Welcome to Ask Fear and Greed, where we take your questions and do our best to answer them. I'm Michael Thompson, and good afternoon, Sean Aylmer.

Welcome to Ask Fear and Greed, where we take your questions and do our best to answer them. I'm Michael Thompson, and good afternoon, Sean Aylmer.

Hello Michael.

Hello Michael.

Now, Sean, today's question is a little bit different because I reckon it is a question from the youngest listener that we've had contribute to Ask Fear and Greed to date. So Zaide says, I'm thirteen years old. Just thirteen, Isn't that incredible? And wait for it, it actually gets even better because he says, I'm just getting into investing. Oh god, I wish I got into investing when I was thirsty. I would be in a vastly different position to the one I'm in right now if I'd done that anyway, he says, But me and my dad have been listening to you for over a year in the car on the ride to school. Here is my question. How can people invest in the dollar and how does the price fluctuate? For example, if I have Aussie dollars in my bank and the price increases for Ossie dollars, does my bank account balance go up? Or can I exchange more dollars and get more value? If I'm exchanging it to the US dollar. It's a good question. You show me any other thirteen year old who is thinking in that amount of detail right about currency, about investing, about market. Just good on his aid for just for actually getting interested. Now, Sean, can you please answer it for both of us?

Now, Sean, today's question is a little bit different because I reckon it is a question from the youngest listener that we've had contribute to Ask Fear and Greed to date. So Zaide says, I'm thirteen years old. Just thirteen, Isn't that incredible? And wait for it, it actually gets even better because he says, I'm just getting into investing. Oh god, I wish I got into investing when I was thirsty. I would be in a vastly different position to the one I'm in right now if I'd done that anyway, he says, But me and my dad have been listening to you for over a year in the car on the ride to school. Here is my question. How can people invest in the dollar and how does the price fluctuate? For example, if I have Aussie dollars in my bank and the price increases for Ossie dollars, does my bank account balance go up? Or can I exchange more dollars and get more value? If I'm exchanging it to the US dollar. It's a good question. You show me any other thirteen year old who is thinking in that amount of detail right about currency, about investing, about market. Just good on his aid for just for actually getting interested. Now, Sean, can you please answer it for both of us?

You know, probably not I aid. The dollar it's just a price used to value Australian goods and services. That's all it is. It's just this thing that sits there that we use to say something is worth something, and we can put a value on that. And so your bank account that is Australian dollars. You live in Australia, mostly your buying stuff in Australian dollars. Now occasionally you might buy stuff from Timu or somethingwhere like that, so you may actually have to exchange in a sense, it probably makes sense there. But this Aussie dollar goes up and down against other currencies. So it goes up and down against the US dollar, the euro, the yen, all sorts of currencies, and that's just based on how many people want it and how many people want to sell it. So we talk about the aud usd exchange rate. Let's say it's sixty five cents. That's how many USD is needed to buy one aud So when we say aud USD, it's how many the last one to buy the first one. When the value goes up, it appreciates. When it goes down, it depreciates. So that's the explanation. The part which I'm loathe to talk about, Zaid is the fact that we are not an investing podcast, so we don't want to give advice on how you should invest. I will say some things, though, I don't think using currency as an investment tool is a particularly sensible thing to do. Now. Alan Greenspan, who's a guy who used to be the head of the Central bat in the US, the Federal Reserve chair, he once made a famous comment. He's said forecasting a currency is like flipping a coin. His point being you could be right, you could be wrong, and you've got a fifty to fifty chance. So he's saying as an investment investment tool, that ain't a great thing. Maybe a way of doing that. As an example, so if you bought bitcoin today, let's say it's ninety seven thousand US dollars unit you pay in your Australian dollars, that you've worked for you buy one unit of bitcoin, so you're paying ninety seven US dollars, that's about one hundred and fifty Australian dollars. If the Australian dollars goes from sixty five to seventy cents, before you make any money, bitcoin has to go from ninety seven to one hundred and five thousand US dollars. So currencies are tricky because you can have investments and the asset you buy McDonald's shares, Tesla shares, they may go up, but if the currency works in the wrong way, you may not end up with any more money. Michael, the question really was how to do it, and I'm really loath to say it. I mean I actually once I actually once got a Comwealth Bank travel card and left money. I was going to the States put money into US dollars. I think I got it at like seventy five US cents, went to the States, came back, and kind of ages later, the actual travel card was going to cancel because travel cards canceled after a cent amount, and I exchanged the money back at sixty seven cents. So in a sense I made money in that transaction. But that was just like maybe it.

You know, probably not I aid. The dollar it's just a price used to value Australian goods and services. That's all it is. It's just this thing that sits there that we use to say something is worth something, and we can put a value on that. And so your bank account that is Australian dollars. You live in Australia, mostly your buying stuff in Australian dollars. Now occasionally you might buy stuff from Timu or somethingwhere like that, so you may actually have to exchange in a sense, it probably makes sense there. But this Aussie dollar goes up and down against other currencies. So it goes up and down against the US dollar, the euro, the yen, all sorts of currencies, and that's just based on how many people want it and how many people want to sell it. So we talk about the aud usd exchange rate. Let's say it's sixty five cents. That's how many USD is needed to buy one aud So when we say aud USD, it's how many the last one to buy the first one. When the value goes up, it appreciates. When it goes down, it depreciates. So that's the explanation. The part which I'm loathe to talk about, Zaid is the fact that we are not an investing podcast, so we don't want to give advice on how you should invest. I will say some things, though, I don't think using currency as an investment tool is a particularly sensible thing to do. Now. Alan Greenspan, who's a guy who used to be the head of the Central bat in the US, the Federal Reserve chair, he once made a famous comment. He's said forecasting a currency is like flipping a coin. His point being you could be right, you could be wrong, and you've got a fifty to fifty chance. So he's saying as an investment investment tool, that ain't a great thing. Maybe a way of doing that. As an example, so if you bought bitcoin today, let's say it's ninety seven thousand US dollars unit you pay in your Australian dollars, that you've worked for you buy one unit of bitcoin, so you're paying ninety seven US dollars, that's about one hundred and fifty Australian dollars. If the Australian dollars goes from sixty five to seventy cents, before you make any money, bitcoin has to go from ninety seven to one hundred and five thousand US dollars. So currencies are tricky because you can have investments and the asset you buy McDonald's shares, Tesla shares, they may go up, but if the currency works in the wrong way, you may not end up with any more money. Michael, the question really was how to do it, and I'm really loath to say it. I mean I actually once I actually once got a Comwealth Bank travel card and left money. I was going to the States put money into US dollars. I think I got it at like seventy five US cents, went to the States, came back, and kind of ages later, the actual travel card was going to cancel because travel cards canceled after a cent amount, and I exchanged the money back at sixty seven cents. So in a sense I made money in that transaction. But that was just like maybe it.

Was a forgot about the card.

Was a forgot about the card.

Yeah, exactly.

Yeah, exactly.

The best kind of investment strategy, is it?

The best kind of investment strategy, is it?

Nah? No, those money cards, I mean you get such a dreadful exchange, right, those trouble money cards. I wouldn't suggest that. Yeah, I mean you can invest in currency ets, so exchange traded funds, places like better shares. You can actually buy investments which what they say hedge against the exchange rate risks, so you pay an extra price, but they'll always give you a set exchange rate. So there's that. But of course, if you're going to do it, Zaid, you and your father go to a financial planner. That's what I say, work out how to do it that way. The actual Aussie dollar, when we talk about it going up and now and against the US sella for you and your bank account, probably doesn't make any difference whatsoever. That's not quite right. But actually it's not quite right because it does make difference to your dad. Right, your dad's got money in his bank account and he takes it out to fill up the petrol you filip your car, and the price of petrol actually goes up and down based on what the Aussie dollar does, as well as oil prices. There are two parts to it, so and actually for there's a real life example how it does affect you, but investing in it whiskey yea.

Nah? No, those money cards, I mean you get such a dreadful exchange, right, those trouble money cards. I wouldn't suggest that. Yeah, I mean you can invest in currency ets, so exchange traded funds, places like better shares. You can actually buy investments which what they say hedge against the exchange rate risks, so you pay an extra price, but they'll always give you a set exchange rate. So there's that. But of course, if you're going to do it, Zaid, you and your father go to a financial planner. That's what I say, work out how to do it that way. The actual Aussie dollar, when we talk about it going up and now and against the US sella for you and your bank account, probably doesn't make any difference whatsoever. That's not quite right. But actually it's not quite right because it does make difference to your dad. Right, your dad's got money in his bank account and he takes it out to fill up the petrol you filip your car, and the price of petrol actually goes up and down based on what the Aussie dollar does, as well as oil prices. There are two parts to it, so and actually for there's a real life example how it does affect you, but investing in it whiskey yea.

And I'm just so impressed. I am so so impressed because they'd went on in his email to then say basically that love the podcast and I'm relatively new to investing as a thirteen year old, I don't fully understand and this topic. So that's why I'm asking about it. So not just the fact that he is investing the fact that he didn't know something, so he's asked about it. Interested, Yeah, yeah, just yeah, great anyway, tick tick tick tick tick, a big tick for the answer as well. All round, great way to finish the week with a fantastic ask, fear and greed. Thank you Zaid for your question, and thank you Sean for answering it.

And I'm just so impressed. I am so so impressed because they'd went on in his email to then say basically that love the podcast and I'm relatively new to investing as a thirteen year old, I don't fully understand and this topic. So that's why I'm asking about it. So not just the fact that he is investing the fact that he didn't know something, so he's asked about it. Interested, Yeah, yeah, just yeah, great anyway, tick tick tick tick tick, a big tick for the answer as well. All round, great way to finish the week with a fantastic ask, fear and greed. Thank you Zaid for your question, and thank you Sean for answering it.

Thank you Michael, Thank you Zaid. Best question of the year. I'm going the whole year.

Thank you Michael, Thank you Zaid. Best question of the year. I'm going the whole year.

Or considering we are kind of just we're almost there, almost at them. I'm not reckon it's going to be beaten. No, we will see, we will see.

Or considering we are kind of just we're almost there, almost at them. I'm not reckon it's going to be beaten. No, we will see, we will see.

Can we get to make sure that Zaid and or his dad gets a me and mug.

Can we get to make sure that Zaid and or his dad gets a me and mug.

Me and mug. Great idea, Yeah, fantastic idea. Great point. All right, Look, if you've got your own question, you can do it. They did. Send it in via the website. Go to Fearangreed dot com, dot a you or headlong to LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, any of our social media platforms. Send you a question in and we will do our best to answer that one as well. I am Michael Thompson and this is Ask Fear and Greed

Me and mug. Great idea, Yeah, fantastic idea. Great point. All right, Look, if you've got your own question, you can do it. They did. Send it in via the website. Go to Fearangreed dot com, dot a you or headlong to LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, any of our social media platforms. Send you a question in and we will do our best to answer that one as well. I am Michael Thompson and this is Ask Fear and Greed