Natalie Pace Blogs
Photo of Natalie Pace by Marie Commiskey. Avalon Photography.
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 High Performance by Design. Our rigorous analysis and time-proven design make performance and protection easy for your wealth plan and investing portfolio. Watch or listen to my videoconference and podcast on Substack and YouTube. Highlights I’ll cover in this blog… Each point has its own article where you can learn more from the original post – before the share price soared or the weakness was revealed.
These are all subjects of my videoconference/podcast. Watch it back at YouTube or Substack. I’m Natalie Pace on both platforms. Email [email protected] to join us live at our next meeting. We work hard to make the pie chart system we teach practical and time efficient – much less money and time than most people spend. (Most managed plans charge 1.5% – $15,000 per million, per year.) Our results are time-proven, while most managed plans do what the market does – riding the Wall Street rollercoaster up in bull markets and down, down, down in corrections, bears and recessions. Our system earned gains in the Dot Com and Great Recessions and outperformed the bull markets in between. (Click to watch Nilo Bolden’s testimonial.) Our hots have been on fire, while our fixed income strategies have earned a competitive yield, protecting principal, with no paper losses. Here’s a peak into how the system works, and the ways that our team keeps you informed with the news, information and education you need to live a rich life, adopt a Thrive Budget, and invest with superior results while you build lasting family wealth. 1. High Performance by Design Achieving consistent high performance requires structural design, not luck. An effective investment framework is everything but simple underneath its clean execution. We deploy rigorous analysis as our core trade secret so that your experience as an investor remains effortless. By engineered design, many of our value replacements are currently earning higher yields than their US-based equivalents, proving that sophisticated architecture delivers superior results. As I mentioned above, one of our value replacements, a Peru fund, is up an outstanding 75% over the past year. 2. Balance What is Hot with What is Safe Maximizing wealth requires a strict mechanical sequence: identifying high-growth assets while knowing exactly how much capital to keep shielded. Our current income strategies remain highly competitive, capturing upside without suffering paper losses. The system itself guides us to set up and maintain an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan. Like building a home that can withstand the elements, when we set up our financial home (investments and budget) right, we can move in and be assured that our money is protected from any financial storms or natural disasters that might happen. Spring cleaning (rebalancing) is an easy, and essential, way to keep everything functioning properly. 3. What is "Hot" and What is "Safe" Changes Frequently What is "hot" and what is "safe" changes every year, making static portfolios obsolete. It’s also important not to bet the farm on any one idea. The pie chart slices keep everything in perspective, while prompting us to capture gains during rallies and buy low during routs (if we still think the asset is a good investment). Consider the shifting macro environment over the past few years:
How do we stay on the right side of the trade and capture gains when something, like silver, shoots the moon, without day trading or adding to our to-do list? 4. Rebalance 1-3 Times a Year Rebalancing our portfolio at least 1-3 times a year is an easy way to stay on the right side of the trade. By mocking up a simple pie chart of what we own and comparing it to our personalized sample pie chart (using our free web app), we are prompted to do what every investor knows is the right call – to buy low and sell high. The system takes the emotions out of the mix, as our feelings can be easily manipulated and often prompt us to do the exact opposite of what we know we should do. When we are simply looking at our brokerage or retirement statements, our emotions are being jacked to buy high and sell low. Many people get ensnared buying high because it is easy to get excited when you see a green plus sign and all of the money we’ve made. We want to win more! Conversely, it’s understandable why a red dash showing our losses makes us want to dump the asset at a loss – without doing the due diligence to understand the proper course of action. Again, the pie chart system prompts us to capture gains and stay properly diversified, while taking the emotions out of the mix. 5. Due Diligence Works Better than Risk Tolerance We base our decision whether to overweight or underweight safe based upon crunching the due diligence of quite a number of data points. Risk tolerance tests gauge our emotions, which almost always put us on the wrong side of the trade. Most people want to be aggressive in bull markets, while few have any taste (or capital) for buying low in bears. Here again, our emotions are prompting us to remain prey to the Wall Street whales.
  Have you doubled your stock returns over the past few years, or is your wealth merely increasing due to your contributions? Again, simply adopting an age-appropriate, diversified plan and rebalancing 1-3 times a year to ensure it stays that way will keep us building wealth. 21st Century recessions can take a while to recover. It took the NASDAQ Composite Index 15 years to recover its 2000 highs after the Dot Com Recession. The S&P500 didn’t return to its Oct. 2007 highs until March of 2013. Keeping our wealth offers options. Losing 55-78% could cost us our home. For a 50-year-old investor, maintaining a tactical 20% overweight shift into safe assets during overvalued markets guarantees that a retirement timeline remains completely uninterrupted by a market crash. With only 30% at risk, even a devastating plunge is only a small sliver of the overall plan – something that the income on the safe side can offset. As importantly, when prices become a bargain, this investor has the money to buy low. Most people don’t buy low because they can’t. They lose too much money in the bear market. Bottom Line You can learn and implement our personalized age-appropriate, diversified, hot and protected wealth plan at our online Financial Freedom Retreat. If you’re a busy professional, even one with a managed plan, consider getting an unbiased 2nd opinion from me in my private coaching. I don’t sell financial products and have no financial incentive, other than offering you the information, news, experience and time-proven systems that enable you to be the boss of your money. (Managed plans do what the markets do. You’re happy now, but it is also important to be protected from bears and recessions.) Email [email protected] to learn more about how our simple system, supported with our detailed and rigorous analysis have offered a time-proven strategy for Main Street investors for all the 21st Century. Testimonials "We asked Natalie Pace for a second opinion on our investment portfolio. She researched and reviewed each stock and fund. She then explained to us in plain English how we were positioned in the market and how high our risk exposure was. Her knowledge was so profound that we decided to take her retreat in Arizona. My husband was still quite skeptical, but 20 minutes into the retreat he turned to me and said "Thank you." Stocks and investing are no longer rocket science. We give thanks just about every day that we met Natalie. I feel like I live on a different planet. I'm so grateful. Thank you for changing our lives, our peace of mind, our future and our vision of what is possible. We made a tectonic shift with you." AC & AM "Thank you Natalie for saving my retirement," Nilo Bolden. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom and a green wealth plan? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register with friends and family to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% or our Real Estate masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register with friends and family to receive the best price.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Are Your Air Miles Safe? Lessons from the Spirit Airlines Bankruptcy. The Superstars of 2026. A Mid-Year Update. What Happened to AI & The Magnificent 7? Plastic Free July. The Recycling Lie. The Higher the Dividend, the Higher the Risk. Wall Street has a Serious Gambling Problem. Margin Trading Hits an All-Time High. Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.
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 Lessons from the Spirit Airlines Liquidation. Is JetBlue Next? How Safe Are Your Air Miles? Your Funds? Your Bonds? A jump in jet fuel prices is grounding an industry that suffers perennially from low credit ratings and low profit margins. Will JetBlue be the next airline to fall?  I included Boeing in the above chart because it is one of just 30 Dow Jones Industrial Average components and, like the airlines, has a lot of debt and leverage and a low credit rating. High leverage is a systemic risk for shareholders and bondholders of airlines, as you can surmise from the low credit ratings. On June 8, 2026, S&P Global downgraded JetBlue from B- to CCC+, citing “elevated fuel costs and sustained high leverage.” Spirit Airlines declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice, in 2024 and 2025, before ceasing operations on May 2, 2026. (Email [email protected] if you’d like an updated Airline Stock Report Card.) With the exception of Alaska and Southwest, all the other airlines listed above have used the U.S. bankruptcy process and restructuring laws, while continuing to operate. Many airlines reported net losses this year, including American, Alaska and JetBlue airlines. This puts pressure on already low credit ratings, as we saw last month with JetBlue. Credit downgrades spook both bond and stock investors. An investor race to the exit causes losses in the fair value of stocks and bonds, while severely reducing the market value of the company. Yes, if you hold the bond to term, and the company doesn’t declare bankruptcy before the repayment, you should be repaid in full. However, the credit downgrade means there is a question about whether the company is going to be able to meet its obligations. In the case of Spirit Airlines, the company went out of business. More often, however, airlines continue operating while they restructure their debt. That doesn’t mean that our stocks and bonds are safe. I’ll discuss the impact Chapter 11 and liquidation have on shareholders, bondholders and loyal customers in this blog. Here are the topics I’ll cover. Will JetBlue Restructure or Liquidate? What Happens When Airlines Declare Bankruptcy, But Continue Operating? What Happens When Airlines Go Out of Business? Do Bond Funds Loan Your Money to Speculative Grade Airlines? How Can We Ensure That We Do Not Own Stock in Airlines? And here is more information on each point. Will JetBlue Restructure or Liquidate? A CCC+ credit rating means the borrower is vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon more favorable conditions. JetBlue posted a net loss of -$319 million in the 1st quarter and -$247 million in the 2nd quarter. Bloomberg reported that JetBlue is hosting a private meeting by invitation only in August for holders of its 9.875% secured notes that are due in 2031. These bonds have seen their current value plummet to 84 cents on the dollar. JetBlue has lost -61% in its share price over the past five years. If the war rages on and jet fuel costs remain high, that’s a problem for all airlines, but more so for the smaller ones, like JetBlue, which is worth just $2.13 billion. JetBlue had $1.656 billion in cash at the end of June 2026, with an additional $512 million in investment securities, and $250 million available for borrowing. The company’s total debt is $8.478 billion, with $755 million maturing in 2026. As part of its commitment to the company’s turnaround, JetBlue will pass through as much of the higher fuel costs onto customers as it can. According to JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty in the 2Q 2026 earnings call, “We achieved nearly 50% fuel recapture in the 2nd quarter… Assuming demand strength persists, we continue to expect to achieve 100% fuel recapture by early 2027.” The C-Suite is focusing on the path forward and “expects to return to sustained operating profitability in 2027.” However, JetBlue CFO Ursula Hurley ended her comments in the 1Q 2026 earnings call, saying, “To wrap up, the environment we are operating in is challenging and volatile.” The war isn’t over yet. What Happens When Airlines Declare Bankruptcy, But Continue Operating? Price shocks like the War in Iran or a pandemic can break the leverage game most airlines play. As I mentioned, sadly, airlines must restructure their debt rather routinely – particularly in recessions. Most continue operating. Margins are always tight. High oil/gas/jet fuel prices are highly correlated with recessions – though a contraction is not currently forecasted. (Economists are lousy at predicting recessions; policymakers rarely admit we’re in an economic pullback until at least half a year in.) The “on again, off again” War in Iran elevates the risk and lowers the risk appetite of investors. When a company goes through a Chapter 11 debt restructuring, stockholders typically have their shares wiped out. The bondholders will lose part of their principal investment, forfeit their expected yield, and sometimes will be forced to take equity in the new stock rather than a cash payout of their principal. The airline mileage program is an asset, so most airlines will try to keep this customer loyalty program intact. There are risks, however. What Happens When Airlines Go Out of Business? As we saw with Spirit Airlines in May 2026 and WOW Air (March 2019), when a company ceases operations, travelers are left stranded. Travel savvy individuals often use the chargeback function on their credit card to get a refund for unused tickets rather than wait for frozen airline refunds to be distributed through a lengthy legal process, where their claim might be behind employees and secured bondholders. (When a service is not received and the chargeback is filed in a timely manner, the credit card companies are typically cooperative and swift.) In a liquidation, the mileage program is typically wiped out completely because it is an unsecured claim. Again, if it’s a Chapter 11 restructuring and the company will continue operating, the miles should remain intact, although we might not be able to use them while the restructuring takes place. Do Bond Funds Loan Your Money to Speculative Grade Airlines? Investment grade bond funds limit their exposure to junk bonds – typically to 5-10% or less. We need to read the prospectus to know how much is allowed. However, to boost returns, many bond funds will include a lot of debt that is BBB – the lowest rung of investment grade. Some include a high percentage of agency mortgage-backed securities and treasuries. We’ve seen some trouble in the long-term treasury bond/note market of late. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, those government-sponsored agencies that are backing the MBS market, had to be rescued in 2008. Common and preferred shareholders were wiped out. Many bond funds have lost money over the past few years. FYI: About half of U.S. based debt (outstanding bonds) have a credit rating at the lowest rung of investment grade. For this reason, our sample pie charts do not include bond funds. In fact, we prefer an elite group of corporate bonds for the safe allocation of our wealth plan. We also observe other key fixed income rules. (Click on the blue-highlighted words to learn more.) Our sample “safe” suggestions have been earning a market yield without paper losses since our business started in 1999. Earning income without losing principal is tricky in today’s Debt World. It’s not difficult – just tricky. If you’d like to learn our strategies, join us for our upcoming Bonds & Fixed Income Masterclass. Register by July 31, 2026, to receive the best price. Prerequisite: The Financial Freedom Retreat. How Can We Ensure That We Do Not Own Stock in Airlines? If we want to limit our exposure to airlines, we must be picky about our dividend and value funds. These stocks rarely show up in our growth funds. In our sample pie charts, we are currently using select country replacements instead of U.S. based value and dividend funds, as the debt and leverage in many U.S. companies, including airlines, are elevated, while many prices are still very expensive. In the iShares Australia ETF, we are receiving higher credit quality and a higher yield than the comparable U.S.-based dividend fund. The iShares Peru ETF is up 149% over the last three years, while also earning a 2% yield. Some airlines will be included in a broad-based fund, but it would only be a very small percentage. However, broad market funds do not meet our diversification criteria. We prefer separating our growth, value, size and hots in order to see and capture gains when we do our 1-3 times a year rebalancing. Rebalancing and keeping your money are very important rules of investing, particularly in today’s volatile world. (The S&P500 dropped -19.44% in 2022, while long-term government bonds lost -26%.) When we lump everything together into a fund that holds everything and the kitchen sink, it’s impossible to underweight the losers, lean into performance and ensure that our safe allotment (equal to our age) is earning income without losses (paper or otherwise). Learn more in my Hot Countries blog, at our Financial Freedom Retreat and in my private coaching. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school and start being the boss of your money now. Bottom Line Larger, legacy airlines are more likely to go through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which might keep our airline miles intact, while smaller airlines might be at risk of ceasing operations, where the miles get wiped out. Beyond our mileage plan, it’s a very good idea to limit our investment exposure to these risky assets. That means that we want to know what we own and ensure that we have a safe, protected, hot and diversified wealth plan, rather than relying on target-date retirement funds (typically exposed to bond and value funds, while some are even losing money), broad-based index funds, annuities, or having blind faith that someone else is protecting our wealth and future for us. You can learn and implement our time-proven strategies at our Financial Freedom Retreat. You can receive a complete analysis and unbiased 2nd opinion of your current plan through my private coaching. You can read about these strategies in my bestselling books. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more now. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom and a green wealth plan? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register by July 31 to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% or our Real Estate masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by July 31, 2026 to receive the best price.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest The Superstars of 2026. A Mid-Year Update. What Happened to AI & The Magnificent 7? Plastic Free July. The Recycling Lie. The Higher the Dividend, the Higher the Risk. Wall Street has a Serious Gambling Problem. Margin Trading Hits an All-Time High. Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  Which Sectors are the Superstars of 2026? The Midyear Market Reality Check. Why have silver and crypto dropped so much? Should we capture gains at an all-time high? Below are the things I’ll cover in this blog. Watch or listen to my Mid-Year Report on Youtube and Substack.
1. Market Surprises and the Hard Truth About the Magnificent Seven The biggest surprise of the year is the massive breakout performance of clean energy, which was up almost 20% in 2026 (as of July 2), compared to gains of 9.1% in the S&P500. While traditional oil headlines dominated popular news, clean energy quietly secured the top performing spot. This structural shift is driven primarily by artificial intelligence and massive data center expansions. Data infrastructure consumes an immense amount of electricity. Tech giants with strict net-zero emissions mandates are scrambling to satisfy these soaring energy needs through renewable power infrastructure. Consequently, clean energy has evolved into a premier institutional growth engine.  Conversely, most of the highly celebrated "Magnificent Seven" tech stocks have severely lagged behind broader market benchmarks. Five out of these seven tech giants underperformed or declined significantly. Mega-caps like Meta, Microsoft, and Tesla dropped in value, while Nvidia posted gains of 4.5% – half that of the S&P500. The primary issue is not the fundamental viability of these companies, but their bloated valuations. Driven by aggressive margin trading and institutional leverage, these stocks became notably expensive. When macroeconomic conditions signal a growth cooling phase, hyper-leveraged assets pull back first. The plunge can be steep and swift. Tesla’s challenges are different from Nvidia. While Nvidia is enjoying year over year revenue growth of 85% and profit margins 71.5%, Tesla’s net profit compressed from $15 billion down to under $5 billion within a two-year window due to aggressive electric vehicle price wars. The Tesla Model Y remains the top-selling electric vehicle in the world. However, China’s BYD is the world’s largest overall EV manufacturer by volume. With many Chinese EV competitors selling at a lower price than Tesla without sacrificing quality, Tesla has been forced to cut their prices. 2. The Golden Rules of 401Ks, IRAs and Investing While Buy & Hope is still largely touted by the mainstream media, riding the Wall Street roller coaster is far too perilous for this last-century strategy to be effective. The best defense against recessions and corrections is to have an age-appropriate, properly diversified wealth plan in place, and to capture gains 1-3 times a year to ensure you keep your wealth intact. Equally important to a properly diversified plan are to have exposure to growth (the Magnificent 7) and value (without the paper losses) and hot industries. We need a self-directed 401K and/or personal retirement accounts (IRAs) to give us more options. Rebalancing helps to keep us on the right side of the trade. Rebalancing also serves as a built-in "buy low, sell high" system operating completely on autopilot. When an aggressive asset slice surges and over-allocates your portfolio, the pie chart screams at us to capture gains. For instance, if a high-performing commodity choice triples or quadruples in value, we are prompted to sell high, to lock in profits while maintaining our core foundational slice (if we still believe the commodity will remain hot in the future). If that asset subsequently drops, we have successfully locked in our gains and can then selectively reinvest at deeply discounted prices. (Most people don’t buy low because they can’t; they’ve lost too much money.) Portfolios should be rebalanced 1-3 times per year. How long has it been since you rebalanced your wealth plan? Optimal rebalancing times include directly after a winter Santa rally or following a major spring market expansion. Managing our asset allocations systematically prevents the catastrophic compounding losses that typically plague unmanaged portfolios during deeper economic recessions. 3. Decoding Crypto Cycles, Commodities, and Illiquid Traps Precious metals and digital assets require a highly tactical approach. Bitcoin remains heavily correlated to its four-year halving cycle. Historically, the asset surges to all-time highs in the year directly following a halving event. However, the second-year post-halving typically initiates a prolonged "crypto winter" phase that can depress prices by 50-70% for 18 to 24 months. This structural cycle suggests digital assets may face near-term weakness over the next 12 months before entering their next major recovery phase. The problem with waiting it out – with hoping to make up losses – is that if we’ve bet the farm, most of us cannot endure having our net worth drop by 70%. (A million dollars becomes just $300,000.) Our FICO score drops. We might have trouble paying our bills. If we have debt, we’ll get eaten alive by compounding interest and incessant calls from the debt collector. We might have put our home at risk. Hard assets like gold and silver are also volatile by nature. After the 2011 highs of gold and silver, precious metal prices dropped by up to -40% (-70% for silver) and stayed in that range until the pandemic. The precious metals bear market after the highs of 1980 lasted a quarter of a century. While we might see or hear that gold never loses its value, that’s simply not factual. It’s a false claim made by a business that wants to sell us gold or silver, often at or near an all-time high. During the bear markets for precious metals, these claims are not widely circulated. Additionally, precious metals do not yield regular cash flow. If interest rates march higher, capital often shifts away from metals toward yield-bearing bonds. Other popular ads encourage us to jump into high-yield savings accounts or investments. Aggressive email and social media marketing campaigns frequently use scare tactics or deepfake celebrity endorsements to pitch highly volatile products that are sold as “safe.” Investors must exercise extreme caution regarding high-yield alternative investment vehicles and even some high-yield savings accounts. Private credit funds and alternative real estate trusts frequently mask deep structural flaws. Many of these funds hide junk bonds inside their portfolios and are highly illiquid. When market stress appears, these private entities routinely implement withdrawal "gates," legally preventing you from accessing your principal cash. Some funds restrict withdrawals to just 10% of total investors. Additionally, private equity oil and gas LLCs bait retail investors with 9% to 13% interest promises. In reality, many are unlisted stocks managed by unproven operators, where high commissions are paid to salesmen who are not fully disclosing all of the risks or encouraging investors to read the fine print. 4. Navigating Passive Income Safely Generating sustainable passive income requires understanding that higher advertised dividend yields are highly correlated with higher underlying risk of losing principal on your investment or a default by the company. Reaching blindly for yield is a fatal portfolio mistake. As Will Rogers once said, “I’m more concerned with the return of my money than the return on my money.” When evaluating dividend-paying corporate equities, focus on value replacement structures rather than distressed companies trying to lure investors with so-called high-yield payouts that might be offering less income than other highly rated countries. For example, over half of the S&P500 is at or near junk bond status, including a lot of U.S. banks. Diversifying internationally into higher-performing value funds, such as specialized indexes in Peru and other countries, can deliver stronger dividend payouts alongside excellent underlying capital growth. The Peru ETF in our sample investing pie chart was a superstar of 2025 and this year as well, earning gains of 82.7% and 16%, respectively, while offering a higher yield than the comparable U.S. based ETF. For the bond/safe side of our portfolio, many bonds are illiquid and losing value. Bonds lost more than stocks in 2022, -26%, and haven't recovered. I'm hosting a Bonds and Income Without Paper Losses Masterclass on Oct. 17, 2026, the Saturday after my next Financial Freedom Retreat. Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. Prerequisite: Financial Freedom Retreat. 5. Individual Stocks & Your Vegas Money For the speculative portion of our portfolio—which I like to refer to as "Vegas money"—emerging disruptive technologies offer fascinating entry points, if managed carefully. The electric air taxi industry is positioned to disrupt urban aviation corridors that were previously monopolized by gas-guzzling helicopters. Key innovators like Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation are progressing rapidly through the final phases of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification for vertical takeoff aircraft (EVTol). Archer has secured positioning as the official air taxi infrastructure partner for major regional events, while Joby has successfully validated rapid test flights in dense metro hubs. At the same time, individual stocks can be volatile and subject to macro economic trends. The pie chart method I discuss above and teach at my Financial Freedom Retreats uses ETFs to minimize risk, which make it easy to see and capture gains in a systematic way. Individual stocks require:
That’s a lot more work than many of us are willing or qualified to do. So, if we do choose to compete with Wall Street pros on something we think is hot, it’s best to gamble with money we’re willing to lose, rather than betting our nest egg. Bottom Line Navigating modern financial markets requires moving past media hype and online marketing “opportunities.” Marketing professionals frequently tap into our emotions to sell snake oil. (The celebrity Kim Kardashian was fined $1.26 million on Oct. 3, 2022, by the SEC for touting a crypto scam.) High-flying tech sectors can experience steep valuation corrections, while overlooked sectors quietly break out. Relying entirely on yesterday's winners exposes our wealth to unnecessary downside risk. True financial freedom is built on timeless, systematic strategies rather than speculative guesswork. Fortunately, our team has made these systems as easy as a pie chart. The ultimate key to enduring financial prosperity is ensuring our wealth plan remains safe, hot, and diversified. By executing disciplined portfolio rebalancing 1-3 times a year and self-directing our investments inside tax-advantaged accounts, such as Roth IRAs, we are employing the wealth strategies of the 1% – eliminating capital gains liabilities and bypassing the emotional pitfalls of market volatility. True financial freedom can be achieved with our time-proven 21st Century investing and budgeting strategies. I encourage you to join us at our next Financial Freedom Retreat to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school. If you're a busy professional and you'd prefer an unbiased 2nd opinion, I offer that in my private coaching. Email [email protected] to learn more. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom and a green wealth plan? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register by July 31 to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% or our Real Estate masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by July 31, 2026 to receive the best price.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Plastic Free July. The Recycling Lie. The Higher the Dividend, the Higher the Risk. Wall Street has a Serious Gambling Problem. Margin Trading Hits an All-Time High. Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  Plastic Free July. The Recycling Lie. By Natalie Pace, the co-creator and executive director of EarthGratitude.org. Recycling is a lie. The first time I heard this – from a waste management professional who handled the trash of one of the cities in the Los Angeles area – I didn’t believe it. I was actually angry (internally) at this person for even saying such an absurd thing. It was inconceivable to me that we would be spending all this time sorting our trash, when less than 5% of plastic is being recycled in the U.S. (less than 9% in the world). Surely, she was fabricating this falsehood. It was only after discovering that the chemicals in plastic and polyester (and so many other oil/gas products) are linked to cancer, obesity, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disfunction, behavioral disorders and infertility that I came to the heart of the matter. It was never a good idea to put petrochemicals all over our bodies, our food, our children’s bums and even in our chewing gum. Once we learn this, we can begin toxifying our lives (also good for the planet). The personal health benefits from getting rid of plastic are so profound and so positive that if we only knew them every single one of us would do it right now. And that leads me to one of my favorite documentaries of 2026 – The Plastic Detox, which, despite the stark title, is actually a tale with a very happy ending. The Plastic Detox follows five couples suffering from infertility. Spoiler alert: three out of five got pregnant within a year, simply by eliminating plastic from their lives. Turns out that sperm regenerates every 90 days. The couples also lost weight. So, the impact of limiting our exposure to petrochemicals can be immediate and profound. If you or anyone you know is interested in weight loss or getting pregnant, this documentary is a great place to start. Since recycling isn’t happening and petrochemicals are poisonous, refusing plastic is key. That is why the 3Rs of Sustainability have been replaced with the 7 Rs: Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Repurpose, Repair, Reuse & Rot (compost).  Even if plastic could be recycled more than once – plastic degrades, unlike uniform materials such as glass, paper and aluminum, which retain their integrity – petrochemicals are harmful from their birth in an oil or gas well to their never-ending life as micro- and nanoplastics. A great deal of energy is required to drill and frack, with massive amounts of CO2 and methane pollution released, and severe loss of land, trees, habitat and biodiversity. Methane, which is released in fracking, drilling and storage, is 85 times more destructive than CO2. Those living in Cancer Alley have an alarming tale to share about the toxicity and true cost of our petrochemical addiction. When we think of plastic, it’s a good idea to include the many other petrochemical products in our homes, including polyester and the new “eco” bricks made from “recycled” plastic products. Many vegan cosmetic and fashion products that call themselves green/sustainainable also contain petrochemicals. The process of making plastic bricks releases VOCs, POPs and heavy metals and produces off-gassing, chemical leaching and micro- and nanoplastic contamination. The increased CO2 footprint of using recycled bottles to make toy bricks forced LEGO to abandon the idea. * VOC: Volatile organic compound * POP: Persistent organic pollutants Below are 12 actions to consider taking for Plastic Free July. Did I overlook something? Please let me know; email [email protected]. I encourage you to watch my 2-minute video on Instagram.com/NatalieWynnePace, where I demonstrate some of the ways that I’ve eliminated plastic in my own life, including with bar shampoo and conditioner, tooth tablets, purchasing regenerative organic food directly from farmers, and some of the other excellent innovations that are plastic free. Plastic Free July Tips 1. Watch The Plastic Detox and This is Not a Drill documentaries. Click on the blue-highlighted words to access. 2. Buy regenerative, organic, local produce and meat. (Fertilizers are petrochemicals too.) I carry a backpack and reusable containers to the local farmers market and glass jars to the bulk goods store. Learn more about regenerative agriculture in the award-winning documentary Groundswell and in the Earth Gratitude docuseries. Watch the Eco Kids episode at EarthGratitude.org as well. The students of Damers First School in Poundbury, England, lobbied successfully to get their school food delivered without any plastic. Food grown in student gardens can be picked and eaten right from the plant. 3. Check the labels of your clothing. Wear natural fibers. Shelve the polyester. Every time we purchase polyester, we are voting for oil/gas companies. Each wash of polyester fabric leaches micro- and nanoplastics into our soil and water. It’s easy to find organic cotton athletic wear that is competitively priced online. 4. Buy in bulk. Purchase our coffee, nuts, grains, and other dry goods at coops and stores where we can bring our own container. 5. Bar soap, shampoo and conditioner. They are many great brands that are using premium products. Do you have a favorite? 6. Tooth tabs can eliminate the billions of plastic tubes of toothpaste tossed into landfills each year. 18 billion plastic toothpaste tubes are discarded annually – almost a billion in the U.S. alone. 7. We love emotional support metal water bottles and reusable coffee mugs. Did you know that Starbucks and many cafés will give you free refills of coffee or tea, if you are using one of their ceramic mugs or glass cups and enjoying your drink “for here” instead of to go? Slow sipping tastes much better and offers the many benefits of socializing with friends. 8. Natural fiber shoes. Many brands, including Allbirds and Patagonia, go to great lengths to use natural fibers instead of petrochemicals. Meanwhile, CROCs are primarily made from ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), which is traditionally sourced from petroleum (crude oil). Most athletic sneakers are made from polyester, nylon and rubber – petrochemical products. Let’s support the brands that are giving us healthier, planet-friendly choices. With the heat wave that is happening, the last thing we need is oil/gas petrochems melting onto our feet. (You might ask your favorite AI platform what happens to traditional synthetic shoes versus natural fiber footwear, particularly when temperatures rise.) 9. Be very wary of greenwashing. Words such as recycled and vegan can mask the true nature of petrochemical products and toxicity. When we think of all the habitat loss and animals killed in the course of drilling and producing fossil fuel products, we aren’t saving the lives of animals by choosing “vegan” options that are made from chemicals extracted from oil and gas. 10. Share this information on social media and with as many friends as you can. The emotional support water bottle transformed us overnight. The success of this initiative offers an excellent example of just how rapidly cultural shifts can occur. Let’s get informed and get rid of plastic now! Please tag @nataliewynnepace and @earth_gratitude so that we can easily like and share what you've eliminated and how it has impacted your life. 11. Get educated with reputable organizations like EARTHDAY.ORG. and Ocean Generation, which provide free resources and curriculum on plastic, sustainability and the environment. There is so much misinformation out there. If we’re just relying upon social media campaigns and email ads for our information, we can be more easily bamboozled. Multi-billion-dollar oil and gas companies, including ExxonMobil, which is the largest virgin plastic producer in the world, spend a great deal of money on campaigns and initiatives. You might have seen an ad about mushrooms that eat plastic. How many microplastic-filled mushrooms do we really want, when the planet is currently suffering from plastic pollution deluge to the magnitude of 400 million tons of plastic each year, with up to half of that already circulating in the ocean? 12. Give up chewing gum. It is made of plastic! Do you really want all those chemicals swilling around in your mouth? Bottom Line Plastic is not cheaper. It may cost us our children their lives if we keep buying into greenwashing and the misinformation. On a personal note, after watching oil spill into the Gulf of Mexico between April 20 and July 15, 2010, I felt disgusted every time I filled up my car with gasoline. I was keenly aware that the oil companies were drilling in the Gulf of Mexico to put gas in my tank. My hands had oil all over them. I am now proud to say that I don’t own a car. My primary modes of transportation are biking, walking, e-scooters, public transportation and trains. It didn’t happen overnight because car culture runs deep, especially in California. However, I now enjoy thousands of dollars in annual savings and greater health from exercising more. The average person spends $12,000 annually or more on each car, considering the car loan, insurance, gasoline, maintenance, parking, registration, etc. After personally seeing Cancer Alley in Louisiana and so many “fence line” communities, where fossil fuel companies are polluting the air, water, soil and lives of people living there, it’s quite impossible to want to support anything made with plastic. It’s never “cheaper.” I encourage everyone to learn more about this so that we can be a part of the solution for climate injustice, in addition to rewilding our world back to clean, green, wondrous, healthy and biodiverse. Vote for trees, clean air, and renewable materials that are found wild in nature and that support and enhance life. Take all the steps necessary to stop voting with our consumer and investment dollars for plastic, polyester, plastic bricks and all the ways that the oil/gas industry has inundated our lives. (I help individuals green their wealth plans, too. Email [email protected] for additional information.) Our planet has endured the extinction of many species, and it will surely outlive the Anthropocene. The real question is, “Will we choose to live in greater harmony with the natural world, which nourishes and sustains us, so that we save ourselves?” Wetland restoration could aid in reducing the Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico, and make communities more resilient to hurricanes and flooding, while promoting biodiversity. Planting trees creates shade and sanctuaries for wildlife. Reforestation and regenerative agriculture are powerful mechanisms for drawing down CO2. While single-use plastic persists, the recycling lie circulates, petrochemical fertilizers turn living soil into dirt, and greenwashing misinforms, oil and gas companies will keep expanding to bring us the products and gasoline that we are voting for with our dollars and choices. When the consumer votes for life, everything can change overnight – just as it did with the emotional support reusable water canteen. Si se puede. Oui, c'est possible. 是的，這可以做到。Ja, das lässt sich machen.はい、可能です。Yes, we can do it. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom and a green wealth plan? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register by July 31 to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% or our Real Estate masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by July 31, 2026 to receive the best price.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  David Wilson, the Home Farm manager of H.M. King Charles III educating me on regenerative agriculture. Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest The Higher the Dividend, the Higher the Risk. Wall Street has a Serious Gambling Problem. Margin Trading Hits an All-Time High. Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  The Higher the Dividend, the Higher the Risk. Should you invest in that “high-yield” savings account, brokerage account, private equity or cash app, or is it a trap? Learn what those high-yield opportunities aren’t telling you (the risks and disclaimers). I’ll also cover some of the loopholes and potential gates (you can’t get your money out), fees (that wipe out your income) and restrictions (illiquidity) that await unsuspecting investors. Even when we are not properly informed of the fine print, the disclaimers are legal protection. While everything feels stable right now, we only have to look back a few years to March 2023 for bank failures. The former head of the FDIC, Sheila Bair (Republican), recently warned that there is more risk in the U.S. banking system than the stress tests reveal. In an interview with Politico last week, Bair said: "I hope and pray that we don’t have another big bank get into trouble. But the trajectory of these capital rules, make no mistake, is weakening the resilience of the banking system and significantly lowering capital for the larger banks who have already been taking on a lot more leverage since the pandemic… The market needs to believe that they [the Feds] have the political will to actually put these folks into some kind of a [temporary government-run company to run the bank’s operations until it’s sold or liquidated], wipe out the shareholders, impose losses on unsecured creditors, as you would in a bankruptcy proceeding, and if you just did that once, you would probably end bailouts." This is a banking insider warning us and reminding us that banks can and do fail and that shareholders who are invested in the stock lose everything, as can depositors with uninsured deposits (above the $250,000 limit). So, how do we protect ourselves? Here are the Topics I’ll Cover in This Blog. High-Yield FDIC-insured CDs Money Market Funds Are the Cash App, Venmo, PayPal FDIC-Insured? What about the FDIC-Insurance Offered by Brokerages? How Safe Is the Sweep? Are the Stablecoins FDIC-Insured? Annuities Private Equity and Credit Dividend Stocks and That Warren Buffett Deepfake Video Where Can I Earn a Safe Income? And here is more information on each topic. High-Yield FDIC-insured Certificates of Deposit While an FDIC-insured account is backed by the full faith of the U.S. government (up to the $250,000 limit), do we really want to go through the stress and uncertainty of a failed bank? Are you aware that a lot of U.S. banks are rated BBB – the lowest rung of investment grade? Did you check the credit rating of the bank that’s offering the higher yield? Most “high-yield” rates are less than a percentage point above the 2-year Treasury bill rate. Are the extra pennies worth the risk? A simple search on any AI platform seeking the credit rating of the bank will easily reveal the risk assessment that rating agencies offer. As for community banks, they often are not rated (too small), and they can carry a great deal more exposure to the distressed commercial real estate sector (those empty office buildings). Almost 500 banks failed in the Great Recession. One bank that I researched for a coaching client was a junk bond (below investment grade), until it was rescued by another bank that currently has a BBB rating (the lowest rung of investment grade). The marketing didn’t mention those details. The bank was offering 4.10% yield, which is less than the current yield of the 2-year Treasury bill (4.17%). Money Market Funds People are sold into money market funds for the convenience and liquidity. However, these funds are not FDIC-insured, can go down in value, often get into trouble during recessions and can impose mandatory liquidity fees in the event of elevated investor selling. One of my clients had quite a large sum in a money market account. He was surprised to learn that the fund can impose a liquidity fee – charging investors to withdraw their money (under certain circumstances). The whole point of the money market fund was for this person to be able to access the money at any time – particularly if the economy starts to weaken and real estate market prices become more affordable. However, that’s exactly the time when money market funds can get into trouble, triggering the mandatory liquidity fee that is enforced by the SEC. According to the SEC final rule, “The amendments require certain money market funds to implement a liquidity fee framework that will better allocate the costs of providing liquidity to redeeming investors.” In other words, if you want your money back at a time when everyone else is worried and wants their money, too, you’ll have to pay for it. Another downside to holding too much cash in a money market fund is that the SIPC insurance limit is $500,000 per customer, with a $250,000 cash limit. At least 29 (and potentially up to 62) funds broke the buck in the Great Recession but were quietly bailed out. Are the Cash App, Venmo, PayPal FDIC-Insured? Digital payment apps and offerings from fintechs that are not banks are not FDIC-insured. Under certain circumstances these companies will offer “pass-through” relationships with banks that offer the FDIC-insurance. However, it’s important to remember that if the fintech fails, your money is not FDIC-insured (only if the bank does). Voyager Digital is one example of this. (See below for more details.) The FDIC has a Bank Find tool, where you can see if the company is insured or not. https://banks.data.fdic.gov/bankfind-suite/bankfind What about the FDIC Insurance Offered by Brokerages? How Safe Is the Sweep? If you’ve purchased an FDIC-insured C.D. through a brokerage, then your money is clearly at the bank and is protected up to the FDIC-insurance level. However, brokerages are not banks and are not FDIC-insured. This is an important distinction that we’ve already seen in action. When Voyager Digital collapsed in March of 2022, the FDIC sent a cease-and-desist letter to the brokerage for making false and misleading statements. Depositors had to wait out the bankruptcy liquidation plan (mid-2024). Eligible creditors with a valid claim ultimately received about 70% on the dollar. Voyager Digital was an example of a brokerage that offered a very high interest rate, which ultimately lost investors 30% or more of their principal investment or promised assets. While broker cash sweep programs promise that millions can be FDIC-insured, again, if the brokerage fails, the cash might be tied up while the trustee untangles the knot of which investors get what and where all the assets are hiding. After the Oct. 2011 MF Global Bankruptcy, it took almost five years for investors with allowed claims to get all their money back (2016). Voyager Digital’s business practices were fraudulent. MF Global suffered from a misguided and highly leveraged investment strategy (betting on Greek bonds). Do you know the creditworthiness of your brokerage, how well capitalized it is, how long it has been in business, and whether the C-Suite should be trusted? The same applies to the funds we purchase. Are the Stablecoins FDIC-Insured? Stablecoins are not FDIC-Insured. However, they are required to have a 1:1 reserve of safe, highly liquid assets (U.S. dollars, short-term Treasury bills and repurchase agreements). The Genius Act specifically prohibits the stablecoin from offering a yield. However, loopholes have been exploited. The TerraLuna stablecoin failure was at the heart of the crypto implosions of FTX, Voyager Digital, Three Arrows and more in 2022. (Sam Bankman-Fried is in jail, with a release date of 2044.) Annuities Annuities are sold as a great way to keep your money safe with no risk of loss. However, the minute you buy it, you lose up to 7-10% and must wait up to a decade for it to come back. How many investors are aware of the “surrender” fees that are imposed even if the insurance company gets into trouble and you want out. Insurance companies are not FDIC-insured. If the insurance company fails, our claim goes to the state insurance guarantee corporation, where we will likely be receiving less than we were counting on. (California guarantees 80% up to $250,000.) If AIG had not been bailed out in 2008, more than 76 million global policies would have been in trouble. To make matters more concerning, the annuities I’ve been reviewing for my private clients are paying half of the current yield (2%) of T-bills. At that rate, it would take us 36 years to double our money. How many investors would bet on the insurance company over the U.S. government, particularly if they knew that their return was lower than the rate of inflation?  Private Equity and Credit Another sinkhole that lures us in with promises of income can be private equity and credit. I’ve seen retirees promised that they owned “real estate” and were earning income on it, when in fact they owned equity in a private company that was cash negative for years. Instead of earning income, this couple lost $18,000 of their principal investment – money they really couldn’t afford to lose. Read their story (in their own words) in the guest blog, “They Trusted Him. Now He Doesn’t Return Calls.” Another client was sold into a private credit fund for the “high” income. The fund had alarming fine print that wasn’t read, including the disclaimer that the shares were illiquid and couldn’t be sold and that the firm invested in junk bonds. Private credit is one of the areas of concern in the economy right now. Some of the funds have gated withdrawals. (You can’t get your money out). Many have lost a great deal of their share price. Blue Owl Capital (symbol: OWL) has lost -57% over the last year, at a time when the S&P500 is up 19%. Learn more in my The Venus Flytrap of Private Credit blog. Dividend Stocks and that Warren Buffett Deepfake Video Warren Buffett was always careful to protect Berkshire Hathaway’s principal and recently said that the price of stocks is silly – contrary to what the deepfake video says. Buffett famously exited GE stock just a few months before the company slashed its dividend (in 2017) and lost half of its share value. Before the cut, GE was a “Dividend Aristocrat” offering a high yield. Investors should be aware that a higher dividend often comes with much higher risk of losing money – more than the dividend can make up for and often indicating that there is a risk of a dividend cut or suspension. More recently, Whirlpool suspended their dividend. Ford Motor Company has been in and out of junk and investment grade status multiple times over the past decade and is still rated speculative by Moody’s. Learn more about these events in my blogs; click on the blue-highlighted words to access. Because of the heightened debt in the U.S., combined with elevated equity prices and lower yields, we’re using value replacement funds. The Peru fund (symbol: EPU) is up 175% over the past three years, while earning a higher yield than a comparable U.S. based value fund (IWS). Learn more in my Hot Countries blog. We focus on value replacement funds and how to earn a competitive income safely at our Financial Freedom Retreat. The next one is Oct. 10-12, 2026. Get the best price when you register by July 31, 2026. Where Can I Earn a Safe Income? So, what in the world should you do with your cash? It’s tricky. However, it is not difficult. You just need to know a few of the main mantras. FYI: We’ve been using these strategies for decades, and those who follow them are not experiencing paper losses. Many doubled their money in real estate, when interest rates were at zero. Earning an Income in 2026+ Safely Rules. 1. Keep the terms short. 2. Keep the creditworthiness high. 3. Lean into newer companies and avoid the older companies, which might have more debt and leverage, lower profit margins and flat or negative revenue growth. 4. I’m more interested in short-term Magnificent 7 bonds (excluding Tesla) than Treasuries or C.D.s at this moment. Read my blog to learn why. (They have a lot of cash, low debt, impressive year-over-year revenue growth and unbelievable profit margins.) 5. Hard assets hold their value better than paper in a highly leveraged Debt World. 6. Real estate is at an all-time high, making it difficult to buy at a reasonable price. There’s a Real Estate section in The ABCs of Money, 6th edition that includes many case studies and a 10-Point Checklist. I will be hosting a Real Estate masterclass next Spring. If you’re interested in the recording from the 2025 masterclass, email [email protected]. Learn more about all the things that I’ve covered in this blog in the blogs below. MMFs vs. FDIC & SIPC. Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Bottom Line The higher the dividend, the higher the risk. If it’s a younger company, you need to be concerned about hyper-aggressive, overleveraged, potentially under-capitalized business practices. It’s a good idea to know the credit rating of your bank and brokerage and to understand all the products that you own. A 4% return on $1,000,000 (in your 401K, IRAs, brokerage account, etc.) is $40,000/annually. That’s a nice raise, if you can achieve it without risking your principal investment. Why not invest in wisdom to ensure that you do this? I’m hosting a Bonds & Fixed Income Without Paper Losses masterclass on Oct. 17, 2026. Prerequisite: the Oct. 10-12, 2026, Financial Freedom Retreat. Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register by July 31 to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% or our Real Estate masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by July 31, 2026 to receive the best price.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Wall Street has a Serious Gambling Problem. Margin Trading Hits an All-Time High. Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  Wall Street Has a Serious Gambling Problem. And no, I’m not talking about World Cup fever and betting on games, which you can now do on Robinhood (but not on other brokerage accounts). Gambling is fueling Wall Street’s rally, as margin trading hits an all-time high. Is everyone trading on a whistle, a prayer and borrowed money, with FOMO spiraling in their brain? Could it all come crashing down, or will the fever send stocks even higher? Here are the things we’ll discuss in this blog. I’ll be hosting a videoconference to discuss this more on Thursday, July 1, 2026 at 4 pm PT (7 pm ET). Email [email protected] with VIDEOCON in the subject line if you’d like to join me live. Margin Levels to GDP are Historically High Why Downturns are Swift and Sudden How FOMO is Fueling Gains. Will AI and Data Centers Save Us? What is the Best Policy in a Highly Leveraged Debt World? And here is more information on each topic. Margin Levels to GDP are Historically High Margin trading to GDP has never been higher as you can see in the chart below. If we look at some of the other high periods, there is a significant correlation with fast and furious plunges, as occurred in 2022, the pandemic, 2008, and during the Dot Com Recession.  Source: Google Gemini AI. Between the high of March 2000 and the low of October 2002, the NASDAQ Composite Index dropped -78% – a million dollars sank to just $220,000. It took 15 years to crawl back to the highs of March 2000 (above 5,000). Margin trading today is even higher than it was then.  Why Downturns are Swift and Sudden Corrections in stock prices can spiral and become a Snowball Effect largely due to the leverage and compliance ratios. When the price of a stock falls, the account owner may need to put in more cash to cover the losses. Some brokerages will automatically sell positions as the price starts plunging, to ensure that the account remains in compliance with the Federal Reserve Board Rules for margin trading. Account holders are unable to stop this process, but how many have read the fine print and are aware of this? How FOMO is Fueling Gains People who have been “waiting for the crash” for years are reaching out to our office and are now interested in investing again, even though stocks are at an all-time high. FOMO is real. This is an example of why we don’t want our emotions running our wealth plan. Apocalyptic worrying is also real. When prices plunge, everybody thinks that they can never come back. Nobody wants to buy low. Few have the liquidity to buy low. In tough times, many are struggling to make ends meet and keep their home. The Wall Street rule is to buy low and sell high. And yet, how many of us are tempted to buy high now? It is human nature to do the exact opposite of what we should be doing. This is why it is important to adopt time-proven wealth strategies that protect our principal, while increasing performance – something our sample pie charts have been doing for decades. Will AI and Data Centers Save Us? AI and data centers have everyone excited about the economy. Even just a few weeks ago, when oil prices were high and we had wars and elevated uncertainty in the world, the excitement over the potential of these industries kept everybody invested. Retail investors leapt in, borrowing the money to do so, betting that an end to the war in Iran would make AI stocks soar. And yet, we have seen the technology stocks – including the Magnificent 7 that specialize in AI – go down in value. SpaceX is trading close to the launchpad of its IPO, while Amazon, Tesla, Meta and Microsoft are down -1.17%, -17.10%, -17.19% and -26.94%, respectively in 2026. I’ll be publishing a mid-year performance blog next week. However, it’s important to remember that the highflyers can be the worst tankers in a correction. Check out the chart below from 2022 (another mid-term election year).  Source: Morningstar Direct, MSN.com, Coinbase, Kitco. If artificial intelligence is so hot, why are the Magnificent 7 companies lagging Wall Street? Why is the technology-rich NASDAQ Composite Index down -6.7% from the high set on June 1, 2026 (before the most recent ceasefire with Iran)? As my Wall Street friends are fond of saying, investing as easy. It’s just a question of what and when. AI is very exciting. The companies have great potential and products. The share prices crash because the valuations fly too high. Whenever companies have outlandishly expensive prices, the whales of Wall Street are going to take their profits. If a retail investor doesn’t understand price and price-earnings ratio, they could buy high into a promising industry and still lose money. That certainly happened in the Dot Com Era. It took a decade and a half of waiting to earn back the losses, even though many of those companies that suffered so severely are now the Magnificent 7 Blue Chips. What is the Best Policy in a Highly Leveraged Debt World? Market timing just doesn’t work. Wall Street has been hitting new highs almost weekly since the correction in stocks of 2022. That is one of the reasons why we have been using dollar cost averaging in our funds and hot slices. Even when the price is high, it can go higher. However, you don’t want to count on that happening. That’s why it’s also important to have an age-appropriate, diversified plan in place that is rebalanced 1-3 times a year. The bones of an age-appropriate, properly diversified wealth plan are to:
 Sample Natalie Pace pie chart. All rights reserved. This is the time-proven system we teach at our Financial Freedom Retreats. If you’d like to ensure that you capture gains at an all-time high right now, email [email protected] for pricing and information on my unbiased 2nd opinion of your current wealth plan. Most managed plans cost about 1.5% of your assets ($15,000 every year, per million). My 2nd opinion is a fraction of that cost to ensure that you are properly protected, with superior performance. Many of our hot funds and value replacements have far outperformed the S&P500. Our income strategies are earning a competitive yield with no paper losses. If you’d like to personalize your own pie chart, you can use our free web app. Email [email protected] with Free Web App in the subject line for your complimentary link. Bottom Line Vegas has come to Wall Street. That is the headline that people should be reading, rather than Wall Street keeps hitting new highs. If we really knew how much people were gambling, would we be so worried about missing out? In fact, a better strategy right now, when stocks are still at an all-time high, is to make sure that we have a plan for capturing gains. Now is the perfect time to get a 2nd opinion on your current wealth strategy, to ensure that you have an age-appropriate, properly diversified plan that is designed for superior performance. Whether you have a 401k or a managed plan, chances are there are many improvements to make. Email [email protected] to get started now. For anyone who has never done this, you will be capturing gains near an all-time high! ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register by June 30 to receive the best price and a free 50-minute private, prosperity coaching session (value $400). (Ask for access to a recording of our Wealth Secrets of the 1% masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list is almost sold out!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and chips, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by June 30, 2026 to receive the best price and a complimentary, private prosperity coaching session (value $400).  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses. Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Spring Equinox & Father's Day Sweepstakes Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.
2026 Summer Solstice & Father’s Day Sweepstakes and Sale. Win a Seat at the Retreat and Other Prizes Get Half Off on Private Coaching Receive a Complimentary Coaching Session and $200 Off on Our Oct. 2026 Retreat Time Sensitive: Offers Expire Tuesday, June 30, 2026 Keep reading for a list of prizes that are included in the Sweepstakes and Sales Be sure to share this Sweepstakes information with your friends and family. Anyone can enter! FYI: Natalie Pace posts regular money tips on my Instagram Broadcast Channel. Wall Street keeps hitting new highs. However, nothing is hotter than our hot funds, featuring silver, Peru and clean energy before they posted outstanding gains. Silver and Peru have tripled over the last three years, while clean energy was the surprise in 2025, posting gains of 67% year over year. We’ve also taught Main Street investors how to use targeted ETFs to increase performance and investments in AI, cybersecurity and the Magnificent 7, while embracing the money secrets of the 1% (which help us to minimize or eliminate capital gains taxes). If you doubled your money in stocks over the last three years (what the S&P500 offered, which is less than the hot funds listed above), then it’s time to capture gains at an all-time high and make sure that your plan is designed for both performance and protection. If you didn’t double your money, then learning the life math that we all should have received in high school will transform everything. As importantly, at our Financial Freedom Retreats, we teach everyone how to save thousands annually in their budgets with more-informed big-ticket choices. We’re happy to offer the following Summer Solstice & Father’s Day deals, freebies and sweepstakes. If you want to enter to win, it’s easy and there is no purchase required. Simply email [email protected] with Summer Solstice Sweepstakes in the subject line. (A list of prizes is at the bottom of this blog.) Online Financial Freedom Retreat. Oct. 10-12, 2026. Register now through Tues., June 30, 2026, and receive $200 off the regular price and a complimentary coaching session. Bring a friend with you for half off the regular price (or receive two coaching sessions for the referral, if they pay the published price). Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register now. Check out testimonials (as part of your due diligence) below and on the flyer at the home page at NataliePace.com. (If you are a volunteer or a repeat attendee, your price is even lower!) “Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow these simple and fundamental rules.” Professor Gary S. Becker Gary Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics. BOGO Coaching: An Unbiased 2nd Opinion of Your Current Wealth Plan or Design a College Plan Where Your Teen Gets a Better Degree for Half the Cost Most managed plans do what the market does and cost us thousands (or tens of thousands) annually. (A 1.5% management fee is $15,000 per million per year.) With stocks at an all-time high (while the debt and risks in the world remain very high), now is the perfect time to make sure that we have an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan in place. If we were concerned about our physical health, we’d seek a 2nd opinion from an expert. Natalie Pace’s analysis of your wealth plan is unbiased because we don’t sell financial products. We offer news, information, education and time-proven wealth systems that earned gains in the Dot Com and Great Recession and have outperformed the bull markets in between. Invest in wisdom. With our BOGO coaching popup sale, the 2nd opinion has never been more affordable. Buy one coaching session at retail and receive a 2nd session free. Buy two and receive four. (Volunteers: you qualify for an even better deal when you purchase a 12-pack of coaching.) Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more now. End of Summer Sweepstakes Win a Seat at the Retreat Everyone is a winner in our 2026 Summer Solstice and Father’s Day Sweepstakes. (See the full list of prizes below.) The Grand Prize is a 12-month, all-access pass to all our online courses, which includes 3-4 retreats and 3-4 master classes (retail value: $6,480). Our next retreat is Oct. 10-12, 2026 (online), while our Oct. 17, 2026 masterclass covers Income & Bonds (without paper losses). Simply email [email protected] with the subject line Summer Solstice Sweepstakes! You will be automatically entered to win. There is no purchase necessary. If you’d like to up your odds, then follow Natalie Pace on Instagram.com/NatalieWynnePace. Send us a link to your Instagram profile, and we’ll enter you 10 more times in the Sweepstakes. We must receive your information by Tuesday, June 30, 2026. Please include #NataliePace and tag us when you have a money question, comment or post. https://instagram.com/nataliewynnepace https://www.facebook.com/TheABCsofMoney https://www.linkedin.com/in/nataliepace/ https://x.com/NataliePace Act now. Entries must be received by June 30, 2026. Winners will be notified on or before July 31, 2026. List of Prizes 12-Month All-Access Pass (value $6,480) Retreat Seat (value up to $995) ½ off Retreat Seat (value $497.50) 2nd opinion on your current budgeting and investing plan (value up to $1595) Three 50-minute private prosperity coaching sessions (value $1200). 50-minute private prosperity coaching session (value $400). Autographed print edition of The ABCs of Money for College 2nd edition or The Power of 8 Billion: It’s Up to Us (your choice of one). (priceless) Everyone is a Winner Every person who enters the sweepstakes can choose to receive a complimentary gift from us. We have a Wealth Secrets of the 1% exclusive videoconference that is available ONLY to our Summer Sweepstakes entries. Just ask for your link to the videoconference when you submit your Sweepstakes entry (by email). You can also choose from the videocoaching programs below: 1. A complimentary 21-day Prosperity and Abundance video coaching program: 21 days to a healthier, wealthier, more beautiful you, and/or 2. A budgeting, debt reduction, or sustainability videoconference series, where you can learn how to save thousands of dollars annually with more-informed big-ticket choices. Simply indicate which video coaching series you prefer when you register for the sweepstakes. Again, email [email protected] with the subject line Summer Solstice Sweepstakes! You will be automatically entered to win. Ebooks Are Priced at Under $10 The ABCs of Money for College (2nd edition) Is college right for your teen when 40% of college grads are underemployed (driving for Uber)? What are the fastest growing occupations? Get a better degree for up to half the cost. Parents: you want to read this book when your child is born. Teens: if you’re going to have to plan this on your own, there are great tips and resources that you just won’t find with your college counselors and those standardized personality tests. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GF4CWPPT The ABCs of Money (6th edition) Time-Proven 21st Century Strategies for Investing, Debt Reduction, Budgeting, Real Estate, Stocks, Bonds, Crypto, Gold and more. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DG186KZ5 The Power of 8 Billion: It’s Up to Us. Learn the triple win of greener choices. Save thousands annually. Healthier You, Healthier Budget, Sustainable Planet. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09VFVBGRS The Gratitude Game 21 days to a healthier, wealthier, more beautiful you. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RER5FTI Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is (2nd edition) Investing Strategies for Lifetime Wealth and a Sustainable Planet. One of the original ESG Investing books that was first released in 2008. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09GMTTLQN Thank You! Your presence in our community, with a dedication to financial empowerment and sustainability, means the world to us. We’re so proud of the many individuals who have embraced our research and are leading truly noteworthy lives. We work hard to add a splash of green to Wall Street and transform lives on Main Street. We thank you for helping us to spread the word of just how effective and empowering Natalie Pace’s coaching, Thrive Budget and easy-as-a-pie-chart investing strategies are. Be sure to share this Sweepstakes information with your friends and family. Anyone can enter! The Sweepstakes entry period expires June 30, 2026. Anyone who has emailed us on or before June 30, 2026, with Sweepstakes in the subject line will be entered in the drawing. Winners will be chosen and notified on or before July 31, 2026. There is no cash value for the prizes. The above offers expire Tuesday, June 30, 2026, at midnight PT, and are available to new retreat registrations only. Praise for The ABCs of Money and Natalie Pace’s work. “I went to the Restormel Retreat in 2023, and it was a life-enhancing experience – well beyond my expectations. I had never been able to play the Financial Freedom Game fully, despite working with Natalie Pace for 6-7 years and attending most of the retreats. After the activities that Natalie Pace had us doing and the frame of mind that she put us in, I was finally able to complete the game and share my vision with the group. Two and a half years later, I am the executive director and founder of Gratitude Villages, Inc. and we are in the process of developing affordable, accessible, net zero cohousing communities.” Suzie Shride https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8UiA4i-mI4 “As a young professional, between the knowledge gained through retreats and the experiences from our immersive trip [to Cornwall England], I feel much more aligned with my visions and values than most of my peers.” M "The ABCs of Money will teach you how to stop getting buried in debt and start scoring gains for the home team. The more you score, the more you'll win financial freedom and enjoy your life. College students need the information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE There are many strategies in Natalie Pace's book, The ABCs of Money for College, that prepare families - remember education is a family journey - to uplift and educate their children. Natalie also shares strategies for students who are not well-supported at home to create their own pathway to success. Given the central role that investments in the human capital of our children will play in the success of our children and our country, Natalie's book could not be more timely or important. Kevin M. Murphy, McArthur “Genius” Award winner. George J. Stigler Distinguished Service Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, The University of Chicago Booth School of Business “We asked Natalie Pace for a second opinion on our investment portfolio. She researched and reviewed each stock and fund. She then explained to us in plain English how we were positioned in the market and how high our risk exposure was. Her knowledge was so profound that we decided to take her retreat in Arizona. My husband was still quite skeptical, but 20 minutes into the retreat he turned to me and said, ‘Thank you.’ Stocks and investing are no longer rocket science. We are finally able to take control of our money. We give thanks just about every day that we met Natalie. I feel like I live on a different planet. I'm so grateful. Thank you for changing our lives, our peace of mind, our future and our vision of what is possible. We made a tectonic shift with you.” AC & AM "The ABCs of Money is a must-read to help people understand the complicated economics of modern day (and how to protect and grow their wealth), or to go from surviving to thriving. It helped me and numerous members of my non-profit, The New Hollywood, to become empowered, educated bad asses with their financial literacy." Brianna Brown Keen Film and Television Actress Founder and CEO of The New Hollywood Learn the ABCs of Money that we all should have received in high school and college to score As in: life math, investing, budgeting, housing, debt reduction and living a richer life. See the collage of Natalie Pace's own life journey to financial freedom in some of the pictures below (and in a reel on Instagram.com/NatalieWynnePace.) https://www.instagram.com/p/DYxh6eJAW5X/?img_index=1 ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Bond masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list adventure sells out a year in advance!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as cryptocurrency, Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by June 30, 2026 to receive the best price and a complimentary, private prosperity coaching session (value $400).  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Warren Buffett Investing Tips and that Deepfake Video. The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? USA Downgraded. Is U.S. Reserve Currency Status Threatened? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  Warren Buffett’s Investing Tips and That Deepfake Video. Have you seen a video of Warren Buffett offering investing tips? Are you aware that it is a deepfake? Are the tips what Buffett said or the opposite of what he recommends? All this and more in my blog, videocon & podcast. (Click to access.) “It isn’t our ideal environment in terms of deploying cash… Sometimes we do nothing... Prices for a lot of things look very silly. The [best] time to buy things is when nobody will answer their phones.” Warren Buffett in a CNBC interview May 2, 2026… Berkshire Hathaway has $380 billion in cash on hand. Are you seeing videos of Warren Buffett offering investing tips? One of my coaching clients sent over a video and wanted to make sure that we were addressing all the areas that Buffett suggested in the video. However, did Warren Buffett ever say these things? Was she aware that the video was AI-generated? (Most of these tips are quite wrong and were never said by Buffett.) Below are the areas covered in this blog. At the end of the blog, I will specifically address the five points that this coaching client liked about the video. I address it at the end because after you read through the points and details below, the summation will make a lot more sense. Inflation. Is it Here to Stay? Will Interest Rates Go Up or Down? What about an Inflation-Protected Investment (TIPS)? How to Know if the Warren Buffett Video You’re Watching is a Deepfake Earning Income: Dividend-Paying Stocks Earning Income: Bonds, T-Bills, Money Market Funds and Annuities Warren Buffett’s Favorite Inflation Hedge Links to Warren Buffett’s University Addresses Here is more information on each point. Inflation. Is it Here to Stay? The most recent inflation report wasn’t good. Inflation increased 4.2% year over year. This is more than double above the 2% target. Energy accounted for over 60% of the increase (source: BLS.gov). If the war is indeed over, then energy costs should eventually subside. It might take a few months, or even up to a year. Will Interest Rates Go Up or Down? What about an Inflation-Protected Investment? When inflation rises, the Federal Reserve Board responds by raising interest rates to try and tame prices before the problem becomes entrenched. Rising interest rates reduce the value of existing bonds. So, while the idea of an inflation-protected treasury is enticing, it’s more complicated than that, as you can see in the chart below.  When inflation was at its most recent peak, 9.1% in June of 2022, the TIPS ETF was tanking. Between July of 2021 and October of 2023, the iShares TIPS Bond ETF (symbol: TIP) lost -22% of its value. With the War in Iran over (if it holds), there is a possibility that inflation will start taming again. If the economy weakens, rates could get cut. So, there isn’t a clear path on rate hikes or cuts right now. Losses and illiquidity become pronounced in an investment that has duration or credit risk. Long-term government bonds suffered some of the greatest losses in 2022. These were at the heart of the bank failures in early 2023 (before the Federal Reserve Board stepped in with financial engineering that prevented more bank failures).  For additional information on earning income without losses, read my blog, “Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries.” How to Know if the Warren Buffett Video You’re Watching is a Deepfake Warren Buffett isn’t making any videos. He’s only done one commencement address (2020), and he hasn’t spoken at a business school in decades (links are below). If you’re watching him on video and he’s not at a Berkshire Hathaway meeting or speaking to Becky Quick on CNBC, it’s probably a deepfake. As a value investor extraordinaire, Warren Buffett is certainly fond of dividends and income. However, not so much in today’s Debt World. Berkshire Hathaway currently has $397.4 billion in cash and short-term U.S. Treasury Bills. Warren Buffett first warned about bonds in the 2012 annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter writing, “Bonds should come with a warning label.” Debt has become more of a crisis since then. Click to access my guide on “6 Rules to Earn Thousands Annually Without Paper Losses.” The deepfake Warren Buffett proposed income-producing assets as a hedge against inflation. Income is good and inflation is bad for the economy. However, getting income without losing principal is very tricky these days – much trickier than the questionable strategies proposed in the deepfake. (We spend one full day on how to do this at our Financial Freedom Retreats.) AI confirmed the same conclusion I came to after much research (and decades of analyzing Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway strategies) into the deepfake and marketing ploys currently circulating. See below. “There is no legitimate new video of Warren Buffett telling people to rush out and buy stocks or bonds right now. In fact, recent headlines and Berkshire Hathaway moves show he is doing the exact opposite, maintaining a record-breaking cash hoard because he finds current market valuations unappealing. If you have seen a video circulating on social media making these claims, it is highly likely an old interview taken out of context, a clickbait edit, or an AI-generated deepfake designed to promote a specific financial product.” Earning Income: Dividend-Paying Stocks Warren Buffett is careful to always protect the company’s principal. Buffett famously exited GE stock just a few months before the company slashed its dividend. At the time, GE was a “Dividend Aristocrat” offering a high yield. Investors should be aware that a higher dividend often comes with much higher risk of losing money – more than the dividend can make up for and often indicating that there is a risk of a dividend cut or suspension. More recently, Whirlpool suspended their dividend. Learn more about both events in my blogs; click on the blue-highlighted words to access. As I mentioned above, the higher the dividend, the higher the risk. We saw this correlation play out in the Whirlpool dividend suspension recently, and in many commercial real estate and private equity and credit funds. Sometimes investors are sold into an asset as a safe way to earn more income than most things offer, without being adequately informed of: Linked to the private credit blog · The risk, · Lack of access to their money, · Inability to exit the investment, and, · Many other challenges that might arise to separate us from our money. When we reach for a “high yield” (which might be less than 1% higher than normal) without reading the fine print, we’ll learn those conditions the hard way as market conditions tighten up or the industry hits hard times. (This applies to money market funds, annuities, bonds and Certificates of Deposits, too.) The airline industry was struggling even before jet fuel prices jumped. Spirit Airlines ceased operations on May 2, 2026. High oil prices put the entire economy at risk. Even with the pullback to $80/barrel, oil and gasoline prices are elevated enough to drag on GDP. Learn more in my oil blog. Earning income is a great way to get ahead in today’s world. A 4% yield on $1,000,000 is $40,000 annually. However, earning income without losing principal (or losing access to your money) is very tricky. We’re using country-specific value replacement funds in our sample pie charts. Many are earning a better income than the U.S.-based equivalent, while others have been the Superstars of Wall Street. You can check out more details in my “Hot Countries” blog. We also focus on this in our nest egg strategies day of the Financial Freedom Retreat. Earning Income: Bonds, T-Bills, Money Market Funds and Annuities The main mantra is to keep the term short, the creditworthiness high and to lean into the new and underweight the old. These areas are where a lot of money market funds, annuities and even certificates of deposit run into trouble. Banks and insurance companies are exposed to the problems in commercial real estate and long-term bond holdings, while MMFs are at risk of investor runs. (Over half of the S&P 500 is at or near junk bond status, including a lot of U.S. banks.) I outline the challenges of these assets in greater depths in my Private Credit Problems blog. On the fixed income side, there are a number of challenges. There is so much debt and leverage in today’s world, combined with economic uncertainty, and the dual mandate of the Federal Reserve causing a clash of interest rate policy uncertainty (cut or raise?) that it is frankly too difficult for many retail and Main Street investors to navigate – even if they have a managed plan. (That’s why we encourage everyone to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school to form the solid foundation needed in today’s Debt World.) Broker/salesmen might have pressure to sell conservative investors into assets that aren’t appropriate for their risk profile or age, either because their company is pressuring them to or because riskier investments tend to offer greater rewards, incentives and commissions. Now is the time to know exactly what we own and why, rather than having blind faith that someone else is protecting our wealth. Warren Buffett’s Favorite Inflation Hedge Warren Buffett was famous for saying that the best investment against inflation is yourself. Do you have the personal skills and talents that are going to be valuable to others? While AI does throw a specter of uncertainty over a great deal of industries that were considered to be in high demand just a few years ago, including computer science and cybersecurity, there’s still an element of being cutting edge that reigns supreme. As an example, AI and your broker salesman can talk endlessly about Modern Portfolio Theory. However, are they aware of the best way to put the theory into action? And even if they are able to hack into my proprietary products, where our strategies are time-proven since 1999, are they able to stay up to date? What’s hot and what safe changes annually. Which AI platform or broker/salesman came up with the idea of silver, Peru, and clean energy as hot funds last year (our hot picks)? Our superstars outperformed the Magnificent 7 and Nvidia. That’s the kind of competitive edge Buffett is talking about. Just be the best in whatever it is you choose to embrace as your personal career and contribution to humanity. If you think your journey includes college, graduate school or trade school, then read The ABCs of Money for College for important tips on how to get a better degree for half the cost. I would add that most of us have decades of income invested in our retirement plans. So, it’s also a great idea to be the best steward of our wealth, to take ownership and be the boss of our money. Learn the life math that we all should have received in high school. Join us at our next Financial Freedom Retreat. Register by June 30, 2026 to get the best price and a free gift (value $400+). Links to Warren Buffett’s University Addresses When I pointed out to a coaching client that the video they were watching a deepfake, the person responded writing, “It’s from his university talk, so it’s still valid.” (Not sure where this person received that faulty information.) Warren Buffett has famously avoided the traditional commencement speech circuit and has only given one official commencement address in his career. He held Q&A sessions at only a few (less than a handful) of Business Schools. With the exception of the 2020 pandemic commencement address (by Zoom) for his alma mater the University of Nebraska, the business school appearances were all more than 20 years ago. We do know how Buffett feels about investing from his annual Berkshire Hathaway letters, some of which I’ve outlined above. Below are links to the commencement and Business School Q&As. University of Nebraska, Lincoln Dec. 11, 2020 https://mediahub.unl.edu/media/15167 University of Florida MBA students 1998 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z6x-Ov1smU University of Georgia Business Students 2001 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdsRZsSZlho 3 Speeches by Warren Buffett to Notre Dame Faculty, MBA students and Undergraduates Spring 1991 https://tilsonfunds.com/BuffettNotreDame.pdf Speech at Midland Lutheran College February 2000 http://futile.free.fr/brk/WEBMLC.html Addressing the Points Made in the Deepfake Warren Buffett Video It's titled "Buy These 5 Assets Before You Retire" and runs about 30 minutes. The five areas the video covers, which are using Buffett’s image and voice but aren’t things he advocates for – at least not in today’s expensive Debt World – are listed below. 1. Dividend-Paying Stocks. Warren Buffett is a famous value investor. In fact, there is something called the Buffett Indicator, which he uses to determine whether stocks are on sale. The current stock market capitalization to GDP for the United States is 233.8% -- more than double the U.S. economy, a level which is extremely overvalued. The only two times stocks have been this expensive was in 2000, before the Dot Com Recession and the Tech peak of late 2021. Both preceded corrections. The Dot Com Recession was one of the most severe in history, when the NASDAQ Composite Index plunged 78% from top to bottom and took over 15 years to crawl back to even. Contrary to what the deepfake video says, Berkshire Hathaway has a lot of money on the sidelines. Buffett just said that prices are “silly.”  Here is one of the most cautionary tales of leaning into dividend-paying stocks during a period of elevated risk. The 80+-year-old father of a Wall Street whale had 10% of his wealth invested in preferred Lehman Brothers stock in 2008. They were reaching for yield and ignoring the risk and massive leverage that I warned about in a blog more than a year prior to the bankruptcy. This fixed-income blue-collar father would have had to cut back on a lot of things after the Lehman bankruptcy, including food, if his son wasn’t so wealthy. The Wall Street saying, “Never reach for yield,” is one to take seriously when there is so much debt in the world. The United States has about $108 trillion in total debt and loans. Most of the highly leveraged, heavily indebted, slow growth companies are concentrated in the U.S. value funds, and pay a lower income than our value replacements. As I mentioned, in our sample investing pie charts, we feature funds in foreign countries, many of which have much lower debt, higher GDP growth, more income and many other factors in their favor – including foreign diversification. 2. Broad Market Index Funds — low-cost S&P 500 funds for long-term growth that outpaces inflation. The S&P500 was a super performer for the last three years, with average annualized gains of 23%. However, it was the growth performing, while value lagged. As I mentioned above, our pie chart features 10 slices that include large, mid and small caps, value (replacements) and growth and four hots. This plan is time-proven and works far better than just randomly selecting one fund. ETFs tend to be lower cost than mutual funds and also offer targeted ways of investing in high-performing sectors. Our hot slices of silver, Peru and clean energy more than doubled the returns of the Magnificent 7 in 2025. Click to read my Hot Countries blog for more information. I’ll be featuring an updated 2026 sector performance chart in a blog soon. Email [email protected] to make sure you’re on our email list. Additionally, at the end of the business cycle, it can be very important to make sure that we have the appropriate amount safe from the volatility of the S&P 500. Rebalancing 1-3 times a year to stay age-appropriate, diversified, and to capture gains is an easy and important strategy to put in place. This offers superior protection and performance and is less time and money than most people spend on their own or even with a managed plan. Many people who have managed plans are actually just tracking the S&P500, but performing 1-2% lower due to the fees. So, getting an index might work better than a managed plan, but could still be problematic if you’re not keeping enough safe and rebalancing to capture gains. In short, our plan offers improved performance and protection, while remaining time-efficient and simple. 3. Income-producing real estate. The person asking the question thought that it would be easy to invest here through a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust – an equity fund). As you can see in the sector performance chart below, real estate was the worst performer of 2025. Certain REITs were quite large money pits (losses).  A lot of real estate is having greater difficulty, with the alarming challenges that face commercial real estate. A walk-through any major city reveals this without any knowledge of investing whatsoever. Today’s landscape for purchasing real estate is a lot more challenging than it was in the past because prices are at an all-time high. It’s hard for any business to earn profits when so much is going for the CAPEX. All these challenges are concentrated when you buy a REIT. Having said that, I do believe that success is when preparation meets opportunity. So, we do try to prepare people for the potentiality to purchase real estate that can produce great income when the price becomes more attractive. In fact, this was an area we encourage between the low-yield years of 2009 – 2015. The problem was that most people had lost so much money (and FICO score) in the Great Recession that they were unable to take advantage of great prices. 4. Inflation-protected securities — I-Bonds and TIPS to preserve purchasing power over a long retirement. I already addressed this above. 5. Low housing costs — Reducing basic needs is a great way to stop making landlords rich and to have a lot more money in your own budget. However, housing costs are not low these days. They are instead unaffordable. Buying high can take people into bankruptcy and/or foreclosure. More than 20 million homes went into foreclosure during the Great Recession period.  My Thrive Budget takes the idea of reducing costs further. While housing is the biggest expense for most of us, transportation, health insurance and health care, utilities, gasoline and more are also big-ticket items that can be reduced by thousands of dollars annually with more-informed choices. You can read about that in my book The ABCs of Money, 6th edition. I also featured this in my recent Living a Rich Life masterclass. Register for the next Financial Freedom Retreat by June 30, 2026 and receive access to the recording of that masterclass as our gift to you. Email [email protected] to learn more. Bottom Line Grade your guru before you watch or listen to anything. Was the video offered by the official Berkshire Hathaway channel? If you watch the recent CNBC interview of Warren Buffett, you’ll see that while he’s still quite sharp, he was right to retire. Many of the strategies that the deepfake video touted were in direct opposition to warnings that Buffett has cautioned about most of his career. We’re a fan of earning money while you sleep on the safe side, having an age-appropriate amount at risk to improve performance, and earning income in a performance-enhanced plan. While this plan might sound complicated, it’s as easy as a pie chart. Join us at our Oct. 10-12, 2026, online Financial Freedom Retreat to learn this life-transformational, time-proven strategy. If you’re interested in receiving an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat Oct. 10-12 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Bond masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list adventure sells out a year in advance!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as cryptocurrency, Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register by June 30, 2026 to receive the best price and a complimentary, private prosperity coaching session (value $400).  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Photo of Natalie Pace in Ireland by Marie Commiskey. Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest The SpaceX IPO. Are You Buying High? Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? USA Downgraded. Is U.S. Reserve Currency Status Threatened? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  SpaceX IPO Soars. Should You Take Flight, Too? You know you want to… “Never bet against Elon Musk,” Peter Thiel, billionaire investor (Palantir) and Paypal co-founder. “Investing is easy. It’s just a case of what and when.“ Kelley Wright, publisher of Investment Quality Trends. Be sure to watch my videoconference on YouTube.com/NataliePace and listen to my podcast on NataliePace.Substack.com. The SpaceX IPO will become publicly traded on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange on or about June 12, 2026, with the ticker symbol SPCX. You know you want to buy it. It is likely that the world will see its 1st trillionaire crowned on the 1st day of trading (Elon Musk), if the IPO comes in at $1.6 trillion or higher, and stays there. However, as Wall Street pros remind us, price matters. So, should you buy now or put the company on your stock shopping list? Will the Wall Street insiders who have been investing in SpaceX for half a century use the IPO to sell high and turn their paper profits into hard cash at retail investors' expense? I have been receiving inquiries and emails from our subscribers for months, with links to YouTube gurus and social media stars who are weighing in on whether you should invest. The S-1 filing was only released late Wednesday night (May 20, 2026). Any guru who was espousing a strategy prior to looking at the S-1 filing was really flying by the seat of their pants – or using the interest in the IPO to line their own wallets. (Many sell a newsletter subscription and sometimes a scam. The “research” that people forwarded to me have very poor customer reviews. Grade your guru before you read or listen to anything.) Let’s dive into the data to see what the numbers tell us about this opportunity. Here are the topics I’ll cover in this blog. The Elon Musk Premium The Qualities of a Successful IPO A Deeper Dive into the Board and Management The Opportunities and Challenges of Space Exploration The Opportunities and Challenges of Starlink The Opportunities and Challenges of AI Valuation Macro Considerations Should You Buy Now? And here is more information on each topic. The Elon Musk Premium Whether you are pro or against SpaceX’s founder, CEO and CTO Elon Musk, the man attracts investors. Tesla is worth $1.6 trillion. SpaceX has had some notable, game-changing achievements in space exploration, broadband and AI. Musk knows how to build and run companies and attract the venture capital to keep them going through a lengthy cash burn period, which is what SpaceX is still in. Tesla posted net losses for 17 years before its first cash-positive year in 2020. SpaceX has been unprofitable every year since its founding in 2002, except for 2024, with cumulative losses of $41.3 billion. In the first three months of 2026, SpaceX’s net loss (-$4.3 billion) was almost as much as the losses in all of 2025 (-$4.9 billion). SpaceX is aiming for a $1.75-$2.0 trillion IPO. The investor roadshow will launch on June 8, 2026, with the share price to be set on June 11, before the first day of public trading on June 12, 2026. A lot can happen during the investor roadshow. I’ll keep you updated in the comments section of this blog. While the long-term expectations for SpaceX are interstellar, many analysts are skeptical at valuing the company at $1.75-$2.0 trillion. The Qualities of a Successful IPO In 2004, I went on the Forbes on Fox television show and picked Google before the IPO. At the time many analysts were poohpoohing Google for many reasons, including the fact that there had been an entire Dot Com meltdown between 2000 and 2003. I used the metrics below as part of my analysis to pick Google. If you’d like to see how that analysis works with Alphabet Inc. (Google), read the “Hitch Your Wagon to a Star” chapter of Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is. Incidentally, I used General Motors as an example of a company that would likely go bankrupt, giving it a D-. The book was written in 2007. General Motors did indeed declare bankruptcy in early 2009. That’s how auspicious reading the crystal ball of data can be.  Chart by Natalie Pace. NataliePace.com So how does SpaceX measure up using these metrics?
A Deeper Dive into the Board and Management The management of SpaceX is very strong, having achieved SpaceX’s game changing recovery and reuse of orbital class boosters, rather than them being burned up or lost at sea after one use (costing hundreds of millions of dollars), as was the norm before the SpaceX innovation. This makes space travel more affordable than it has ever been. The CEO/CTO (Musk), president/COO and CFO are all experienced executives. However, the SpaceX board is very overweighted with Wall Street whales. Five out of six of the non-management directors are finance professionals. That has a lot to do with keeping the company private for so long and having cash negative operations, which required SpaceX to keep borrowing money. While this is good for keeping a company alive and getting it to that cash breakeven point, other skill sets are necessary in the boardroom for running a $2 trillion company. Donald Harrison, Google’s president of global partnerships and corporate development is a great asset and is the only non-finance executive on the board. When there are this many finance guys on the board of a company attempting its IPO, there is always the danger of the insiders jumping ship at the IPO liquidity event. That could tank the share price once it hits the big boards. We have seen this play out with a great deal of IPOs, including Snap Inc., Lyft, WeWork, Uber and more. (Click to access my warnings before the IPOs.) The Opportunities and Challenges of Space Exploration While the idea of making “life multiplanetary” is an exciting dream (for some), the universe is a cold, dark, lifeless place, especially compared to our vibrant, beautiful blue home planet. However, Low-Earth Orbit is being used for satellites for everything from Starlink, to weather and defense application. SpaceX is the clear winner with regard to innovation and reliability. Boeing is under intense scrutiny after its high-profile failure and abandonment of two astronauts on the Space Station in 2024. The astronauts were returned to Earth on a SpaceX ship in March of 2025. According to BryceTech and Ars Technica, SpaceX successfully delivered 86% of the world's total payload mass to orbit starting in 2024 with 82% to 84% share of all global mass to orbit through 2025 and early 2026. Virgin Orbit filed for bankruptcy on April 4, 2023, after failing to complete a satellite launch in the U.K. (The company had carried payloads for NASA, the US Space Force, and various private companies before the failed launch that took the company into bankruptcy.) The challenge of space shows up in the financials. It’s an expensive, often cash burn, business. SpaceX is counting on Starlink and eventually Cloud Services to be the steady money for the company. The Opportunities and Challenges of Starlink Starlink is where SpaceX is monetizing space exploration. SpaceX began beaming satellite highspeed broadband Internet to mobile phones in 2025. According to the S-1 filing, Starlink has 10.3 million subscribers in over 164 countries. Connectivity revenue grew by 49.8% in the 1st quarter of 2026 to $3.26 billion on a year over year basis. Income was $1.2 billion in the last quarter. There are clear advantages to having satellite internet for governments to eliminate wifi dead zones. According to the S-1 filing, Starlink’s unique capabilities are well‑suited for deployments across “field offices, remote worksites, research stations, drilling rigs, rural hospitals, aircraft, cruise ships, trains, and hotels.” So, what could possibly go wrong with the connectivity cash cow of SpaceX? In addition to competition from China and Russia, it’s important to remember just how highly regulated the radio frequency spectrum is. (China and Russia are both launching their state-backed broadband constellations.) The S-1 filing outlines the risks, writing: Our satellite connectivity… depend on access to radio frequency spectrum and authorizations from the FCC in the United States and telecommunications regulators in other countries. Without these licenses and approvals, we generally cannot offer connectivity services in a given market. Acquiring the necessary authorizations can be a complex and time-consuming process, often involving technical coordination, public-interest or national security reviews, and cross-border considerations, including in certain jurisdictions where regulatory processes may be influenced by protectionist policies or preferences. Spectrum access itself is limited and highly regulated. It’s also getting quite crowded in low-Earth orbit. There is a risk of collisions with space debris, other satellites and even spaceships. The Opportunities and Challenges of AI AI pioneers have high expectations for what artificial intelligence can achieve – from understanding our universe to breakthroughs in everything from energy to medicine and beyond. SpaceX believes that their vertical integration can support AI infrastructure in space [which will] utilize the “virtually limitless power of the Sun.” SpaceX’s AI business (Grok and X) is investing in R&D and burning through cash, like all AI companies. However, they are starting to monetize and have a $15 billion annual revenue Cloud Services Agreement (once fully operational) with Anthropic. That would bring in more than five times the AI vertical’s revenue in 2025 of $3.2 billion. That’s the good news. The challenges of AI are getting on a pathway to profitability, navigating government regulations, beating the competition, keeping your brand popular and potential liability claims for harms that might occur as a result of “harmful, misleading or illegal content, accuracy, misinformation and deepfakes, bias, discrimination, toxicity, sycophancy, AI deception, consumer protection and notification, products liability, intellectual property infringement or misappropriation, defamation, data privacy, cybersecurity, and sanctions and export controls,” (according to the SpaceX S-1 filing). Powering AI is also a challenge, which SpaceX proposes to solve with low-Earth orbiting data centers. As noted in the SpaceX S-1 filing, “We expect Earth’s finite resources will not be able to sustain the immense computational demands of advanced AI models. Sustainably satisfying this compute demand will require space-based infrastructure that utilizes the ultimate fusion energy source: the Sun.” On Feb. 4, 2026, SpaceX filed regulatory paperwork with the FCC proposing the launch of up to 1 million satellites that will act as self-contained, solar-powered data centers in low-Earth orbit. Valuation A great deal of the independent 3rd-party analyst reports I’m reading are concerned about SpaceX’s lofty valuation. (There are many investment banks involved in the IPO. Those bank analysts are in a “quiet period” where they won’t be issuing any commentary.) One anonymous Wall Street insider sent me a text, writing, “When younger, we were required to learn about imaginary numbers in math class. This IPO analysis may be one of the few times such education had a real-world application. This is not to say this stock won’t go up. Imaginary numbers can rise, as one’s imagination is infinite. But what isn’t infinite is life span.” Macro Considerations While the long-term nature of space, security, internet, cloud and AI contracts could help keep SpaceX’s revenue stable in a recession, the expensive valuation could see the share price drop. Publicly traded space companies saw an average drop of -45% in 2008, during the Great Recession. While no recession is predicted in 2026 or 2027, it’s important to remember that economists are lousy at forecasting economic contractions. Even without a recession, we saw AI and technology stocks plummet in 2022, and again in April of 2025. Learn more in my “Capture Gains at an All-Time High” blog.  Data as of May 18, 2026 Should You Buy Now? I will be monitoring the roadshow and the price and will update here in the comments of this blog. I will also see which of the funds might be including SpaceX, for investors to consider. (iShares TECB, XT and ARTY might include the company.) Given the competing interests of insiders who have a lot of wealth who would like to sell and retail investors who are very interested in owning, the first day of trading will likely be volatile. Whales tend to make a big splash when they sell, so, be cautious. It might be a good idea to wait for the waves to calm a bit. When I think a price is too high, I put the company on a Stock Shopping List. That way I’m ready to go if the price plunges. Most Main Street investors will have an easier time owning hot companies in a targeted ETF to reduce volatility and risk. Investing in any individual company requires a great deal of wisdom, research and babysitting. If we do invest, it’s a good idea to consider it our Vegas money. If we buy high in a great company, that can be an investment that loses money. Bottom Line SpaceX’s business model is sound. Its innovations are extraordinary. Elon Musk is a proven executive who’s probably going to be the world‘s first trillionaire in a few weeks. However, even though it’s a good idea to own SpaceX in our portfolio ultimately, owning it when it hits the big boards could be a very expensive lesson in what happens when insiders use IPOs as a liquidity event to turn their paper profits into cash. Should a company with $18.7 billion in revenue and a loss of -$4.94 billion in 2025 be worth $2 trillion? In the short-term, Wall Street prices can be a popularity contest, which SpaceX can easily win. In the mid- and long-term, however, valuation does matter. Buying high, at a 50X forward revenue multiple, is rarely a great idea, even if the company is one of the most valuable enterprises in the world. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat June 5-7, 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Bond masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list adventure sells out a year in advance!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as cryptocurrency, Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Click through to the flyer to learn more. Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. Teens and college students can attend for just $99.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? USA Downgraded. Is U.S. Reserve Currency Status Threatened? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument.  Capture Gains at an All-Time High. Rebalance. Stocks just hit another all-time high on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Everything seems to be coming up roses despite the significant amount of economic uncertainty in the world. Many analysts are expecting the S&P 500 to rise to 7,600 – 8,100 this year. The index is already up 9.6% year to date. At the same time, 2026 is a mid-term year in the election cycle. We have seen stocks drop in the last two mid-term election years of 2022 and 2018, with losses of -19.44% and -6.24%, respectively. Gemini notes that there is a 70% chance of a correction in 2026, based upon the mid-term trend. So, we must be mindful that there is a risk that the stock market could weaken.  Rather than hoping that our superstars keep lighting up the sky, why not capture some gains at an all-time high? It’s never a question of all or nothing but rather making sure that we have an age-appropriate, properly diversified plan every year. This keeps our wealth growing instead of just riding a Wall Street rollercoaster. Fortunately, that can be done in one, easy, well-designed plan – something I write about in my bestselling book The ABCs of Money, 6th edition, teach at our online Financial Freedom Retreats and masterclasses and offer private coaching and an unbiased 2nd opinion on. Email [email protected] to learn more. Here are the things I will cover in this blog. Stocks are at an All-Time High Rebalance and Employ a ‘Capture Gains’ Mindset An Age-Appropriate, Properly Diversified Plan Tax-Protected Retirement Accounts Hot Industries Underweight Excessive Debt, Leverage and Poor Credit Quality Review the 15 Wealth Rules of the Rich Sounds Complicated? It’s as Easy as a Pie Chart! And here is additional information on each point Stocks are at an All-Time High The S&P 500 hit another high on May 14, 2026. We’ve been singing that tune for two and a half years now! It’s still all about the Magnificent 7. However, in 2022, the highest flyers were the largest sinkers, as you can see in the chart below. Many of the Magnificent 7 companies were the biggest losers, with Amazon and Nvidia sinking by half, and Meta and Tesla plunging by -64-65%.  The chart also reveals that silver was more buoyant (as was gold), which is one of the reasons why we’ve been leaning into the precious metal for one or more of our hot slices. Peru was another 2025 superstar, as was clean energy. These all outperformed the Magnificent 7 (as a whole) in 2025 and 2026, and most of them individually as well, with the exception of Google (Alphabet). Do your wealth and retirement plans include hot sectors? Do you place the top performing funds in your Roth IRA to eliminate capital gains and income taxes? These are some of the strategies that we teach in the Financial Freedom Retreat. Adding performance and protection to our wealth plan is a game changer. Rebalance and Employ a ‘Capture Gains’ Mindset Rebalance now, while stocks are at an all-time high to capture gains. When we don’t have this important discipline baked into our plan, we might be led by emotions. Are you complacent thinking that stocks will just keep going up – with Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) on more money if you capture some gains now? Did you feel like selling (low) in 2022 or April of last year, when stocks dropped -20%? If so, that’s a sign that you need a better system. Emotions almost always put us on the wrong side of the trade. It’s been so long since we had a recession that most of us have forgotten just how painful they are. Younger retail investors might have never seen a sustained downturn. The pandemic recession was the shortest in history – largely because we printed up over $4 trillion and passed it out to everyone with a heartbeat. That is not the way that normal corrections run. There won’t be a blank check from Congress in the next one. (If there is, that can spark its own set of problems, given that public debt is already at $39 trillion.) An Age-Appropriate, Properly Diversified Plan As we get closer to retirement, we just can’t afford to lose half of our wealth. So, having enough safe – not at risk of losing money – and knowing what is safe in a Debt World (so we don’t have to endure paper losses either) is critically important. A properly diversified plan adds performance, while reducing risk. It also allows us to invest in industries we think are going to outperform – whether we love precious metals, copper, AI, breakthrough technology, quantum, robotics, cybersecurity, clean energy or crypto. Tax-Protected Retirement Accounts Why not put your best performing target sector ETFs in your Roth IRA? Do you have most or all of your investments in tax-protected retirement accounts, so that you don’t have to worry about capital gains taxes? You can even put your crypto investments (at least a Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF) in your self-directed IRA. Employer-sponsored plans have more limited options, which is why it is important to contribute to your own IRA (hopefully a Roth IRA), in addition to getting the free match that many employers offer. If you’ve left your job, then rolling over your 401k or RSP into a self-directed retirement account is going to offer greater freedom of choice. Start with your 1st job! The Rule of 72 means that you could be a millionaire before you retire if you are simply depositing 10% of your income into a tax-protected retirement account and earning a 10% annualized gain – something that stocks have done and more over the past 30 years.  Hot Industries What do you think is hot in 2026? Is the good news already priced in? Should you be capturing gains? If you don’t own it, should you dollar-cost average in, instead of buying high? Is there something that is currently out-of-favor that might gain ground going forward? Could you be buying low on an Indonesian ETF or medical devices? Having a strategy that includes hot industries increases performance, provided we have a way of capturing gains and sticking with that age-appropriate, properly diversified plan. As we’ve seen above, superstars are also the ones that crash and burn. This is something we cover in-depth in the Financial Freedom Retreat. Join us! Even if you have a managed plan, it’s a very good idea to be the boss of your money and to know exactly what you own and why. Now. Underweight Excessive Debt, Leverage and Poor Credit Quality. We’re using country diversified value replacement funds to skirt the debt and leverage load of many U.S. companies. Are you aware that over half of the S&P 500 is at or near junk bond status? Check out my blogs on “Hot Countries,” and “Whirlpool Cutting Their Dividend.” Also, our safe strategies have been earning a competitive yield with no paper losses – since 1999! Getting safe is not difficult, but it is very tricky. This is why we spend one full day on “What’s Safe?” at the Financial Freedom Retreat. Also, refer to my blogs, “Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to U.S. Treasuries,” and “6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands With Low Risk.” Review the 15 Wealth Rules of the Rich There are so many small and subtle changes that can compound and add up. The general theme is that the more money we can keep in the family, the better. So my “15 Wealth Rules of the Rich” blog offers many budget and investing hacks that stop us from making the taxman, the landlord, the health insurance company, the utility, the gas station and so many others rich at our own expense. With more money in our wallet, we can invest, compound gains and live a much richer life. Sounds Complicated? It’s as Easy as a Pie Chart! Having an age-appropriate, properly diversified plan can be as easy as a pie chart. We’ve got free web apps where you can personalize your own plan. These will make more sense when you read The ABCs of Money 6th edition and attend the Financial Freedom Retreat. Also take our Investor IQ Test and Rebalancing IQ Test to learn more about implementing this time-proven system. Bottom Line Rebalancing 1-3 times a year is an important part of an age-appropriate, time-proven plan. The end of the Spring Rally (now) is typically a great time to rebalance and capture gains. If you don’t know how to do this, now is the time to learn. The sooner we adopt an age-appropriate, properly diversified wealth plan, the faster our lives transform. ### Are you aware that the hot funds we've been featuring in our sample pie charts and retreats performed at the top of Wall Street in 2025? Silver gained 141%. Peru (copper) was on fire with 83% gains. Even clean energy scored 44%... Why not treat yourself to the gift of financial freedom to create a New Year, New Me in 2026? Register now to join us at our online Financial Freedom Retreat June 5-7, 2026 where you'll learn how to protect your wealth, save thousands annually in your budget, invest in hot industries like AI, gold, crypto and more, and how to be in the best seat during our volatile Debt World. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. (Ask for access to a recording of our Bond masterclass as our gift to you.) Email [email protected] to learn more and register now. If you'd like a life-changing adventure of a lifetime, be our guest at a royal manor house in Cornwall, England, March 4-11, 2027. (With just three rooms still available, this exclusive, private, bucket-list adventure sells out a year in advance!) Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] to learn more. The 2025 Restormel Retreat was a magical and royal experience. Click to learn more. Request testimonials at [email protected]. You can also view some on the flyer page of the retreat. Learn how to: * Invest in hot industries, such as cryptocurrency, Nvidia, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing, * Save thousands annually with smarter big-ticket choices * Hedge against a weaker dollar, * Invest and compound your gains, * Green your retirement plan, * Easy and efficacious nest egg strategies, * Get hot and diversified (including in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and crypto), * Evaluate stocks, * Avoid capital gains and financial predators, * Keep an age-appropriate amount safe, and, * Know what's safe in a Debt World. Yes, it's a complete money makeover. Email [email protected] or call 310-430-2397 to learn more and register. Learn the 15+ things you'll master and read testimonials in the flyer on the home page at NataliePace.com. "Ten minutes into the first day I was already much smarter about investing than I ever thought I would be in my life and I knew I was in exactly the right place at this retreat. I am amazed at how EASY and FUN it is to make my money work for me and those I love. I think this kind of information should be compulsory in schools. I wish I'd learned this sooner." CM "Many people, including educated men and women, often get into trouble when they neglect to follow simple and fundamental rules of the type provided [by Natalie]. This is why I recommend them with enthusiasm." Professor Gary S. Becker. Dr. Becker won the 1992 Nobel Prize in economics for his theories on human capital "College students need this information before they get their first credit card. Young adults need it before they buy their first home. Empty nesters can use the information to downsize to a sustainable lifestyle, before they get into trouble." Joe Moglia, former Chairman & CEO, TD AMERITRADE. If you’d like an unbiased 2nd opinion on your current wealth plan, email [email protected] for pricing and information.  Click through to the flyer to learn more. Call 310-430-2397 or email [email protected] for pricing, additional information and to register. Register with family and friends to receive the best price. Teens and college students can attend for just $99.  Join us for our Restormel Royal Immersive Adventure Retreat. Spring Equinox 2027. Email [email protected] to learn more. Click for testimonials, pricing, hours & details. Register now to receive two 12-month all-access passes to our online training and four private, prosperity coaching sessions. There are only 3 rooms available. Considering the perks, you're receiving a 65% discount to learn the life math that we all should have received in high school, and the room is free! Email [email protected] to learn more. Yes, it's a great idea to register and start transforming our lives now with the online ABCs of money courses.  Natalie Wynne Pace is an Advocate for Sustainability Financial Literacy & Women's Empowerment. Natalie is the bestselling author of The ABCs of Money (6th edition) and The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, and is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project. She has been ranked as a No. 1 stock picker, above over 835 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency (TipsTraders). Her book The ABCs of Money remained at or near the #1 Investing Basics e-book on Amazon for over 3 years (in its vertical), with over 120,000 downloads and a mean 5-star ranking. The 6th edition of The ABCs of Money and the 2nd edition of The ABCs of Money for College are the most recent releases of these books. Follow her on Instagram. Natalie Pace's easy as a pie chart nest egg strategies earned gains in the last two recessions and have outperformed the bull markets in between. That is why her Investor Educational Retreats, books and private coaching are enthusiastically recommended by Nobel Prize winning economist Gary S. Becker, TD AMERITRADE chairman Joe Moglia, Kay Koplovitz and many Main Street investors who have transformed their lives using her Thrive Budget and investing strategies. Click to view a video testimonial from Nilo Bolden. Check out Natalie Pace's Substack podcast and watch videoconferences and webinars on Youtube. Other Blogs of Interest Whirlpool Suspends Dividend. Share Price Sinks. Why I Prefer Select Corporate Bonds to Treasuries. When Superstars Burn Out. Should You Just Own an S&P 500 Fund? Gold, Silver and Crypto. Are the Safe Havens Sinking? Hot Countries. Oil Prices Soar. Stocks Sink. 15 Rules of the Rich. The Venus Fly Trap of High-Yield and Private Credit Funds. AI Says There is a 70% Chance of a Correction in 2026. Learn why. Investors Sell Magnificent 7 for Chevron and Caterpillar. (Is this a good idea?) 6 Rules to Earn Tens of Thousands with Low Risk. 2026 Investor IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Investor IQ Test. Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. Half a Century of Sustainability Leadership. Silver and Gold's Very Bad Day. Why are Mortgage Rates so High? The War Over Warner Bros. Is an EV Winter Coming? Copper and Peru are Hot, Hot, Hot. 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. Answers to the 2026 Rebalancing IQ Test. 2026 Crystal Ball. Is the AI Bubble About to Pop? A+ 2025 Performance Report Card with Bragging Rights. Are We Headed for Another Crypto Winter? Will the World Cup Save the Travel Industry? Save Thousands Annually on Health Insurance and Medical Care. 2026 Bonds and Fixed Income Without Paper Losses Strategy. Magnificent 7 Update. On Fire. Expensive. Crypto. Copper. Silver. Gold. More Magnificent than the Magnificent 7. Stablecoins. Should You Invest? Clean Energy. Solar Generation is On Fire. HHS Cuts MRNA Research. Weight Loss Drugs Soar. Are You Paying Thousands to Lose Money? Crypto Goes Mainstream. The Genius Act Becomes Law. Wealth Hacks: Are You Getting Killed in Capital Gains Taxes? Our Super Performing Hots and Value Replacements. Is Your Income Strategy Losing Money? Gold and Silver Soar. Get Safe & Hot in 1 Easy Plan. Home Prices Soften. Is Your City Next? Tesla Vision vs. Waymo LiDAR and Air Taxis. Are Any of Them Safe? Archer Aviation is Chosen to be the Exclusive Air Taxi Service for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. Company of the Year? USA Downgraded. Is U.S. Reserve Currency Status Threatened? Utilities: In the Eye of the Natural Disaster Storms. Aging Mom Doesn't Want to Discuss Dilapidated House. Investors Ask Natalie. Tesla, Tariffs, Chinese Competition and Price Wars. Health Savings Accounts. Save Thousands. Get a Tax Credit. Provide for Tomorrow's Healthcare Needs. Restormel Manor House 2025. A Truly Royal and Magical Adventure. 9 Ways to Cut Your Tax Bill in Half and Save Thousands Annually. Should I Have a Money Manager? 10 Rules of Successful Investing. Indonesia: Rich in Nickel with Ambitions of Becoming an EV Battery Hub. RoboTaxis. AI. The Magnificent 7. Canadian, Australian and U.S. Banks. Are Any of Them Safe? Ireland. Rich in Technology, Biotechnology and Agribusiness. 9 Money Secrets of the Ultra Wealthy. Housing & Budgeting Solutions. Fast Fashion. Fossil Fuels. Plastic Clothing. Atacama Desert Waste Dumps. Fintechs and Brokerages that Fail are Not FDIC-Insured. Housing. Unaffordable. What Works? Case studies and creative solutions. The Underperforming DJIA, Full of Fossil Fuels and Forever Chemicals. 13 Lifestyle Choices to Reduce Waste, Pollution & CO2 & Save a Boatload of Dough. 11-Point Green Checklist for Schools. 10 Wealth Secrets of Billionaires and Royals. Fiat. Crypto. Gold. BRICS. Real Estate. Alternative Investments. BRICS Currency. Will the Dollar Become Extinct? Is Your FDIC-Insured Cash Really Safe? Money Market Funds, FDIC, SIPC: Are Any of Them Safe? Important Disclaimers Please note: Natalie Pace does not act or operate like a broker. She reports on financial news, and is one of the most trusted sources of financial literacy, education and forensic analysis in the world. Natalie Pace educates and informs individual investors to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. Any publicly-traded companies, funds or projects mentioned by Natalie Pace are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies. Investors should NOT be all in on any asset class or individual stocks. Your retirement plan should reflect an age-appropriate, diversified wealth plan, which has been designed strategically, with the assistance of financial professionals who are familiar with your goals, risk tolerance, tax needs and more. The "trading" portion of your portfolio should be a very small part of your investment strategy, and the amount of money you invest into individual companies should never be greater than your experience, wisdom, knowledge, patience and diversified strategy. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. However, NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. |
AuthorNatalie Pace is the co-creator of the Earth Gratitude Project and the author of The Power of 8 Billion: It's Up to Us, The ABCs of Money, The ABCs of Money for College, The Gratitude Game and Put Your Money Where Your Heart Is. She is a repeat guest & speaker on national news shows and stages. She has been ranked the No. 1 stock picker, above over 830 A-list pundits, by an independent tracking agency, and has been saving homes and nest eggs since 1999. Archives
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