What went down at the TL Insider event on the future of finance


What went down at the TL Insider event on the future of finance


Powered by RBC InvestEase®, TL Insider welcomed Tom Lombardi, Managing Director of 3iQ, for a special installment of The Exchange on May 18. The virtual event featured Lombardi in conversation with Rajan Bansi, Head of RBC InvestEase, and Jason Maghanoy, Associate Publisher of Canadian Business and the Head of Business Development at St. Joseph Media, for a comprehensive discussion on the role of cryptocurrency in the future of finance. 

Lombardi has over twenty years of experience in investment banking and emerging technologies and most recently, his focus has been on bitcoin. He kicked off the event guiding members through the state of cryptocurrency in our current era of technological advancement. “From the introduction of personal computers to mobile phones—every 10 to 15 years, there is a computer cycle and a big movement that follows,” said Lombardi. “I believe, like many people do, that we are in the next cycle with blockchains and cryptocurrency.” Then again, should we be listening to Elon Musk and quickly invest in Dogecoin? He weighed in on that too. 

After witnessing the economic disruptions caused by the pandemic, more Canadians are curious about investing in their financial wellness. The panel addressed how cryptocurrency can be a solution, but emphasized the importance of knowing what you’re getting into. For Bansi, his advice is to avoid investing in what you don’t understand but recognizes the merit in crypto investments. “Digital assets and digital currencies are opportunities in which you can consider investing in an effort to try to make your life easier and better in the long run,” said Bansi. At its core, this phenomenon in the world of finance has a similar mission to that of RBC InvestEase—RBC’s low-cost, low-effort online investing solution (or robo-adviser) aimed at making investing accessible to a new generation. “I think a lot of these fintech solutions, including RBC InvestEase and cryptocurrency, are an extension of our new freedom to be in control of our money,” said Lombardi. 

The event, in part of TL Insider’s Future of Downtown Summit, ultimately served as an information session for members to be brought up to speed on the ins and outs of digital investing and decentralized currencies. It can be confusing, and our experts broke it down from every angle. Answered questions included: What exactly is an NFT? How do blockchains work? What are the rules of development? Lombardi even outlined his approach to diversifying a crypto portfolio. 

Safety and advice from both Bansi and Lombardi’s personal experiences were also major talking points. There’s a lesson in every experience, and sometimes, no matter how much experience you’ve garnered or research you’ve done, mistakes can still happen and you just have to grow from them and be adaptive. 

 “We all make life lessons, some of which can be expensive,” said Bansi. “It’s important to choose based on what you’re comfortable with, keeping in mind that this may change over time.” For Lombardi, a growing collective interest in cryptocurrency is how the digital asset grew to acclaim. His perspective: “Which cryptocurrency to invest in is entirely up to you, but making a small investment in this space gets you the endowment effect that comes with being an owner.” 

Watch the recorded event here to get the entire story on cryptocurrency and learn more about investing with RBC InvestEase. Plus: If you open up your first RBC InvestEase account by June 30, 2021, you won’t need to pay management fees for your first year*.

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*To take advantage of this offer you must not have held an RBC InvestEase account prior to May 1, 2021. Accounts opened from May 1, 2021, to June 30, 2021, using promo code AA735 will not be charged the regular 0.5% management fee by RBC InvestEase for 12 months from the date of account opening. RBC InvestEase will notify clients 60 days in advance of any changes to the fees associated with their account as set out in the investment management agreement. A weighted average management expense ratio between 0.11-0.32% will still apply to the ETFs held in our portfolios. This offer cannot be combined with any other offers. RBC InvestEase Inc. reserves the right to amend or withdraw this offer at any time without notice.

RBC InvestEase Inc. provides online discretionary investment management services. Other products and services may be offered by one or more separate corporate entities that are affiliated to RBC InvestEase Inc., including without limitation: Royal Bank of Canada, RBC Direct Investing Inc., RBC Dominion Securities Inc., RBC Global Asset Management Inc., Royal Trust Corporation of Canada and The Royal Trust Company. RBC InvestEase Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada and uses the business name RBC InvestEase. In addition, the RBC iShares ETFs in which RBC InvestEase Inc. clients invest are managed by BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited. RBC Global Asset Management Inc. and BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited have entered into a strategic alliance to bring together their respective ETF products under the RBC iShares ETF brand, and to offer a unified distribution support and service model for RBC iShares ETFs.

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