About Me

Hello. I’m Stuart — and I’ve spent most of my career knee-deep in the investment world. Fidelity International, TD Direct Investing, NatWest Stockbrokers. Roles covering everything from stockbroking and platform product to Global Head of Personal Investing. A lot of years, a lot of meetings, and — frankly — a lot of fun.

What all of that experience gave me, more than anything else, is a deep appreciation for just how powerful investing can be when ordinary people get access to it. Not just the wealthy. Not just the financially savvy. Everyone. And in essence, despite what most folk think, it can actually be really simple.

Simple Investing

That belief is what led me to write the Simple Investing series — three books designed to make investing genuinely accessible to people who have always assumed it was not for them.

Simple Investing for Absolute Beginners

The starting point for anyone who wants to understand investing from the ground up — what it is, how it works, and how to get started without making expensive mistakes.

Simple Investing for Women
Written to address the confidence gap that stops too many women from investing — and the very real financial consequences of that gap over a lifetime.
Simple Investing for People in their Twenties
Because time is the most powerful advantage any investor can have — and starting in your twenties, even with very little, can make an extraordinary difference by the time you reach your fifties.

This blog sits alongside those books — going deeper on topics, covering things that change over time (like tax rules and platform options), and giving people somewhere to explore at their own pace.

Who is this for?

Anyone curious about investing. Especially if you are starting from scratch.

Maybe you have got a bit of money sitting in a savings account and you have a nagging feeling it could be working harder. Maybe someone mentioned an ISA at work and you smiled and nodded while having absolutely no idea what they were talking about. Maybe you just want to understand this stuff without having to read something that feels like a textbook.
All of that is fine. You are in the right place.

What you’ll find here

Everything here is written for a UK audience — ISAs, SIPPs, UK platforms, UK tax rules. No American content in disguise. Just the stuff that actually applies to you.
The blog is organised into a number of easy to understand topics — from the absolute basics of what investing is, through to accounts, funds, stocks, tax, pensions, and the surprisingly important question of how to think about money without making rash decisions. Start wherever feels right. If you are brand new to all of this, Basics is the obvious place to begin.
I will give you real opinions where I have them, rather than hiding behind ‘it depends’ at every turn. And I will always be straight with you about where the limits of a blog post end and where proper financial advice begins.

A note on advice

Nothing here constitutes financial advice — and that is not just a legal disclaimer. It is genuinely true. Good financial advice is personal. It takes into account your income, your debts, your family situation, your goals. A blog cannot do that.

What it can do is give you the knowledge and vocabulary to understand your options, feel more confident about your decisions, and know when it is worth speaking to a professional. Think of it as the foundation. What you build on top is up to you.

Glad you’re here.
Stuart Welch

Author, Simple Investing series | Former Global Head of Personal Investing and Advice, Fidelity International

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