How To Use

If you want to match my performance with minimal effort, you can simply buy my current portfolio and copy all updates (there won’t be many) by subscribing to this page. But before you do, be sure you know what to expect from my investing strategy!

Practical Considerations

Broker Selection: Don’t overthink which broker to use. Since we’ll only make a few trades per year, whether you pay €1 or €10 per trade won’t significantly impact your returns.
Avoid Overchecking: I suggest using a brokerage account that isn’t linked to your phone. This helps you avoid constantly checking your portfolio, and you can focus on living your life while your investments grow.

Questions & Answers

How Much Do I Need to Invest to Copy Your Portfolio?

The most expensive stock in my portfolio right now (as of February 2025) costs €1,800 and makes up about 16% of the portfolio. To match my allocation exactly, one share of that company would need to represent 16% of your portfolio—so you’d need around €14,000 to get started.

If you don’t have that, no problem! You can leave that company out for now and adjust your portfolio later when you can afford the stock. Until then, your performance will still be very close to mine.

The next most expensive stock costs €280 and makes up about 21% of my portfolio (excluding the most expensive stock). So, to get started with a very close version of my portfolio, you’d need at least €1,300.

You Bought at Lower Prices—Will I Still Get the Same Performance?

Yes. If we both hold the same portfolio from today onward, our performance from this point forward will be identical—before taxes and transaction costs.

What Could Cause a Difference in Performance?

If we both have the same portfolio, a difference in performance may arise because of:

Taxes: I use a tax-deferred account. If you're not using a tax-deferred account, you’ll pay taxes on realized gains, which can slow your growth over time.
Transaction Costs: We might pay different brokerage fees, though the impact should be minimal.
Timing: If you add funds throughout the year, your returns may differ slightly. But as long as new investments are small relative to your existing portfolio, the effect will be minor.

What Is a Tax-Deferred Account, and What If I Don’t Have One?

A tax-deferred account lets your realized gains grow tax-free (or with very low taxes) as long as they remain in the account. Over time, this gives you a big advantage.

Without a tax-deferred account, you’ll pay taxes every time you realize a gain—meaning every time you sell a stock for more than you paid. Since I use a tax-deferred account, your performance will differ from mine.

For example, let’s say we both realize a €10,000 gain:

I can reinvest nearly the entire amount.
You, on the other hand, would need to pay taxes—about €3,000 in Germany—leaving you with €7,000 to reinvest.

The good news is that since I hold stocks for at least a year (often much longer), your performance should still be fairly close to mine.

The best option, though, is a tax-deferred account. I’ll explain how that works in Germany later.

I Have a Monthly Savings Plan—What Should I Do?

Just keep it going. Once you’ve accumulated a significant amount, simply add it to the portfolio—once or twice a year is enough.

You could invest monthly, but that would require more effort:

You’d need to rebalance your portfolio each time to maintain the correct percentages.
Depending on your broker, you might incur transaction costs with frequent adjustments.

For a smoother approach, lump-sum investments a few times a year are best.

How Much Effort Is Required?

We’ll likely hold no more than 10 stocks at a time, and once you’ve set things up, you won’t need to do much. Transactions will be infrequent. You don’t have to act immediately—just follow my emails and make adjustments within a week.

The only exception: Whenever one of us adds funds, you’ll need to rebalance your portfolio.

When you add funds, allocate them according to the current percentages. If Company X is 10% of your portfolio, then 10% of your new funds should go into Company X.
If I add funds and it changes my portfolio percentages, I’ll let you know and guide you through the rebalance. This won’t happen often, and it should take less than an hour.

How to Get a Tax-Deferred Account in Germany

I believe some countries offer simpler ways to defer taxes on investments, but since I live in Germany, here’s the approach I use.

Set Up a Holding Company (I chose an UG)

When your UG sells stocks, only 5% of the gain is taxable, which means an effective tax rate of 1.5%–2%, compared to over 26% for private investors.
As long as your funds stay in the UG, you don’t pay additional taxes.
However, withdrawals are taxed as dividends (>26%), so this setup is only beneficial if you let your capital compound for many years before withdrawing.

How to Set Up a Holding UG

Go to a Notary
Tell the notary you want to set up a holding UG (vermögensverwaltende UG). It’s simple and you don’t need to prepare anything in advance.
Open a Business Bank Account
This account will hold your UG’s funds. Since we trade infrequently, transaction costs aren’t crucial. I just chose the closest bank to where I live, but feel free to research your best option.
Get a LEI Code
A Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) is required for your UG to trade stocks. It’s easy to get online.

Once these steps are complete, your UG will have a standard online banking and brokerage account, and you can buy and sell stocks just like a private investor.

Costs & Requirements
Your UG will need to file an annual financial statement (Jahresabschluss) and tax filings. Most people hire a tax advisor for this, which costs around €1,000 per year. Due to these costs, a holding UG is generally recommended for portfolios over €100,000, but with our strategy, I believe it makes sense above €50,000.

Bonus: Extra Tax Benefits
A holding UG allows you to deduct investment-related expenses, such as:

Office furniture
A laptop
Educational expenses (like your subscription to Till's Value Portfolio)

Till's Value Portfolio