If we’re talking about new and innovative ways to invest, we have to talk about Robinhood. Robinhood has become synonymous with the democratization of finance, aka making investing easily accessible to unaccredited investors. While Robinhood laid much of the foundation for the idea of taking personal ownership in investing, there are fundamental differences you should keep in mind when comparing Robinhood and Vicinity.
A sharp, business-savvy, Vicinity-newsletter-reading, future-finance-mogul such as yourself, can probably spot the obvious differences:
- Public vs Private Business
- Stock Market vs Local Market
- Trading vs Holding
The nuances on these differences may be more like social cues to a 13 y/o boy. Let’s dig a little deeper into why these differences matter.
With very few exceptions, investing in private businesses has not been an option for the unaccredited investor. This means with Vicinity, you have more options for diversification through private businesses.
Also, investing in the stock market almost always means investing far away. As you know, Vicinity is all about unearthing investment opportunities close to home.
Finally, the unique value that Robinhood offers is the ease of trading. With Vicinity, the play is to buy and hold (for a time). What are you holding? You’re holding debt, royalty, or equity securities that either make regular payments over time or provide capital gains if the company sells for an increased share price.
Robinhood and Vicinity can both be powerful innovations. We both allow the public to chose where and how they spend their investment dollars in a potentially fun, exciting, and rewarding way. Just know the risks for both and don’t let the shiny new technology distract from making solid, informed investments.