“FIRE” and “ESG” were among the Top 10 Search Terms of 2019 at Investopedia, the financial education website announced recently.
While “Negative Interest Rates” edged out “Dark Web” as the most-searched term, “FIRE,” which stands for either “Financially Independent, Retire Early” or “Financial Independence, Retire Early” depending on your source, was obviously on the minds of Millennials who no doubt propelled FIRE to the lofty heights of the third most-searched term of 2019 on Investopedia.
Pretty significant, considering the site claims 22 million monthly “readers.” Here’s what they had to say about FIRE in their wrap-up of 2019 search terms:
The Financially Independent, Retire Early, aka FIRE movement is not new, but it had more than a few spikes in 2019. Hundreds of articles, books and online videos were created, promising strategies for retiring by the age of 35 without the headache of a 9-to-5 job. While it is possible for some, extreme early retirement is unrealistic for many.
The motivations behind the movement are understandable—we are living longer, pensions are evaporating and working for the same company your whole life is unheard of—but there is rarely a short cut to financial independence. Beginning to save and invest at an early age, setting realistic goals, and maintaining financial discipline are still the best bets at growing a nest egg large enough to support a comfortable retirement, though you’ll likely have to retire a little later than 35.
We’ve kept an eye on the FIRE movement this year at 401k Specialist as well, noting in articles in September and October that some FIRE devotees fanatically save up to 70% of their paychecks, often living “a monastic existence,” in hopes of a very early retirement.
Principal released a detailed study this year about “Super Savers” which might also be of interest.
ESG
As for ESG, which stands for Environmental, Social and Governance investing, Investopedia noted how it is catching on with investors as they seek to “put their money where their hearts are.”
401k Specialist has been all over ESG in 2019, as a search of the term on our site turns up 27 ESG-related articles so far this year (guess this would make it 28?). Nineteen of them were primarily focused on ESG issues related to 401k investing.
Here’s what Investopedia said about it cracking the top 10 search terms this year:
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria broke out of the background as a socially conscious way of investing. ESG investors embraced companies, mutual funds and ETFs that subscribe to the practice either avoiding companies that don’t follow ESG principles, or investing specifically in companies that do.
Principles aside, ESG proved in 2019 that it could deliver results as well as a clear conscience. Global exchange-traded funds focused on environmental, social and governance issues had more than $13.5 billion in total assets under management at latest count, tripling in in the past year. Performance in this sector helped break the notion that ESG investing had underwhelming returns. The iShares MSCI USA ESG Select ETF (SUSA), one of the largest exchange traded products that offer investors exposure to ESG, has returned nearly 25% year-to-date, in line with the broader market.
Karl Marx
Investopedia says the “godfather of socialism” had a renaissance in 2019 as some high-profile Democrats including some of the higher-polling presidential candidates embraced some of his tenets. 401k Specialist has been reporting details on retirement-related far left ideas from dems all year, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Karl Marx was the eighth-most searched term in 2019.
What Investopedia said:
The Godfather of Socialism is having a moment. Thanks to Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and AOC, Karl Marx is back in style. Socialism has become a hotly debated topic in politics, and not just in the U.S. Polarizing elections are happening all over the world as economies throughout Latin America and Europe consider whether the ‘capitalism experiment’ has really worked or not. On these shores, Democratic candidates for president in 2020 are espousing themes like Universal Basic Income, Medicare for All and the elimination of student loans. Conservative opponents may brand them as socialists, though Karl Marx likely did not have those topics in mind when he wrote Das Kapital in 1867, his seminal treatise on the underpinnings of the capitalist system and the risks it brings with it.
Top 10 Terms of 2019
The top terms on Investopedia for 2019 were influenced by everything from presidential debates and data breaches to celebrities and economic theories, and the site’s editors say this year’s winner was no surprise. “Our number one term for 2019 is Negative Interest Rates, the phenomenon of getting paid to borrow, and taking a loss on loaning.”
Here’s the complete Top 10:
- Negative Interest Rates
- Dark Web
- FIRE
- Conventional Mortgage
- Negative Bond Yield
- Exempt Employee
- Jay-Z
- Karl Marx
- Inverted Yield Curve
- ESG
‘Pension Risk Transfer’ big in Des Moines
Investopedia also broke down the top-searched terms by city, which yielded another interesting result.
Iowa’s capital city of Des Moines, a popular hub for life and annuity companies, had an eye on retirement planning with pension risk transfer as its most-read term for 2019. Investopedia notes these transfers occur when a defined-benefit pension provider wants to remove itself of obligations to pay out guaranteed retirement income to its plan participants. As of January 2019, Iowa’s largest public employee pension fund showed almost $7 billion in unfunded liabilities.
Veteran financial services industry journalist Brian Anderson joined 401(k) Specialist as Managing Editor in January 2019. He has led editorial content for a variety of well-known properties including Insurance Forums, Life Insurance Selling, National Underwriter Life & Health, and Senior Market Advisor. He has always maintained a focus on providing readers with timely, useful information intended to help them build their business.
