Perth Tolle is the founder of Life + Liberty Indexes and creator of the Freedom 100 EM Index (FRDM index), the world’s first freedom-weighted emerging markets equity index strategy. Prior to forming Life + Liberty Indexes, Perth was a private wealth advisor at Fidelity Investments in Los Angeles and Houston.
Prior to Fidelity, Perth lived and worked in Beijing and Hong Kong, where her observations led her to explore the relationship between freedom and markets.
Perth's Investing Style
How many years of investing experience do you have? 10-20 years
What is your investing risk tolerance? High
What is your portfolio size? 20+ stocks
What are your favorite investing sectors? Emerging markets
Before diving into our Q&A with Perth, get more insight on her investing style and experience in this interview on Motley Fool Live below.
When did you get started in investing and why?
[In] 2014, when I traveled to Hong Kong and mainland China and saw the impact of freedom on markets.
Can you tell us a little bit about your relationship with money at an early age?
I started working at age 14 and managed my own money ever since.
What has your journey been like as an investor, and what are some of the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I started out at Fidelity in 2004, and, as an advisor, opened a new office with my colleagues in Thousand Oaks, California, in December 2007. [From] 2008 to 2009, [I] had some of the most memorable experiences as a young investor and an advisor, and [it] was very constructive to my investing career going forward.
What’s one story from your life that totally defines who you are today, and how has that impacted your investing career?
When I went back to Hong Kong after college, I traveled to mainland China and made local friends. I had a friend who was just like me and every one of my American friends, exactly the same age as me, and the same in almost every other way except she didn't exist on paper. Due to the one-child policy, her parents registered her brother for official existence. She's one of millions of women in my generation in China who are unregistered, with no birth records, school records, or social benefits. And I realized that could have been me. I saw the impact of policies on societies and future demographics and the impact of freedom on markets. That was the beginning of the idea for the freedom-weighted emerging markets (EM) strategy my company eventually created. So investors who value freedom can express that in their EM allocations.
With so many younger investors dipping their toes in investing, what’s the best advice you have for someone who may be looking to start investing or who may be newer to the industry?
Keep it simple. Complications can hide a myriad of faulty premises.
You juggle so many tasks and wear so many hats. How do you manage the balance between your work life and your personal life and still manage to meet your investment goals?
Prioritize family and rest. And don't feel bad about it.
If you could go back in time and change one thing about your investing strategy, what would you change?
I would have gotten a tax advisor earlier.
Who are some leaders in the investing industry you admire and why?
Rob Arnott, for pioneering non-cap-weighted indexing. Bill Browder, for standing up for his principles after his massively successful investments. All the indie ETFers I get to work with, the most fun group in the business.
What are some of your favorite educational resources (books, podcasts, websites, etc.) that you’d recommend for investors of all ages?
The Motley Fool, Meb Faber Podcast, Animal Spirits Podcast.
What’s one quote or saying that inspires or challenges you?
"Talent goes where it's welcome, and where it's well-treated. Talent is not only people, but also money and ideas. They, too, go where they're welcome and well-treated." — Walter Wriston
How do you feel about crypto as an investment?
I like the use case for people in countries without reliable banking systems, or for those fleeing government surveillance and persecution. I think that goes under appreciated by those of us who live in the U.S., with our very reliable banking system.
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Anything else to add?
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