Have you heard terms such as: “Philippine stock exchange” or “becoming a shareholder” or “making your money work for you through the stock market?” Well, these are stock market investment terms. And when people hear about “investments,” it gives a nice ring in the ear. You see, putting your money to investments is one way of making your money work for you and earning passive income in return.
So if you are you interested in investing your money in the Philippine stock market, but don’t know how and where to start. Then this article is for you.
Seven (easy) steps in Investing in the Philippine Stock Exchange Market
In this page, I’ll be providing you the seven steps that you need to do to finally get started in the world of stock investing.
Step 1: Set your goal in investing
The very first thing that you need to do is to define your reason for investing. Why do you want to put your money in stocks? Is it for your retirement? For emergency needs? For educational purposes? Whatever it is, you should have an end goal which will motivate you to keep investing.
Step 2: Open Your Online Stock Trading Account
For you to get started on buying and selling stocks in the Philippine Stock Exchange, you need to have an online stock broker account. It’s a platform which where you can place your orders.
Sometimes, the hassle of applying for a stockbroker account is the reason why most beginners end up not starting at all. So, I’ll provide you with the three easiest ways to open an account.
2.1. COL Financial
COL Financial is the top 1 stockbroker in the Philippines. Here’s how you can apply for an account and get started investing in the Philippine stock exchange:
- Step 1: Go to their website at www.colfinancial.com. Go to the “Open An Account” tab. In this step, you will be provided with more information with the type of account that you may want. The good thing is you can open an account for as low as P1,000 only.
- Step 2: Download the application forms and fill it out.
- Step 3: Take note of the additional requirements. Just like with opening a bank account, COL Financial requires a photocopy of one government-issued ID for Philippine residents.
- Step 4: Submit forms and additional requirements
You may personally submit your forms and requirements at the COL Financial office or you may have it delivered by iRemit branches. Check the official website for more information about this step. Once your forms have been reviewed, you will receive a video call for additional verification.
2.2. BDO Nomura
If you are a BDO client, you’re just a few clicks away in applying for a stock broker account. The really good thing about BDO Nomura is that you can do everything online. You don’t have to go the branch or anything like that. Just make sure you have BDO online banking. Let’s get started in investing in the Philippine stock exchange through BDO Nomura.
Here are steps you can follow:
- Step 1: Go to their website, www.bdo.com.ph/bdonomura . On the upper right-hand corner, click on Online Trading >> Enroll Now.
- Step 2: Use your online banking user id and password to log in. It will then ask you to enter your OTP (one-time password) which will be sent to your phone.
- Step 3: You will be prompted with the terms and condition and a consent form. Just tick the radio boxes and click on “I agree”.
- Step 4: Fill out Investor Profile and Suitability form with the necessary information. Once done, just click on next. Make sure to review all your information before you submit.
- Step 5: Wait for account approval. You will be receiving an email with your custom code and additional references to get started.
That’s it, very easy and no hassle at all!
2.3. BPI Trade
Are you a BPI client? Good news here. You can also create a stockbroker account through them. It is kinda similar to the previous, but this time, you’ll have to physically go to the branch to submit the forms.
Here are some actionable steps:
- Step 1: Go to www.bpitrade.com. Click on “Open Account”. Read the Terms and Conditions. Click “ I Agree” and proceed.
- Step 2: Fill out the required documents and print it. You have to bring these to the nearest BPI branch to your area for approval. They also require valid iDs for verification. Go to their official website to check the list of accepted IDs.
- Step 3: Wait for a confirmation email for account approval.
And that’s how you can apply for a trading account in BPI Trade.
Step 3: Fund your account
Once your account application has been approved, you will be receiving the confirmation email with instructions on it, depending on the stockbroker that you’ve applied to.
So the next step is to fund your account. You can do this thru bank transfer or through bank deposit whichever is more convenient for you. By funding your account, you now have the buying power to invest in the Philippine stock exchange market.
Step 4: Buy your first stock
Here we go! Your hands might be fidgety at first, but once you are able to get approved for a stockbroker account and was able to fund it, it’s time to place your very first stock order. The stocks that you will buy will be based on your financial goal. Are you someone who is saving up for long term purposes or are you someone who has a high risk of appetite and would like to test waters out.
Here are two investing strategies that you can implement:
4.1. Peso Cost Averaging (Buy and Hold Strategy)
If you are completely a newbie, long term investing strategy would be best for you. In this investing strategy, you keep buying blue chips stocks, keep them for a long time like months or even years and then sell it once its price is already high. This is a stress-free type of investing because you don’t really care too much for stock price changes as you are planning to keep it for a long time frame.
You might be asking, what is a blue chip stock?
Blue-chip stocks are stocks of large companies which are known for its national reputation to operate profitably both in good times and bad times. In the Philippines, blue-chip companies include Ayala Corporation, BDO Unibank, San Miguel Corporation and many more. You can do some research on the lists of the blue chips companies in the Philippines.
4.2. Active Trading
Active trading is the total opposite of the first one. It this strategy, you buy stocks right now and then sell it in the next coming days of weeks. Most of the time, active traders buy penny stocks which prices are highly volatile.
If you are a beginner, I won’t recommend you to do this kind of strategy because it includes a lot of technical analysis which you are not really aware of. This is actually where most people lose their money.
Step 5: Sell your stock
After buying the stocks that you like, once its price increases and when you’re happy about the potential profits, it’s time for you to sell your stocks. For example, you have bought 1000 shares of Megaworld Corporation for P4/share and its price increase to P6/share, it means your profit is P2/share or a total of P2000. If you’re happy with these returns already, you can sell your stocks already.
Step 6. Enjoy your profits and Reinvest it
Being able to get your very first profit on a stock sale is the most enjoyable part of investing. Your returns may be overwhelming but I recommend you to reinvest your earnings instead of spending it. This way you are multiplying your profits.
Step 7. Keep on learning your game
Investing might scare you at first leaving you not to do anything at all. So just like with other things that we are signing up to, knowledge is still your best ally. To reduce the risk of investing, find people who are experts in this field and learn from them. You may read books or attend seminars to increase your knowledge about stock investing.
There’s no right time to invest but now. The more you delay it, the more opportunities you’re missing. So go out of your comfort zone, do these steps I have enumerated and start your stock investing journey now!
Bonus Step: Alternative Stock Investment
Investing in the Philippine stock exchange can prove to be little quite challenging for beginners. You have to learn the game, understand investment jargons, read business news and analyze charts. However, what if you don’t have time to learn all of these but you have the investible funds to invest in the market, then Mutual Funds would be a great alternative for you.
Through Mutual Funds you can still invest indirectly in the Philippine stock exchange but instead of doing it yourself (the buying and selling), professional fund managers will do it for you. Of course, it entails a certain management fee but that is the price you have to pay for convenience.
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