Newsletter
Towards a Healthier Financial Future
Section: Infographic of the week
← Curating the web to find the most interesting and helpful
information about your money.
Visualizing the Pyramid of Global Wealth Distribution
Who controls global wealth? In 2022, the world’s millionaires held nearly half of net household wealth. Decades of low interest rates led equities and real estate values to soar, and these assets are disproportionately held among the world’s wealthiest.
The distribution of global household wealth, based on the annual 2023 UBS Global Wealth →Visualizing 30 Years of Investor Sentiment
The link between investor sentiment and the stock market is not linear. In fact, many consider extreme sentiment readings as a contrarian indicator. If sentiment swings sharply in one direction, some investors may consider this a signal to do the reverse.
Investor sentiment and U.S. stock prices over modern history →The 20 Most Common Investing Mistakes, in One Chart
No one is immune to errors, including the best investors in the world. Fortunately, investing mistakes can provide valuable lessons over time, providing investors an opportunity to gain insights into investing—and build more resilient portfolios.
20 Investment Mistakes to Avoid →Which Cities Have Bubble Risk in Their Property Markets?
Despite higher mortgages and sharply correcting prices, some cities’ property markets are still in bubble-risk territory.
The UBS Global Real Estate Bubble Index →Charted: Retirement Age by Country
The retirement landscape can look completely different depending on what country you’re in. And charting the retirement age by country reveals a lot of differences in the the makeup of a labor force, both for economic and cultural reasons.
Exploring retirement age trends around the globe →Ranked: Median Student Debt for a U.S. College Degree
According to the Federal Reserve, student loans added up to $1.6 trillion in Q2 2023, making them the third largest category of U.S. household debt behind auto loans ($1.8 trillion) and mortgages ($12 trillion).
The Visual Capitalist ranks student debt by U.S. college degrees →Visualizing the Top Countries by Wealth per Person
When looking at wealth per person on a country-by-country basis, is it more important to look at median wealth or average wealth?
See how you compare to the rest of the world →Warren Buffett's Portfolio Visualized
Warren Buffet is probably best known for being one of the world’s most successful investors. See what Berkshire Hathaway are holding and learn from the legendary value investor known as the 'Oracle of Omaha'.
How They Make Money: Why the Oracle of Omaha tends to bet on the status quo →Who appears on the most currency?
Queen Elizabeth II leads monarchs to the front of 1/3 of the world’s currency, followed by Vajiralongkorn, King of Thailand.
Monarchs and world leaders appear more frequently than other people →World Risk Poll: How Long Can People Survive Without Income?
In the wake of natural disasters or economic shocks, a person could quickly be left without income, which is why financial security is such an important aspect of resilience. The Lloyd’s Register Foundation partnered with Gallup and polled 125,000 people from 121 countries, asking how long people could cover their basic needs without income
How Long Can People Survive Without Income? Assessing Financial Security →Ranked: The 20 Best Franchises in the U.S.
The U.S. is famous for chain restaurants, franchised shops, and brand name hotels. One thing these franchises aim for is consistency in store feel, customer service, product offerings, and prices, no matter which state you’re in.
Best franchises in the U.S. worth owning, from Dunkin’ Donuts to ... →How Long Does it Take to Double Your Money?
At first glance, a 7% return on your investment may not seem that impressive. Yet what if you heard that your money could double in roughly 10 years?
Why it Pays to Know the Math →The Monthly Cost of Buying vs. Renting a House in America
With home prices and mortgage rates both rising, the U.S. is now witnessing the biggest numerical gap in the monthly cost between owning a home and renting in over 50 years. Americans, however, have seen similar scenarios occur since the early 1980s.
See the difference of buying vs. renting a single-family residence in the U.S. since 1970, adjusted for inflation. →Just 7 Companies Dominate the Nasdaq 100
Launched in 1985, the Nasdaq 100 index tracks the performance of the largest, and most actively-traded, non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
Companies in the Nasdaq 100, by Weight →Visualizing U.S. Wealth by Generation
The distribution of wealth is an important measure of the economic power of each generation. In the U.S., for example, baby boomers own half of the nation’s $156 trillion in assets despite making up 21% of the country’s population.
Visualizing $156 Trillion in U.S. Assets, by Generation →Timing the Market: Why It’s So Hard, in One Chart
Timing the market seems simple enough: buy when prices are low and sell when they’re high.
The Pitfalls of Timing the Market →The World’s Biggest Mutual Fund and ETF Providers
The global net assets of mutual fund and ETF providers totalled $38 trillion in 2022. Despite its massive size, the industry is dominated by a relatively small number of brands.
This graphic uses data from Morningstar to show the largest fund brands and their growth rates in 2022 →The average monetary value of each type of person
Monarchs and world leaders appear more frequently than other people on the world’s currency. But, since many of them appear on multiple denominations, the average value of their notes and coins is lower than that of historians, mathematicians, and singers.
How do spies, historians, monarchs and athletes compare? →Visualizing the Hierarchy of Financial Needs
Behavioural scientist Abraham Maslow wrote “A Theory of Human Motivation” in 1943, arguing that humans worldwide are influenced by a “hierarchy of needs”. This theory organizes human needs across five levels, where needs in the lower end must be satisfied before progressing onto the next level.
See the steps to creating a strong financial foundation →Global Distribution of Money
The fact that China, Japan, the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and India are the nations with the greatest concentrations of this wealth is not surprising. Actually, the combined wealth of just seven nations makes up 69% of the global total.
Do you know your Net Worth? Start tracking it today →Visualizing Annual Working Hours
Comparing the number of hours people work in different countries can provide insight into cultural work norms, economic productivity, and even labor laws.
Where does Canada rank? How do your working hours compare? →The most profitable U.S. companies, by sector
See the S&P 500 companies with the highest profits in their sector. Data is based on the fiscal year ending on or before January 31, 2023 across companies in the Fortune 500.
America’s most profitable companies, by sector →See the Markets in a Minute
S&P 500 companies hold $7.1 trillion in assets, and account for close to 80% of available market capitalization on U.S. stock exchanges. The index serves as a barometer for the U.S. stock market, covering the largest public U.S. companies by market capitalization. Often, it reflects investor sentiment and is considered an indicator for U.S. economic health.
Visualizing Every Company on the S&P 500 Index →The Most Expensive Starbucks Items in the World
Your daily coffee habit is probably costing you a lot more than you think. What if you skipped buying two coffees a week and invested that money?
The Price of (non-essential) Big Bucks Starbucks items in USD →Ranked: The Cities with the Best Work-Life Balance in the World
"While some careers can be relatively stress-free, maintaining a healthy work-life balance can seem impossible for many. The easy access to technology, blurred boundaries around work and personal time, and fear of job loss push many to work overtime, and fail to use vacation time or sick leave."
How did Canadian cities measure up? →The Fastest Rising Asset Classes in 2023
Many corners of the market have shown resilience despite persistent inflation and slowing economic growth in 2023. U.S. equities, international equities, and a variety of bonds have seen positive returns so far this year.
The top-performing asset classes to date with data from BlackRock →Charting the Number of Failed Crypto Coins
Ever since the first major crypto boom in 2011, tens of thousands of cryptocurrency coins have been released to market. And while some cryptocurrencies performed well, others have ceased to trade or have ended up as failed or abandoned projects. These graphics from CoinKickoff break down the number of failed crypto coins by the year they died, and the year they started. The data covers a decade of coin busts from 2013 through 2022.
The Number of Failed Crypto Coins, by Year (2013-2022) →Just 20 Stocks Have Driven S&P 500 Returns So Far in 2023
Truman Du shows which stocks are making up the vast majority of S&P 500 returns amid AI market euphoria and broader market headwinds.
Tech and AI stocks have soared as ChatGPT became a household name in 2023 →How Much Should You Tip In Each Country?
How much should you tip when traveling abroad? The answer can vary wildly depending on the country and what type of service you are using.
Servers and bartenders depend on tips to supplement wages →Charting the Relationship Between Wealth and Happiness, by Country
Throughout history, the pursuit of happiness has been a preoccupation of humankind. Of course, we humans are not just content with measuring our own happiness, but also our happiness in relation to the people around us—and even other people around the world.
Does money really buy happiness? Let’s find out →How Gen Z Feels About Its Financial Future
Gen Z is an optimistic and driven generation. Many young people in this generational cohort are turning to entrepreneurship and side hustles as a way to supplement their income and build a brighter future.
Gen Zers have a more positive outlook on their financial well-being than their millennial or Gen X peers →Mapped: How Global Housing Prices Have Changed Since 2010
Houses fulfill a rare mix of necessity, utility, sentimentality, and for many, also act as a primary investment to build wealth. And it’s that last angle, combined with increasing demand in many countries, that is driving housing prices skyward.
See how Canada measures up →How much more are groceries costing you this year?
Mapped: Which Countries Have the Highest Inflation?
See how Canada compares to the rest of the world →How much do you spend on your daily coffee?
Mapped: The Price of Starbucks Coffee, by Country
Do you know how much you spend on daily coffee? See how you compare →