A common question I often receive is, “How should I invest $100,000 or $10,000” to enjoy the best returns. Fortunately, for most people, especially those in the United States, there are thousands of places you can pack your money, including stocks, cryptocurrencies, private equity, and commodities.

The best assets to invest in are exchange-traded funds (ETF) that track multiple assets. These funds are ideal because, while most companies have done well over the years, some have imploded. As many people have realised, being a stock picker is one of the hardest things to do. So, here are the best ETFs to buy to Sleep Well at Night (SWAN).

The Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF (COWZ) is one of the best ETFs to invest in. It is a popular fund with over $22 billion in assets under management.

Its main characteristic is that it focuses on the most important aspect in a company: free cash flow (FCF). FCF refers to funds that remain after a company does all the spending. Firms with higher FCFs can pay more dividends and repurchase their stocks.

COWZ comprises 100 companies, with the biggest ones in the fund being Vistra, EOG Resources, Exxon Mobil, and Valero Energy Corporation. Most of its constituent companies are in the energy sector followed by consumer cyclical, healthcare, industrials, and basic materials.

COWZ ETF has a good track record of performance since its inception in 2017. Its worst year was in 2018 when its total return came in at -10%. On the other hand, it returned 42.5% in 2021 as US equities rose. It has a strong record of beating the S&P 500 index.

The other ETF to buy when allocating $100k is the SPDR S&P 500 ETF. You can also invest in other similar funds like Vanguard’s VOO, Blackrock’s IVV, and Invesco’s IVZ. These funds will always generate a similar return since they track the same asset.

The S&P 500 index has been one of the best investments on record. For example, it has had six years with negative returns since 1994. Its biggest drawdown happened in 2008 during the Global Financial Crisis.

Historical evidence shows that the S&P 500 index always goes up. It has moved from less than $30 in the 1970s to today’s  $5,200. While the future is always uncertain, this performance gives one a sense of confidence to know that it will recover after a big dip.

The other asset to buy and hold is the Nasdaq 100, through ETFs like QQQ and QQQM. This is the biggest ETF that tracks the top technology companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Nvidia.

Companies in this ETF are the most important ones globally. Nvidia dominates the GPU industry while Google runs the biggest search engine, most popular video platform, and the fourth-biggest cloud service provider. 

All these companies and future additions will run the world in the next decades as they will dominate industries like artificial intelligence and machine learning. 

Like the SPY ETF, it has a long history of generating returns. It has had about six down years since 2000. 

The final asset I would invest in with $100k is the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), which tracks BTC. It has added over $17 billion in assets in the past five months, making it one of the fastest-growing ETFs ever. You can also invest in the alternative ETFs like Fidelity’s FBTC, Ark Invest’s ARKB, and BRRR.

Bitcoin has a long track record of performance as it jumped from near zero in 2009 to over $63,000 today. It has strong fundamentals, with demand rising at a time when mining difficulty is surging after last month’s halving. 

Therefore, I believe that Bitcoin prices will continue to rise in the long term. Some analysts believe that it could surge to over $1 million in the next decades.

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