, although you can change this if you wish.

You can read my full review of eToro here. You may also like to check out my more in-depth look at eToro copy trading. I also discussed thematic investing with eToro using Smart Portfolios in this recent post. The latter also reveals why I took the somewhat contrarian step of choosing the oil industry for my first thematic investment with them.

As you can see, my Oil WorldWide investment has seen a downturn in April and is actually worth marginally less than when I invested. That’s clearly disappointing after last month’s improvement, but reflects the global economic turmoil caused largely by US President Trump’s tariffs.

Thankfully my copy trading investment with Aukie2008 has been doing better, with an overall 33.82% profit. To be fair, I have held this investment a little longer.

My Tesla shares, which I bought as an afterthought with a bit of spare cash I had in my account, have done particularly well since I bought them, with an overall profit of 158.24%. If only I had put a bit more money into this!

You might also notice that I have small holdings in Prosus NV, a Dutch internet group, and South Bow, a Canadian energy infrastructure company. To be honest I don’t understand how I acquired these, but I assume they are some sort of bonus I was awarded. In any event, I am happy to have them in my portfolio!

• eToro also offer the free eToro Money app. This allows you to deposit money to your eToro account without paying any currency conversion fees, saving you up to £5 for every £1,000 you deposit. You can also use the app to withdraw funds from your eToro account instantly to your bank account. I tried this myself and was impressed with how quickly and seamlessly it worked. You can read my blog post about eToro Money here. Note that it can also serve as a cryptocurrency wallet, allowing you to send and receive crypto from any other wallet address in the world.

If you would like more information about setting up an eToro account, please click on this no-obligation website link [affiliate]. Don’t forget that you also get a free $100,000 virtual portfolio, which you can use to experiment with trading and investing strategies. I have certainly earned a lot from mine.

Finally, just for fun I put £50 into an investment ISA with Trading 212. As mentioned in my recent blog post about dividend investing, I put it into the (Almost) Daily Dividends Portfolio, a ready-made portfolio or ‘pie’ on Trading 212. As you can see from the screen capture below, my account is already in profit, and has even accrued 2p in dividends!

Moving on, as I said last time, I am no longer writing for the Mouthy Money website, as they have decided to take their content creation in-house. From a personal perspective I am obviously disappointed about this, but I had a good run with them and wish them every success going forward. You can still read all the articles I contributed to Mouthy Money over the years by visiting my profile page on the website. How long they will keep this in place I really can’t say!

In April I did have a guest post on my friend Sally Jenkins’ writing blog. Sally asked me some questions about my writing career for a regular feature she runs on her blog. I enjoyed answering the questions, which included “What are the most important qualities required by a writer?” and “What writing resources have you found most useful?” If you have any interest in writing, hopefully you may find this of interest.

I also published several posts on Pounds and Sense in April. I have listed below those that are still relevant

In Why Now Could Be the Ideal Time to Take Advantage of Your New Tax-Free ISA Allowance, I pointed out that everyone received a new £20,000 ISA allowance from the start of the new tax year on 6 April 2025. My article sets out some good reasons for taking advantage of the new allowance sooner rather than later, especially in light of persistent rumours that the government plans to restrict the allowance (for cash ISAs at any rate) in the autumn budget.

Why Has My Bank Abandoned Me? is an opinion piece by a writer friend who has asked to be known at SD. In it she laments the changes at UK banks in recent years that have hit older customers (in particular) hard. I could certainly relate to some of the experiences she describes in her article. Take a look and see if you agree.

I’ve already mentioned my post about Why UK Retirees Shouldn’t Panic Over Trump’s Tariffs and Market Wobbles. In this I pointed out that whilst the recent downturn is disappointing for investors, the worst thing you can do is panic and sell up, as this will crystallize your losses. In this post I draw a parallel with the Covid crash and point out that this was followed by a sustained rise in stock market values. Of course, nobody knows how current events will play out, but hopefully the upward trend seen over the last couple of weeks will continue. In any event, historically stocks and shares have delivered better returns than savings accounts over most periods of five years or longer.

Tow Like a Pro – Caravan Safety Tips From the Experts was a guest post from my friends at Compass, who are specialist leisure and caravan insurers. The post reveals the most common causes of accidents with caravans and sets out some top tips for staying safe when towing one.

Finally, How to Publish Your Book (and Earn Royalties) was a guest post from my writing friend Sally Jenkins (as mentioned earlier I had a guest post published myself on Sally’s blog in April). In her article, which generated a lot of interest, Sally set out the main options for getting a book published and making money from it. She also revealed some resources she has used herself in her successful freelance writing career.

I’ll close with a reminder that you can also follow Pounds and Sense on Facebook or Twitter (or X as we have to call it now). Twitter/X is my number one social media platform and I post regularly there. I share the latest news and information on financial matters, and other things that interest, amuse or concern me. So if you aren’t following my PAS account on Twitter/X, you are definitely missing out.

• I am also on the BlueSky social media network under the username poundsandsense.bsky.social. For the time being anyway, Twitter/X will remain my primary social media platform, but I will also post details of my latest blog posts, third-party articles and other financial news and resources on BlueSky for those who prefer to follow me there.

As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below. I am always delighted to hear from PAS readers 

Disclaimer: I am not a qualified financial adviser and nothing in this blog post should be construed as personal financial advice. Everyone should do their own ‘due diligence’ before investing and seek professional advice if in any doubt how best to proceed. All investing carries a risk of loss. 

Note also that posts on PAS may include affiliate links. If you click through and perform a qualifying transaction, I may receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect the product or service you receive or the terms you are offered, but it does help support me in publishing PAS and paying my bills. Thank you!

My Investments Update – April 2025

Nick Investing events, reviews 0 Comments

Here is my latest monthly update about my investments (slightly earlier than usual due to other commitments). You can read my March 2025 Investments Update here if you like.

I’ll begin as usual with my Nutmeg Stocks and Shares ISA. This is the largest investment I hold other than my Bestinvest SIPP (personal pension).

As the screenshot below for the year to date shows, my main Nutmeg portfolio is currently valued at £25,065. Last month it stood at £25,850, so that is a drop of £785.

Apart from my main portfolio, I also have a second, smaller pot using Nutmeg’s Smart Alpha option. This is now worth £4,027 compared with £4,151 a month ago, a fall of £124. Here is a screen capture showing performance for the year to date.

Finally, at the start of December 2023 I invested £500 in one of Nutmeg’s new thematic portfolios (Resource Transformation). In March I also invested a further £200 from referral bonuses. As you can see from the YTD screen capture below, this portfolio is now worth £783 compared with £803 last month, a fall of £20.

As you can see, March has been another disappointing month for my Nutmeg investments. Overall I am down by £929. This is mostly due to the continuing instability in world markets, caused by the the trade tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump and other economic and social factors.

Nonetheless, the value of my Nutmeg investments is still up £1,477 in the last twelve months. And their value has increased by £3,559 or 13.52% since the start of January 2024. So the recent falls do need to be taken in context. Ups and downs are always to be expected with stock market investments, and over time they tend to even themselves out. In general the worst thing you can do is panic and sell up when downturns occur, as you are then crystallizing your losses. Indeed, I am considering topping up some of my investments now while values are depressed. That’s just how I’m thinking, of course, and doesn’t constitute investment advice!

You can read my full Nutmeg review here. If you are looking for a home for your annual ISA allowance, based on my overall experience over the last eight years, they are certainly worth considering. They offer self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs), Lifetime ISAs and Junior ISAs as well.

Moving on, I also have investments with P2P property investment platform Assetz Exchange. As discussed in this recent post, the company recently rebranded as Housemartin.

My investments with Housemartin continue to generate steady returns. Housemartin focuses on lower-risk properties (e.g. sheltered housing). I put an initial £100 into this in mid-February 2021 and another £400 in April. In June 2021 I added another £500, bringing my total investment up to £1,000.

Since I opened my account, my HM portfolio has generated a respectable £238.70 in revenue from rental income. Capital growth has slowed, though, in line with UK property values generally.

At the time of writing, 15 of ‘my’ properties are showing gains, 2 are breaking even, and the remaining 19 are showing losses. My portfolio of 36 properties is currently showing a net decrease in value of £52.78, meaning that overall (rental income minus capital value decrease) I am up by £185.92. That’s still a decent return on my £1,000 and does illustrate the value of P2P property investments for diversifying your portfolio. And it doesn’t hurt that with Housemartin most projects are socially beneficial as well.

The overall fall in capital value of my Housemartin investments is obviously a little disappointing. But it’s important to remember that until/unless I choose to sell the investments in question, it is largely theoretical, based on the latest price at which shares in the property concerned have changed hands. The rental income, on the other hand, is real money (which in my case I’ve reinvested in other HM projects to further diversify my portfolio).

To control risk with all my property crowdfunding investments nowadays, I invest relatively modest amounts in individual projects. This is a particular attraction of Housemartin as far as i am concerned. You can actually invest from as little as £1 per property if you really want to proceed cautiously.

• As I noted in this blog post, Housemartin is particularly good if you want to compound your returns by reinvesting rental income. This effectively boosts the interest rate you are receiving. Personally, once I have accrued a minimum of £10 in rental payments, I reinvest this money in either a new HM project or one I have already invested in (thus increasing my holding). Over time, even if I don’t invest any more capital, this will ensure my investment with Housemartin grows at an accelerating rate and becomes more diversified as well.

My investment on Housemartin is in the form of an IFISA so there won’t be any tax to pay on profits, dividends or capital gains. I’ve been impressed by my experiences with Housemartin and the returns generated so far, and intend to continue investing with them. You can read my full review of Assetz Exchange/Housemartin here and my article about the rebranding to Housemartin here. You can also sign up for an account directly via this link [affiliate].

In 2022 I set up an account with investment and trading platform eToro, using their popular ‘copy trader’ facility. I chose to invest $500 (then about £412) copying an experienced eToro trader called Aukie2008 (real name Mike Moest).

In January 2023 I added to this with another $500 investment in one of their thematic portfolios, Oil Worldwide. I also invested a small amount I had left over in Tesla shares.

As you can see from the screen captures below, my original investment (total value £888.36 in pounds sterling) is today worth £1,072.80, an overall increase of £184.44 or 20.76%.

• Note: eToro now displays the value of investments in your native currency, although you can change this if you wish.

You can read my full review of eToro here. You may also like to check out my more in-depth look at eToro copy trading. I also discussed thematic investing with eToro using Smart Portfolios in this recent post. The latter also reveals why I took the somewhat contrarian step of choosing the oil industry for my first thematic investment with them.

As you can see, my Oil WorldWide investment is currently showing a profit of 12.31%. That’s a welcome improvement since the portfolio was rebalanced by eToro. The investment team at eToro periodically rebalance all smart portfolios to ensure that the mix of investments remains aligned with the portfolio’s goals, and to take advantage of any new opportunities that may present themselves.

My copy trading investment with Aukie2008 has been doing better, with an overall 32.06% profit. To be fair, I have held the latter investment a bit longer.

My Tesla shares, which I bought as an afterthought with a bit of spare cash I had in my account, have done particularly well since I bought them, with an overall profit of 144.84%. If only I had put a bit more money into this!

You might also notice that I have small holdings in Prosus NV, a Dutch internet group, and South Bow, a Canadian energy infrastructure company. To be honest I don’t understand how I acquired these, but I assume they are some sort of bonus I was awarded. In any event, I am happy to have them in my portfolio!

• eToro also offer the free eToro Money app. This allows you to deposit money to your eToro account without paying any currency conversion fees, saving you up to £5 for every £1,000 you deposit. You can also use the app to withdraw funds from your eToro account instantly to your bank account. I tried this myself and was impressed with how quickly and seamlessly it worked. You can read my blog post about eToro Money here. Note that it can also serve as a cryptocurrency wallet, allowing you to send and receive crypto from any other wallet address in the world.

If you would like more information about setting up an eToro account, please click on this no-obligation website link [affiliate]. Don’t forget that you also get a free $100,000 virtual portfolio, which you can use to experiment with trading and investing strategies. I have certainly earned a lot from mine.

Moving on, as I said last time, I am no longer writing for the Mouthy Money website, as they have decided to take their content creation in-house. From a personal perspective I am obviously disappointed about this, but I had a good run with them and wish them every success going forward. You can still read all the articles I contributed to Mouthy Money over the years by visiting my profile page on the website. How long they will keep this in place I really can’t say!

I also published several posts on Pounds and Sense in March. Some are no longer relevant, but I have listed the others below.

In Beat the Postage Stamp Price Rise!, I pointed out that stamp prices are rising again on 7th April 2025. This will actually be the the SIXTH rise in the price of first class stamps in just three years. See what prices are going up, along with my recommendations for mitigating the effects of the increases.

And in From Saving to Spending – The Retirement Mindset Shift I discussed a subject that has been on my mind recently as I enter my 70th year. This is how to negotiate the mindset shirt from saving to spending in retirement, and how (hopefully) to get the balance right.

The Pros and Cons of Investing for Dividends discusses a strategy that has been growing in popularity with older investors particularly. Dividend investing offers the potential for generating income combined with capital appreciation. In this post I examine the pros and cons of a dividend investing strategy and set out a few tips and guidelines for those new to this.

Finally, in Spotlight: The Mintos P2P European Investing Platform I take a closer look at Mintos, Europe’s largest P2P investment platform. As well as the ability to generate above-average returns by investing in loans to businesses world-wide, they have added new diversification options, including bonds, ETFs and real estate. And until the end of April they have a bonus offer for anyone investing €1,500 or above on the platform. In my blog post I look at the pros and cons of investing with Mintos and provide more details about their April bonus offer.

One other thing is that we’re currently just over a week away from the end of the 2024/25 financial year. If you still haven’t used all of your 2024/25 £20,000 tax-free ISA allowance, you have just a few days left before it’s gone. It is more important than ever to use all your tax-free allowances while you can, as the government looks set to reduce some of these allowances later in the year. See my recent blog post for more information.

I’ll close with a reminder that you can also follow Pounds and Sense on Facebook or Twitter (or X as we have to call it now). Twitter/X is my number one social media platform and I post regularly there. I share the latest news and information on financial matters, and other things that interest, amuse or concern me. So if you aren’t following my PAS account on Twitter/X, you are definitely missing out.

• I am also on the BlueSky social media network under the username poundsandsense.bsky.social. For the time being anyway, Twitter/X will remain my primary social media platform, but I will also post details of my latest blog posts, third-party articles and other financial news and resources on BlueSky for those who prefer to follow me there.

As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below. I am always delighted to hear from PAS readers 

Disclaimer: I am not a qualified financial adviser and nothing in this blog post should be construed as personal financial advice. Everyone should do their own ‘due diligence’ before investing and seek professional advice if in any doubt how best to proceed. All investing carries a risk of loss. 

Note also that posts on PAS may include affiliate links. If you click through and perform a qualifying transaction, I may receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect the product or service you receive or the terms you are offered, but it does help support me in publishing PAS and paying my bills. Thank you!

My Investments Update – March 2025

Nick Investing events, reviews 0 Comments

Here is my latest monthly update about my investments. You can read my February 2025 Investments Update here if you like.

I’ll begin as usual with my Nutmeg Stocks and Shares ISA. This is the largest investment I hold other than my Bestinvest SIPP (personal pension).

As the screenshot below for the last twelve months shows, my main Nutmeg portfolio is currently valued at £25,850. Last month it stood at £26,528, so that is a decrease of £678.

Apart from my main portfolio, I also have a second, smaller pot using Nutmeg’s Smart Alpha option. This is now worth £4,151 compared with £4,267 a month ago, a fall of £116. Here is a screen capture showing performance over the last twelve months.

Finally, at the start of December 2023 I invested £500 in one of Nutmeg’s new thematic portfolios (Resource Transformation). In March I also invested a further £200 from referral bonuses. As you can see from the screen capture below, this portfolio is now worth £803 (rounded up) compared with £832 last month, a fall of £29.

As you can see, February has been a disappointing month for my Nutmeg investments. Overall I am down by £823. This is mostly due to a general decrease in share values in the second half of the month.

Nonetheless, the value of my Nutmeg investments is still up £390 since the start of the year. And their value has increased by £3,441 or 12.67% in the twelve months since the end of February 2024.

You can read my full Nutmeg review here. If you are looking for a home for your annual ISA allowance, based on my overall experience over the last eight years, they are certainly worth considering. They offer self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs), Lifetime ISAs and Junior ISAs as well.

Moving on, I also have investments with P2P property investment platform Assetz Exchange. As discussed in this recent post, the company recently rebranded as Housemartin.

My investments with Housemartin continue to generate steady returns. Housemartin focuses on lower-risk properties (e.g. sheltered housing). I put an initial £100 into this in mid-February 2021 and another £400 in April. In June 2021 I added another £500, bringing my total investment up to £1,000.

Since I opened my account, my HM portfolio has generated a respectable £235.31 in revenue from rental income. Capital growth has slowed, though, in line with UK property values generally.

At the time of writing, 17 of ‘my’ properties are showing gains, 1 is breaking even, and the remaining 19 are showing losses. My portfolio of 37 properties is currently showing a net decrease in value of £50.24, meaning that overall (rental income minus capital value decrease) I am up by £185.07. That’s still a decent return on my £1,000 and does illustrate the value of P2P property investments for diversifying your portfolio. And it doesn’t hurt that with Housemartin most projects are socially beneficial as well.

The overall fall in capital value of my Housemartin investments is obviously a little disappointing. But it’s important to remember that until/unless I choose to sell the investments in question, it is largely theoretical, based on the latest price at which shares in the property concerned have changed hands. The rental income, on the other hand, is real money (which in my case I’ve reinvested in other HM projects to further diversify my portfolio).

To control risk with all my property crowdfunding investments nowadays, I invest relatively modest amounts in individual projects. This is a particular attraction of Housemartin as far as i am concerned. You can actually invest from as little as £1 per property if you really want to proceed cautiously.

• As I noted in this blog post, Housemartin is particularly good if you want to compound your returns by reinvesting rental income. This effectively boosts the interest rate you are receiving. Personally, once I have accrued a minimum of £10 in rental payments, I reinvest this money in either a new HM project or one I have already invested in (thus increasing my holding). Over time, even if I don’t invest any more capital, this will ensure my investment with Housemartin grows at an accelerating rate and becomes more diversified as well.

My investment on Housemartin is in the form of an IFISA so there won’t be any tax to pay on profits, dividends or capital gains. I’ve been impressed by my experiences with Housemartin and the returns generated so far, and intend to continue investing with them. You can read my full review of Assetz Exchange/Housemartin here. You can also sign up for an account directly via this link [affiliate]. Bear in mind that, as from the current financial year (2024/25), you can open more than one IFISA per year.

In 2022 I set up an account with investment and trading platform eToro, using their popular ‘copy trader’ facility. I chose to invest $500 (then about £412) copying an experienced eToro trader called Aukie2008 (real name Mike Moest).

In January 2023 I added to this with another $500 investment in one of their thematic portfolios, Oil Worldwide. I also invested a small amount I had left over in Tesla shares.

As you can see from the screen captures below, my original investment (total value £888.36 in pounds sterling) is today worth £1,056.29, an overall increase of £167.93 or 18.90%.

• Note: eToro now displays the value of investments in your native currency, although you can change this if you wish.

You can read my full review of eToro here. You may also like to check out my more in-depth look at eToro copy trading. I also discussed thematic investing with eToro using Smart Portfolios in this recent post. The latter also reveals why I took the somewhat contrarian step of choosing the oil industry for my first thematic investment with them.

As you can see, my Oil WorldWide investment is showing a profit of 8.77%. That’s a small but nonetheless welcome improvement since the portfolio was rebalanced by eToro. The investment team at eToro periodically rebalance all smart portfolios to ensure that the mix of investments remains aligned with the portfolio’s goals, and to take advantage of any new opportunities that may present themselves.

My copy trading investment with Aukie2008 has been doing better, with an overall 31.18% profit. To be fair, I have held the latter investment a bit longer.

My Tesla shares, which I bought as an afterthought with a bit of spare cash I had in my account, have done particularly well since I bought them, with an overall profit of 163.81%. If only I had put a bit more money into this!

You might also notice that I have small holdings in Prosus NV, a Dutch internet group, and South Bow, a Canadian energy infrastructure company. To be honest I don’t understand how I acquired these, but I assume they are some sort of bonus I was awarded. In any event, I am happy to have them in my portfolio!

• eToro also offer the free eToro Money app. This allows you to deposit money to your eToro account without paying any currency conversion fees, saving you up to £5 for every £1,000 you deposit. You can also use the app to withdraw funds from your eToro account instantly to your bank account. I tried this myself and was impressed with how quickly and seamlessly it worked. You can read my blog post about eToro Money here. Note that it can also serve as a cryptocurrency wallet, allowing you to send and receive crypto from any other wallet address in the world.

If you would like more information about setting up an eToro account, please click on this no-obligation website link [affiliate]. Don’t forget that you also get a free $100,000 virtual portfolio, which you can use to experiment with trading and investing strategies. I have certainly earned a lot from mine.

I had six more articles published in February on the excellent Mouthy Money website. The first is titled Travelling to Europe This Year? Here’s Why You Need a GHIC Card. If you’re unfamiliar with the GHIC or how it differs from the previous European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), this article reveals everything you need to know, from how to apply to why it’s so important for your travels.

Also in February Mouthy Money published How to Check Your Tax Code and Correct it if Necessary. Understanding your tax code and ensuring its accuracy can prevent you from overpaying (or underpaying) tax. In this article I explained everything you need in order to check and understand the code you have been allocated.

And in Make Extra Money Renting a Room I turned the spotlight on this traditional (but none the worse for that) method for making some extra money. If your circumstances allow it, letting a room in your home can be a great way of generating a sideline income. It will provide a regular, ongoing income stream, which could prove a lifeline in these financially challenging times. And you can choose between getting a full-time lodger or offering short-term lets. Better still, under the Rent a Room Scheme you can make up to £7,500 a year this way entirely tax free!

In What is the Trading Allowance and How Can You Profit From It? I discussed this valuable allowance for UK residents looking to earn extra income from trading or side hustles. Even if you have a full-time job already, under the Trading Allowance you can earn up to £1,000 a year without having to declare that income to the taxman or paying tax on it. Read my article for the full lowdown!

And in Could You Benefit From the Help to Save Scheme? I discussed this lesser-known government initiative which, if you’re eligible, can give your finances a valuable boost. The Help to Save scheme aims to help people on lower incomes build up their savings. Offering generous tax-free bonuses, Help to Save can provide significant benefits for qualifying individuals.

Finally, in Could a Smart Thermostat Save You Money?, I revealed how these clever devices can save you money on your energy bills. I recently had one fitted myself. In this article I reveal which I chose (and why) and share some tips based on my own experiences. My heating engineer Dave, who installed it for me, also gets an honourable mention!

As I’ve said before, Mouthy Money is a great resource for anyone interested in money-making and money-saving. From the range of articles published in February, I particularly enjoyed Where to Find the Best Money-Saving Resources in 2025 by regular MM contributor Shoestring Jane. Jane writes mainly about money saving and frugal living. You can see all of her articles for Mouthy Money via this web page.

• The not-so-good news about Mouthy Money is that due to a change in their business strategy they will no longer be commissioning external content writers such as me and Jane. From a personal perspective I am obviously disappointed about this, but I have had a good run with them and wish them every success going forward. I will continue to follow Mouthy Money with interest and recommend PAS readers do the same. I am also available for other writing work in the personal finance sphere if anyone else should need me!

I also published several posts on Pounds and Sense in February. Some are no longer relevant, but I have listed the others below.

Debunking Common Myths About Over-50 Life Insurance is a guest post on behalf of my friends at British Seniors Insurance Services. It sets out seven common myths about life insurance for over-50s, including ‘I’m too old to get life insurance’ and ‘Life insurance for over-50s is too expensive’, and explains why these commonly-held beliefs are incorrect.

Marriage in Later Life – A Guide to the Financial and Legal Implications is another guest post, this time by my colleagues at HCR Law. In this eye-opening article, their family law specialist, Victoria Fellows, sets out some important considerations to take into account if you are thinking of marrying (or remarrying) in later life.

In How to Make Money From Stoozing, I discuss this method of making extra income by taking advantage of interest-free offer periods on credit cards. If you are well organized you can make hundreds of pounds by doing this, but there are certain pitfalls to avoid. My article sets out everything you need to know and shares some useful resources.

Don’t Miss Out! Use Your £20,000 ISA Allowance Before It’s Too Late is a reminder that the current tax year ends on 5 April 2025 – and if you don’t use your 2024/25 tax-free ISA allowance before that date, it will be gone forever. In my article I explain the main types of ISA and reveal the ones I invest in myself. I also reveal why using your ISA allowance may be especially important in the current tax year if certain rumours are to be believed.

Finally, in Get Your Will Written Free of Charge in March, I discuss Free Wills Month, which actually starts today (3rd March 2025). This event brings together a group of well-respected charities to offer members of the public aged 55 and over the chance to have their wills written (or updated) free using participating solicitors across the UK. If you don’t currently have a will, this no-obligation opportunity is well worth checking out.

I’ll close with a reminder that you can also follow Pounds and Sense on Facebook or Twitter (or X as we have to call it now). Twitter/X is my number one social media platform and I post regularly there. I share the latest news and information on financial matters, and other things that interest, amuse or concern me. So if you aren’t following my PAS account on Twitter/X, you are definitely missing out.

• I am also on the BlueSky social media network under the username poundsandsense.bsky.social. For the time being anyway, Twitter/X will remain my primary social media platform, but I will also post details of my latest blog posts, third-party articles and other financial news and resources on BlueSky for those who prefer to follow me there.

As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them below. I am always delighted to hear from PAS readers

Disclaimer: I am not a qualified financial adviser and nothing in this blog post should be construed as personal financial advice. Everyone should do their own ‘due diligence’ before investing and seek professional advice if in any doubt how best to proceed. All investing carries a risk of loss. 

Note also that posts on PAS may include affiliate links. If you click through and perform a qualifying transaction, I may receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect the product or service you receive or the terms you are offered, but it does help support me in publishing PAS and paying my bills. Thank you!