Investing 101: The Complete Guide to Starting from Zero
Everything you need to know to put your money to work from Latin America without complications.
If you’re reading this in 2026, you’ve probably already realized that leaving your money sitting in the bank is the slowest way to lose purchasing power. With the volatility we’ve seen in Latin America in recent years, saving is no longer enough. You need to understand how investing works.
But where do you start? With so much noise on social media and apps promising impossible returns, it’s normal to feel lost. At El Fondo, we’re not here to sell you a magic formula. This guide is for you to understand how the market works and how you can build your own strategy using data—not gut feelings.
1. What is investing (and what it is not)?
Many people confuse these three terms, and that’s the first mistake that can cost you dearly. In 2026, with so many apps and options a click away, the line may seem blurred—but the differences are fundamental:
- Saving: Simply setting money aside for near-term use or emergencies. It’s necessary (everyone needs an emergency fund), but in Latin America, leaving money idle means watching it lose value against inflation every month. Saving protects your present, but it doesn’t build your future.
- Betting: Putting money into something hoping for luck or a quick “miracle.” If you’re buying an asset only because an influencer said it would rise tomorrow, or because you expect it to multiply tenfold in a week, you’re gambling. It’s a zero-sum game: you either win big or lose everything, like poker.
- Investing: Acquiring assets that have real value and generate wealth over time (such as a company that sells products or a government that pays interest on its debt). Investing does not rely on blind luck, but on strategy, diversification, and above all, patience.
In short: You save to feel secure today, you invest to live well tomorrow, and you gamble only when you’re willing to lose that money for entertainment.
The three pillars you must understand
Forget complicated charts. Everything comes down to these three factors:
- Risk: There is no investment without risk. The rule is simple: if someone offers high returns with “zero risk,” that’s a red flag. The goal is to choose a level of risk you can live with comfortably.
- Return: The compensation you receive for putting your capital to work. It can be variable (like stocks) or fixed (like bonds).
- Time: Your greatest ally. Compound interest works best when you give it years, not months. Starting with a small amount today is usually more effective than waiting years to have a large amount.
The sooner you understand these concepts, the faster you’ll begin your path to financial freedom.
How are investments classified?
To make a portfolio resilient, investors typically look at different asset categories. Here are the most common in our region:
ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds)
They are a pillar of modern investing. Instead of choosing a single company, an ETF allows you to buy a bundle that tracks an entire index (such as the largest companies in a country or a specific sector). It’s an efficient way not to “bet everything” on one option. To see a wide variety of ETFs globally, go to our ETFs section, where you’ll find thousands of products within reach.
Equities (Stocks)
When you buy shares, you participate in a company’s performance. This category is more volatile: if the company performs well, you gain; if it performs poorly, your investment value drops. That’s why it’s typically considered a long-term option. If you want to build a portfolio with individual stocks, make sure to diversify. To find and research thousands of global companies, visit our Stocks section before building your portfolio.
Fixed Income and Debt Instruments
Essentially, lending money to an entity (such as a government or a company) in exchange for agreed interest payments. In 2026, high-yield accounts and digital bonds offer a more stable base for a portfolio. Soon, you will be able to find fixed-income instruments on El Fondo.
4. The key concept: Diversification
In investing, success isn’t about guessing which sector will win the year. It’s about allocating capital. An informed investor doesn’t seek a single opportunity, but distributes money across different asset classes, currencies (such as local currency and dollars), and geographic regions. That way, if one sector or country performs poorly, the rest of your investments can help balance the overall result.
5. Checklist to start investing
- Review your debts: Investing while paying high interest on a credit card is usually a mathematical mistake. First, eliminate debts that cost more than you could earn by investing.
- Emergency fund: Before putting a cent into the market, make sure you have saved the equivalent of several months of basic expenses. That money should always be available and should not be used for investing.
- Understand the market: Investing doesn’t start with buying—it starts with understanding how money moves. In Invierte, you can analyze markets, track assets, and test strategies in an environment designed for learning by doing. Know the market before participating in it.
- Compare before choosing: Don’t open an account in the first app you see in an advertisement. Different platforms charge different fees, and some have stronger regulations than others. In our Compare section, we analyze the costs of safe brokers available in Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil in 2026.
- Stay consistent: Most successful investors aren’t the most brilliant—they’re the most disciplined. Investing a fixed amount every month, regardless of whether the market rises or falls, helps average costs and reduce the impact of volatility.
6. Understand the market before entering (Powered by Invierte)
One of the biggest obstacles to investing in Latin America is that most financial information is in English or full of impossible technical jargon. That’s why we created Invierte. Invierte is not a broker or trading platform; it is our data center designed for beginners. Here you can explore thousands of assets (from global ETFs to local stocks) with one key difference: we explain what every number means.
- Explore thousands of assets: View the real history and performance of the options you are considering.
- Indicators in simple Spanish: Don’t know what Dividend Yield or the P/E Ratio is? No problem. Next to each financial metric, you’ll find a clear explanation of what it is and why it may (or may not) matter to you.
- Total transparency: See data exactly as it is, without commercial filters, so that when you decide to use a broker, you know exactly what you are buying.
The goal is for you to stop seeing charts that look like electrocardiograms and start seeing opportunities clearly.
Conclusion
Investing in 2026 is about taking control of your financial future using the tools we have today. The key is not to be an economics expert, but to understand risks, diversify, and be patient.
At El Fondo, our goal is for you to have transparent information so you can be the architect of your own decisions.
Legal Notice: This article is for educational purposes only. It does not represent an investment recommendation or financial advice. El Fondo promotes informed and responsible decision-making.
