Ask Maybe: My Financial Advisor Won't Talk Bitcoin

Question:

As a 24 year old, what do I do if my my financial advisor won't talk to me about buying and holding Bitcoin, along side gold, as a small % of my portfolio? I feel as though have done more research on the asset than they have.

Answer:

Great question! It's one that hits on a topic that a lot of people have experienced if they've worked with an advisor.

That topic is that sometimes advisors aren't open to considering questions or topics that either they're not familiar with or they don't believe in.

What's the role of an advisor?

At the core of this is a philosophical question about what the job is of the advisor.

Some advisors believe that their advice should be taken blindly.

If they don't want to talk about a subject or don't believe in it, then neither should you as the client.

There are other advisors that believe in presenting things as they are, the pros and cons, in order to give you the information you need to make a decision.

They come alongside you to make a decision together. In your case, I'm assuming that you've asked the advisor about this and they aren't willing to engage. It probably comes across in conversations with your advisors that you have a solid understanding of the asset.

They may know nothing about Bitcoin, or they're overwhelmed and don't want to talk about it. Neither are right.

It's your money

You have a few options to consider. The first is that it's your money you can what you want with it.

If you feel compelled to buy and hold Bitcoin, at the end of the day, it's your money and you can do what you want to with it.

You may not feel comfortable making a decision without the help or buy-in from your advisor. Your steps here will depend on whether you see yourself working with this individual in the future.

Want to continue working with the advisor? Tell them exactly what you want to do, talk about the options, and engage them in a conversation.

If you don't care either way, I say you go ahead and do it, maybe not even talking to them about it.

Either way, you're not asking for their permission. You're looking for their input, not whether they agree or disagree.

Consider the downside

You've already said it's going to be a small percentage of your portfolio. You're young, so you have a a lot of time on your hands.

If Bitcoin goes to zero (I'm not saying it will), you've got a lot of years ahead of you to recover from it. The risks are mitigated to some degree because you are limiting the percentage of the asset in your portfolio and you have a lot of time on your hands.

To recap: If you want to work with this advisor in the future, give them another chance and tell them you want to do this. You're not looking for their permission. You want them to walk beside you. If you're not intent on working with them in the future, I say, do it and and don't worry about what they think about it.