Pascal Paepen: “2025 Was the Best Investment Year of My Life”

We are in the quiet Kempen region, visiting one of the founders of your favorite investment platform and community. The year has only just begun, but Pascal Paepen is already thinking about packing his bags. And rightly so: Team Spaarvarkens is heading to London to reflect on new initiatives that will be launched for members in 2026. But first, an interview. That should be doable.

Spaarvarkens: How are you doing?

Pascal Paepen: Very well, certainly. No complaints. A bit busy, but that never really changes. Exams are coming up, and just like last year, we’re seeing a record number of students. With a few exceptions, I teach students in Business Economics at KU Leuven and business students at Thomas More. Apparently, interest in these programs keeps growing.

Spaarvarkens: That must keep things interesting.

Pascal Paepen: Absolutely. It is interesting. Almost every day something new happens. It never stops. We also ask nearly all students to follow financial news closely. Many can expect one or even several current-affairs questions on the exam. I use a lot of real-world examples myself. Did you know that many things presented as “financial news” are actually quite predictable? In a way, it’s old news — we’ve seen it before. History keeps repeating itself, including in financial markets.

Spaarvarkens: Doesn’t that make it less exciting?

Pascal Paepen: Not at all. Because it’s always slightly different — a variation on a theme. And what my students and our Spaarvarkens members see coming often comes as a complete surprise to many others. Even politicians seem caught off guard. And although we try to stay modest: we saw it coming.

Spaarvarkens: Can you give an example?

Pascal Paepen: The TACO trade, for instance — Trump Always Chickens Out. Trump barks, but usually doesn’t bite. Trump II isn’t fundamentally different from Trump I. Many investors were uncertain. I heard it so often: “2025 will be a miserable year for markets because of Trump,” or “we’ll wait until August 1 to invest, once Trump’s deadline passes and there’s more clarity.”

Spaarvarkens: And that’s not something you should base decisions on?

Pascal Paepen: (firmly) Absolutely not. If you do that, you’ll find a new excuse every single day not to invest. In April, some investors even sold everything at the bottom after Trump announced tariffs on his so-called “Liberation Day.” A sensible investor doesn’t get rattled — certainly not by a politician who is far less important than he thinks he is.   

Spaarvarkens: The dollar did fall sharply under Trump, though.

Pascal Paepen: He may have played a role, yes — although he behaved exactly the same way during his first term. Back then, too, he constantly complained that the dollar should weaken and that the Fed was run by idiots for not cutting rates. He’s doing the same thing now. Predictable again, isn’t it? And honestly, would the dollar not have weakened if Trump hadn’t become president? I doubt it.

Spaarvarkens: So he doesn’t make that much difference?

Pascal Paepen: Not really. The style is very different, that’s true. But whether we had President Trump or President Kamala Harris, US government debt would be roughly the same today.

Spaarvarkens: Trump did try to tackle the debt by appointing Elon Musk to the Department of Government Efficiency.

Pascal Paepen: Correction. Elon Musk tried to do something about government debt by asking Trump for the chance to create such a department. That didn’t last long. We predicted that at Spaarvarkens as well. Musk is very intelligent. Like Trump, he’s not always wise in choosing his words. But Musk is intelligent — Trump is not. That relationship was never going to last.

Spaarvarkens: If you can predict things so well, is making money in markets easy?

Pascal Paepen: That’s something else entirely. Predicting markets in the short term is virtually impossible. No one can do it. Anyone who claims otherwise is lying — and you should walk away from them. What is true is that markets tend to rise over time. That’s why I invest, and why I keep investing.

Spaarvarkens: And you’ve been investing for a long time?

Pascal Paepen: Yes, thankfully. I started investing as a teenager. At Spaarvarkens, we sometimes say that together we have more than 100 years of investment experience — but that’s actually a serious understatement. I started in early 1988. That’s 38 years ago. Team Spaarvarkens has far more than 100 years of experience.

Spaarvarkens: You mentioned you had a strong year in the markets.

Pascal Paepen: More than strong — my best year ever. In 2025, my portfolio returned 33.1%. The year before that it was “only” 15%, and the year before that 13%. Don’t get me wrong: I’m very happy with those returns as well. But 2025 was exceptional. I’m referring here to the portfolio I share with Spaarvarkens members. My personal portfolio did slightly better, but the Spaarvarkens portfolio already contains ten of my highest-conviction stocks — all of which I also hold personally. Did you know I made only two changes to that portfolio over three years? I swapped out just two stocks. You could call it a hammock portfolio. (laughs)

Spaarvarkens: Brokers must love that.

Pascal Paepen: Why? Ah — you mean they’d prefer clients to trade constantly? But even there, we do things well. We inform our members twice a day about financial markets — morning and evening. I try to be as concrete as possible. What should you pay attention to? Which stocks do I consider attractive? Which not? Which sectors should be in your portfolio? I write the morning and evening newsletters, along with four colleagues. And you know I often can’t resist buying when one of you recommends something.

Spaarvarkens: That’s true.

Pascal Paepen: Not surprising — there’s so much opportunity. I really don’t understand why so many people hesitate to invest. There are so many outstanding companies. This year, I became a happy shareholder of Alphabet and SolarEdge. I shared the exact purchase moments with all members: Alphabet at 149 dollars, SolarEdge at 12.5 dollars. You don’t have to be handsome to be lucky. And then I still curse when I miss something really interesting — but I don’t have that much cash left.

Spaarvarkens: Shouldn’t you always keep some cash aside?

Pascal Paepen: Yes, ideally. But I hold that “cash” in silver and gold. I assume a few percent annual return there, although recent years have delivered more. I can always sell some when a good stock becomes cheap again.

Spaarvarkens: Do you see Spaarvarkens mainly as a stock-picking service?

Pascal Paepen: No — and I actually find that a bit insulting. Our main goal is education. We teach people how to fish; we don’t just give them fish. That said, people clearly want tips — so we give them as well. But they’re overrated. Teaching people how to think is far more valuable. Members and course participants often tell us: “If only I’d known this ten years ago.” They’re not talking about tips — they’re talking about what they learned. That makes them much stronger investors.

Spaarvarkens: And that leads to financial independence.

Pascal Paepen: I actually don’t like the word “independence.” No one is truly independent. We depend on governments, interest rates, taxes, the weather, our partners, our environment, luck or bad luck. I prefer the term self-reliance. Fortunately, more and more people are realizing how necessary that is.

Spaarvarkens: Because governments can’t provide adequate pensions?

Pascal Paepen: Exactly. A colleague in London told me that more than 25 years ago. Mathematically, it’s impossible. Governments — especially the Belgian one — simply cannot provide decent pensions. So they take money from citizens today under various pretexts and give a small part back later.

Spaarvarkens: Including the new capital gains tax?

Pascal Paepen: Among many others. There are over a hundred taxes — sometimes seemingly designed to annoy people or to hide government incompetence. That’s also why I invest. If I had to depend too much on the state, I’d be permanently stressed.

Spaarvarkens: Will the capital gains tax change investor behavior? It hasn’t been implemented yet, but it will apply retroactively from January 1.

Pascal Paepen: Not really. It was predictable. I’ve heard many people say they’ll stop investing because of it. That’s foolish. Taxes should never be the reason to do — or not do — something. If you earn a 10% return and give up 1% in taxes, you’re still left with 9%. That’s infinitely better than earning 1% on a savings account.

Spaarvarkens: So everyone should invest?

Pascal Paepen: Yes — in their own way. Large or small amounts. Passive or active. There are countless ways to invest well.

Spaarvarkens: And are there wrong ways?

Pascal Paepen: Yes! (sharply) And this is where Spaarvarkens plays a crucial role. We regularly protect people from scams. Smart investing isn’t just about buying good stocks or funds — it’s also about not buying certain instruments and warning people about charlatans.

Spaarvarkens: There’s still a lot of work to do.

Pascal Paepen: Unfortunately — or fortunately. Because I truly enjoy it. And I hope you enjoy contributing to Spaarvarkens as well?

Spaarvarkens: Absolutely.

Pascal Paepen: That’s how it should be. And we can still do so much better. We’re working on it. Apparently, we’ll soon introduce a monthly subscription instead of annual billing. Maybe I’m too strict, but I genuinely believe that anyone unwilling to pay the subscription fee underestimates the value. One good piece of advice can change your life — and is worth a Spaarvarkens membership. I still learn something new here every week. I’ve become a better investor thanks to Spaarvarkens. But perhaps I’m being too strict — so the monthly option is coming.

Spaarvarkens: Is there anything we can wish you for 2026?

Pascal Paepen: Good health. It may sound cliché, but it’s true — health is the most important thing. And secondly: a great Spaarvarkens House. 2026 will be the year of the Spaarvarkens House. After three years of planning and permit applications, we’re finally there. We’re transforming an old hat workshop into a knowledge center where members can meet. Our club isn’t just digital — through walks, cycling trips, and travel, we really get to know each other. The Spaarvarkens House will take that to the next level. In the final week of 2025, ten massive support beams were installed — not because the building was collapsing, but because we want to create something solid that will easily last another hundred years. Almost as long as Spaarvarkens itself. (laughs)

Spaarvarkens: Then we’ll be back in a hundred years for another interview — or we’ll see each other sooner at the Spaarvarkens House. When does it open?

Pascal Paepen: It should be ready before the summer construction break — but add a few months just to be safe. Contractors are about as reliable in forecasting as stock market gurus. (laughs)

Spaarvarkens: Deal. We’ll see each other there before the year is over. All Spaarvarkens members are welcome — just not all at once, or those support beams might still give way.