Your stock picks were fine. The trading is what cost you
You picked your broker on about €4 of commission and handling. Currency conversion on a €5,000 US-share round trip is €25 (DEGIRO, September 2026).
Tax
What the state takes, when, and on what: rules that reinvent themselves at every border you cross.
Latest
European bond ETFs: how they work, and how they're taxed where you live
Euro government bond ETFs fell about 18% in 2022, never mature like a single bond, and are taxed differently in every country. Here's how they actually work.
Warren Buffett's principles, translated for Europe
For 60 years Buffett beat the market, then told everyone else to index. His principles, translated for Europe: UCITS ETFs, the 90/10 rule and tax wrappers.
Employer pension contributions mean five different things across Europe
Cross a border and employer pension contributions become five different things. Ireland and Britain force a minimum in; Spain requires nothing at all.
The 4% rule for European retirees: does it still hold up in 2026?
3% to 3.5%, not 4%: that's the realistic safe withdrawal rate for a European retiree living off a portfolio. Here's what moves it, and why.
Rebalancing your portfolio: put the mix back where you left it
Drift quietly turns your 60/40 into something riskier. Here's how to put the mix back, cheapest move first, and skip the tax where your country lets you.
Dollar-cost averaging vs lump sum: which actually wins?
A lump sum beats drip-feeding in Europe about two-thirds of the time. When phasing in still earns its keep, and when it is just expensive comfort.
How to pick an ETF in Europe without losing the plot
Pick a UCITS ETF in Europe with a weighted six-point checklist: the UCITS gate, what it tracks, true cost, size, acc or dist, domicile.
Tax·
Tax-efficient investing in Europe: the fee you can cut
A 0.5% annual tax drag can cost a European investor tens of thousands over a working life. Cut it with the right wrapper, fund and filling order.
Tax·
Redundancy packages explained: which part is already yours
A redundancy package is a stack, not a single number. Part is yours by law, the rest is negotiable, and the tax-free slice changes country by country.
The best savings account in Europe is the one that lets you keep the most
The headline rate on a savings account is rarely what you keep. Post-tax yields in Germany, France, Ireland, Slovenia and beyond tell a very different story.