Nishaan Desai
Divisional executive: retail investment portfolio management at Liberty Group
If someone came to you tomorrow with R100m to invest, where would you put the money?
Diversification is the only free lunch in investments, so a spread across asset classes and geographies is the way to go.
Who do you admire in the investment community, and why?
Warren Buffett, because he constantly reminds us (and himself) that he is deploying investors’ capital, not his own, and he communicates simply and effectively.
What’s the worst investment mistake you’ve made?
The worst ones are the ones I didn’t make — waiting for markets to bottom out, or believing something is just a fad or a bubble. Those are harder to quantify, and easier to forget!
What’s the best investment you’ve ever made? And how much of it was due to luck?
My education and career choices. The work and the decisions are ultimately mine, but I recognise how incredibly lucky I am to have had the opportunities, people and support structures around me to enable that.
How do you control your emotions in the market when all you want to do is trade but know you shouldn’t?
Take a deep breath and a step back and look at the bigger picture, and question your emotional decisions against your long-term objectives.
What is your greatest extravagance?
If you had to evaluate time and money spent against results, it would have to be my golf game!
Big Tech or old-fashioned industrial stalwarts?
Tech is changing the world in ways that we can’t even begin to imagine, but investing is all about buying at the right price, which means as an investor, both are on the table.
How much of a portfolio should be for wildcard selections?
How much can you afford to lose without getting too upset?
Art, wine, rare books or cars?
Whatever brings you the most happiness — just don’t tell yourself it is an investment.
Would you buy your primary home or rent?
As an investment, I am not convinced that one option is definitively better. However, I like the intangible benefits of ownership.