Recommended Reading For African American Financial Starters

Posted on April 18, 2012 by | 2 comments

By William A. Foster, IV

The way to wealth is as plain as the way to market. It depends chiefly on two words, industry and frugality; that is, waste neither time nor money, but make the best use of both. Without industry and frugality nothing will do; with them, everything. – Benjamin Franklin

The HISTORY

Capitalism & Slavery by Eric Williams

Comments – This book is tied for one of the most important books I have ever read period with Miseducation of the Negro. It is by far the most important financial book I have ever read. To understand the history of the system you are engaging is vital. One of the most important lessons I came away with in this book is that capital within the capitalist system will always seek to find the cheapest labor.

Black Titan: A.G. Gaston And The Making Of A Black American Millionaire by Carol Jenkins & Elizabeth Hines

Comments – The biography of arguably one of the greatest business men to ever grace America’s soil. His story of entrepreneurship and building of an empire is worth the read. He owned a bank, insurance company, along with  many other businesses, and before his death was proposing an African American owned stock exchange. His rise from humble beginnings that would make many of us blush today gives one a role model of perseverance.

The 3 TYPES OF INCOME

Comments – Robert Kiyosaki explains the three types of income. He is also the author of Rich Dad Poor Dad. A book that is worth reading but there is much of it that must be taken with a grain of salt. Mr. Kiyosaki, while I respect his opinion in a lot of areas of his book, primarily that your house is not an investment, some of his book is a sales job to get you to buy more of his products so reader beware.

The REALITY

The median net worth for African Americans is $2,170.

The median net worth for European Americans is $97,860

And more can be found here in Men Lie, Women Lie – Numbers Don’t: The Financial State of African America

https://hbcumoney.com/2012/02/13/financialstate-aa/

Black Is entitled STOP: African Americans should NOT be maxing out their 401(k) http://www.blackisonline.com/?p=1986&preview=true

The TECHNICAL

Security Analysis by Benjamin Graham & David Dodd

Comments – This one will put your mettle to the test. Its long. Its boring. Its fundamental. Its imperative. Benjamin Graham was Warren Buffett’s teacher and that alone makes it a must read. Beyond that this book will provide the discipline needed to make you understand the need for long-term value investing and not subject to the whims of the ups and downs of the daily market.

Common Stocks & Uncommon Profits by Philip A. Fisher

Comments – If Warren Buffett is known as the greatest value investor of all-time then Philip Fisher is arguably the greatest growth investor of all-time. Again, focused on long-term investing but this time in growth companies. Mr. Fisher did not believe in diversification investing but finding a few (7 to 10) really good stocks and being dedicated to them over the long-term.

The WEBSITES

These are websites that I check with some frequency on a weekly if not daily basis. Now while I wouldn’t expect anyone to check them at the rate I do these are websites that should at least find your eyeballs at least once a month. Also check newspapers from around the world. This is important because you want to start to see trends. The reality is that geopolitical and geoeconomical events can echo strongly into financial markets at times. No, reading CNN is not enough. You want to read events from others point of view about the world. CNN gives you the world view from European America’s perch. Understanding the difference can and will give you an edge when examining your company if it has a multinational operation.

http://www.hbcumoney.com

http://www.bloomberg.com

http://www.fool.com

finance.yahoo.com

http://www.techcrunch.com

http://www.landreport.com

http://www.foreignpolicy.com

http://www.world-newspapers.com

http://www.tiger21.com

This is just the start of a long road of wealth building but a foundation to begin you on your way. All of these avenues will potentially lead you to other avenues of information. Don’t invest in isolation either. Conversations about companies and their long-term potential with other investors can help you see things you might miss.

MOST importantly – SHARE this information with your family, friends, and community.

Make more money than you spend and don’t spend that much.

Mr. Foster is the Interim Executive Director of HBCU Endowment Foundation, sits on the board of directors at the Center for HBCU Media Advocacy, & President of AK, Inc. A former banker & financial analyst who earned his bachelor’s degree in Economics & Finance from Virginia State University as well his master’s degree in Community Development & Urban Planning from Prairie View A&M University. Publishing research on the agriculture economics of food waste, full-time contributor at HBCU Money, and guest contributor for a number of African American media outlets.

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HBCU Money™ B-School: Foreign Exchange Market (FX)

Posted on April 16, 2012 by | Leave a comment

The foreign exchange market or forex market as it is often called is the market in which currencies are traded. Currency Trading is the world’s largest market consisting of almost trillion in daily volume and as investors learn more and become more interested, the market continues to rapidly grow. Not only is the forex market the largest market in the world, but it is also the most liquid, differentiating it from the other markets. In addition, there is no central marketplace for the exchange of currency, but instead the trading is conducted over-the-counter. Unlike the stock market, this decentralization of the market allows traders to choose from a number of different dealers to make trades with and allows for comparison of prices. Typically, the larger a dealer is the better access they have to pricing at the largest banks in the world, and are able to pass that on to their clients. The spot currency market is open twenty-four hours a day, five days a week, with currencies being traded around the world in all of the major financial centers.

Learn more about at http://www.gocurrency.com/articles/forex-for-beginners.htm

All About The Foreign Exchange Market In The United States http://www.newyorkfed.org/education/addpub/usfxm/

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HBCU Money™ Business Book Feature – Outliers: The Story of Success

Posted on April 15, 2012 by | Leave a comment

In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of “outliers”–the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different?

His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.

Brilliant and entertaining, Outliers is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.

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HBCU Money™ Financial Empowerment Commandments

Posted on April 11, 2012 by | Leave a comment

1) To know my home is an investment in my community not a financial investment.

2) To save and invest a minimum of 25% of my after-tax income.

3) To bank with an African Diaspora financial institution.

4) To build portfolio and passive income that is equal to or greater than my earned income.

5) To measure my financial wealth by net worth, not income.

6) To review and/or discuss finances at least twice a month.

7) To help educate children in our community about business, finance, & entrepreneurship.

8) To be proactive about financial management practices and estate planning.

9) To purchase land.

10) To donate a portion of my income and wealth into African Diaspora controlled education institutions and programs as an investment in my community.

I have committed to these commandments as a means of building myself, my family, and my Diaspora. In following these commandments, I intend to pursue all available resources, wisdom, and power to build a stronger village.

Signed: _______________________      Date:____________________

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Posted in Lifestyle

HBCU Money™ Business Book Feature: Black Inventors, Crafting Over 200 Years of Success

Posted on April 8, 2012 by | 1 comment

It is not widely known in the Virgin Islands that during the 1970s- 80s and 90s, Liston Abbott, of St. Thomas USVI, was instrumental in inventing solutions that improved television signal capacity. But it is quite ironic that Caribbean inventors have had so little recognition from their own countrymen. People from the Caribbean have had a major impact on the world of innovation and invention…More recognition should be given to Caribbean people who have enlightened the world with their innovations and inventions, writes Keith Holmes, author of the recently published book Black Inventors . In fact, his book has brought to day-light information that substantiates his statement: Caribbean inventors have filed patents for a significant number of inventions…and have received world recognition and awards. Holmes lists Caribbean inventors as early as 1769, from most countries in the region including Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Cuba, Santo Domingo, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Martinique, USVI, St. Vincent and Trinidad and Tobago. The author has spent almost 20 years to piece together information on black inventors. His work will undoubtedly increase readers awareness that on a global scale black inventors, both past and present, have contributed in large measure to the progress made by humanity. This book documents a large number of inventions, patents and labor saving devices conceived by black inventors. Africans, before the era of their enslavement, developed agricultural tools, building materials, medicinal herbs, cloth, and weapons, among many other inventions. Though many black people were brought to the United States, the Caribbean, Central and South America as slaves, it is not widely known that thousands of them created saving devices and inventions that spawned companies which generated money and jobs, worldwide. This book is divided in three main parts: the first explores the role played by ancient African inventors; the second part focuses on native African inventors; and part three delves into black inventors by geographical location, worldwide. The material available in this book is an introduction into the world of inventions by Black inventors. It gives the reader, researcher, librarian, student and teachers the materials needed to effectively understand that the Black inventor is not one dimensional but global occurrence. This book has certainly provided an invaluable tool for those who want to research this fascinating and fertile area of world history. His book proves that without the inventors, innovators, designers and laborers of African descent, in Africa as well as throughout the African Diaspora, western technology, as we know it today, would not exist. There are many significant facts to be learned from Holmes book, for example: the invention process did not originate in Europe; from 1900 to 1999, black inventors patented over 6,000 inventions (at least 400 of them by black women), and between 2000 and 2007, blacks patented over 5,000 inventions; nowadays American icons such as Oprah Winfrey has 61 trademarks; and a significant number of black inventors live in Europe where they have patented thousands of inventions. This fascinating book ends with a very useful bibliography and a detailed and useful index.

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