SoFi Blog

The Rise of the Activist Investor

If you’ve been keeping up on the news, you may have heard about SoFi’s latest hands-on way to put your money to work through Active Investing. But are you familiar with the class of investors bearing a similar-sounding title, who are driving dramatic change in the market?

For the uninitiated, activist investors are individuals who buy shares at a public company with the intent of gaining a seat on the board and affecting major change.

When was the last time you spoke to a teller at your local bank? Actually stood there in person at that little window—or even pulled up outside at the drive-through – and deposited or cashed a check, or asked a question about your account?

If you just closed your eyes to think about it—or if the answer still eludes you — you may be ready to move on to a bank without branches. It’s a growing club.

Though plenty of bank branches still sit on city and suburban street corners, consumers are relying less and less on in-person transactions. According to a 2018 Citibank survey , almost half of consumers – including nearly two-thirds of millennials —have increased their mobile banking usage in the last year.

What is it about money and the heart? We try to make rational decisions about buying houses, investing for retirement, even something as simple as deciding on a household product. We think we can take emotion out of the equation.

The truth is, we can’t. There’s no such thing as a completely logical decision. Every choice we make is a mix of rational thinking and emotional desire. And that can be a dangerous cocktail when your personal finances are at stake.

What’s more, most people are largely unaware of their subconscious desires and motivations and fail to take them into consideration when making decisions. You can help to make sound financial decisions every day if you follow some simple guidelines. Even better, you can improve your decision making by taking the steps to uncover the emotion behind the money.

Earlier today, we invited a small group of reporters to chat with our CEO Anthony Noto about what we accomplished in 2018 and what we have in store for 2019. We thought you might be interested to hear what he had to say, too!

In any good relationship, communication is key. This fact is even more important when it comes to the often-uncomfortable subject of money and how to divvy up financial responsibilities between partners.

Here’s a look at how to talk finances with your partner and figure out who will take on what financial roles.