About Us

Effective: March 14, 2023

Updated: April 05, 2023

THE STARTER INVESTOR (previously known as Marginal Investor) is an online platform that is dedicated to the practical application of investment principles and techniques as expounded by some of the most celebrated books on the subject. The sources of these principles are The Intelligent Investor, The Richest Man in Babylon, and Fundamentals of Financial Management. These books have proven to be a valuable resource in teaching the basics of stock trading and investment.

The Intelligent Investor, written by Benjamin Graham and published by HarperBusiness, is a classic guide on investing that has been revised several times. The Richest Man in Babylon, authored by George S. Clason, is a collection of parables set in ancient Babylon that offers practical advice on personal finance. Fundamentals of Financial Management, written by Eugene F. Brigham and Joel F. Houston and published by South-Western, is an academic textbook that introduces the basic principles of finance and investments.

In an article titled 7 Things Starter Investors Should Know, Forbes defines a "starter investor" as an individual who is new to the realm of investing. Currently, that accurately characterizes our financial status. Specifically, we identify those with a restricted investable fund, as little as Php10,000.00, as starter investors.

THE STARTER INVESTOR's main focus is to guide individuals in starting their stock trading and investing activities in the Philippines. For illustrative purposes, we will limit our investment to common stocks. Moreover, we highly recommend the services of BPI Trade and BPI Securities Corporation as online stockbrokers. Finally, our buying and selling of securities will be facilitated through the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).  In the meantime, for beginners with a more constrained budget, we can use the GInvest feature of GCash. 

THE STARTER INVESTOR aims to provide its readers with an in-depth analysis of investment principles and techniques, as well as practical guidance on starting their stock trading and investment activities in the Philippines. Our recommended approach is to invest in common stock and to work with reputable online stockbrokers such as BPI Trade and BPI Securities Corporation, or start with buying, managing, and selling investment products from the trusted partner providers of GFunds via GCash app. We will inform our readers about our progress and offer updates as we embark on our investment journey.

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To ensure accurate record-keeping, we are providing a reproduction of our original post from March 7, 2009. Although we have deleted the original post as of April 5, 2023, we believe it is important to preserve the content for documentation purposes:

Marginal Investor is about practical applications of the principles of stock trading and investment as I understood them. These investment principles and techniques came from three of my favorite books on the subject of investing:

• The Intelligent Investor purchased on April 17, 2007
• The Richest Man in Babylon was purchased on April 4, 2007
• Fundamentals of Financial Management purchased on February 20, 2004

The Intelligent Investor (featuring a new foreword from John C. Bogle) was authored by Benjamin Graham. Published by HarperBusiness, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. New York, 2005. The Richest Man in Babylon was authored by George S. Clason. Published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. New York, 1988. Fundamentals of Financial Management, tenth edition, was written by Eugene F. Brigham and Joel F. Houston. Published by South-Western, a division of Thompson Learning. Ohio, 2004. Marginal Investor, according to Fundamentals, is:

"A representative investor whose action reflects the beliefs of those people who are currently trading a stock. It is the marginal investor who determines a stock price."

Marginal Investor is also about how one may start his or her stock trading and investing activities in the Philippines from scratch. For illustration purposes, we shall limit our investment to common stock and with only one issue. We shall choose Ayala Corporation, one of the oldest and most respected business houses in the Philippines. In addition, it is highly recommended here that we should obtain the services of BPI Trade and BPI Securities Corporation for our online stockbroker. Finally, our buying and selling of securities will be done through the PSE or Philippine Stock Exchange.