One of the most interesting newcomers to the “financial technology” world, M1 Finance promises to offer new as well as experienced investors an opportunity to leverage the power of automated investing without a tremendous amount of risk.
Because this service is still so new – and because the promise it makes is so outsized – plenty of folks are wondering whether or not M1 Finance can survive the long haul. We can tell you with some certainty that betting on M1 Finance to not only survive but thrive is a good idea!
Below we dig a little bit deeper into the ins and outs of everything that M1 Finance brings to the table. We go over the pros and cons of this investment solution, breakdown the company and its core offering, and then share why we think M1 Finance is going to be a big fish in the financial technology pond for a long time to come.
What is M1 Finance?
M1 Finance is one of the top automated investment services available today, a service that simplifies (dramatically) the investment opportunities found in the stock market today – all while promising outsized returns at the same time.
The core offering from this company is the ability to select from 60 different “pies” – basically pools of different stocks and assets (total portfolios) that you can put your money into. Sort of a set it and forget it kind of solution, really.
On top of that, M1 Finance makes it really easy to better align your investment strategies with your investment goals.
You’ll be able to choose pies that make sense for your appetite for risk, the kind of diversification you are shooting for, and can even load up on pies with the potential for outsized profits in specific sectors and segments of the market that are emerging or achieving terminal velocity.
At the end of the day, M1 certainly makes a bunch of big and bold promises.
The cool thing about this investment platform, though, is that it does a better job backing up those big and bold promises than most of the other automated or semi automated investment options today.
You are in good hands with M1 right now. And the odds are pretty good you’ll be in good hands with M1 for years and years to come.
Pros
Now that we’ve kind of gone over M1 from a “high-altitude” sort of perspective, let’s dig a little bit deeper into the nitty-gritty of the pros and cons this set up has to offer.
Different Pies
On the plus side of things, the different pies you’ll be able to invest in – and the incredible portfolio management and portfolio customization tools available – are a game changing feature.
Sure, you could spend a ton of time researching individual stocks. You could spend a lot of time looking into different securities, different companies, new and emerging markets and breakthrough technologies.
You could do all of that on your own (if only you had the time).
But who has time for all that, especially with how quickly the market moves today?
With M1 Finance, you can sort of turn your research on autopilot and jump into individual pies – complete with tons of customization options – to set up your investment strategy, use the robo advisor to make smarter plays, and then just turn your capital loose.
Margin Loans
Margin loans are available through M1 as well to really help you maximize your investing opportunities.
It’s possible to get into margin investing with as little as $5000 in your account. That’s not something you’re going to find available from a lot of other investment services, especially those that offer top-tier robo advisors to boot.
Margin helps you dramatically increase your profit potential without having to take on a ton of extra risk with your own cash and capital. Obviously you’ll want to deploy market strategically, recognizing that there’s risk in every investment.
But M1 does everything they can to help you manage and mitigate risk while pumping your profit potential.
On top of all of that, you’ll never have to worry about fees for trading or for managing your account.
Yes, you read that right – M1 Finance doesn’t have any fees for trading or account management.
That alone is a game changer.
Cons
All that said, M1 Finance is not just a bed of roses.
There are some drawbacks you’ll want to be aware of.
Tax Loss Harvesting Tools Are Poor
For one thing, the tax loss harvesting tools and strategies provided by M1 are pretty lackluster – to the point that they don’t really exist at all. That might be a huge problem for those that want to make the most of all of their investments (including when they lose money).
Secondly, M1 is a 100% automated and robo style investment services.
Lack Of Customer Services
You’re not going to be able to talk to a live advisor. You’re also not going to be able to work with someone to plan your investment strategies.
That falls squarely on your own shoulders.
Finally, the financial calculators, tools, and actual planning solutions available from M1 leave a little bit to be desired as well. Combine that with the lack of aggregation from external accounts for investment purposes and those might be deal breakers (though they probably aren’t).
Will M1 Finance Survive?
There are a couple of things that make us confident that M1 Finance won’t just survive but will thrive, and the biggest reason has to be the investment they’ve made into their robo and automated investment tools (all of them proprietary).
These tools are often described as light years ahead of the rest of the competition, the kinds of tools that can totally transform your financial future much faster than you ever thought possible – all without you having to babysit your investment portfolio on a minute by minute basis.
There’s always going to be an outsized demand for these kinds of tools, especially if you’re able to generate the kinds of returns and results that M1 Finance clients have generated for themselves in the past.
Closing Thoughts
At the end of the day, only you are going to know if M1 Finance is right for you.
All we can tell you is that the chances are good (great, even) that M1 finance is going to be around for a long time.
It wouldn’t surprise a lot of folks if M1 became the “next big thing” in the financial technology space, even.
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