ABOUT THE CLUB:

Like many investment clubs, ours came about at a family gathering, when an idea for an investment club proved popular amongst the clan. Our monthly meetings are now only half about investment business, the rest being an excuse to have a mini family reunion on a regular basis.

To help establish the club with a set of rules and guidelines, we joined ProShare, an organisation dedicated to supporting and informing investment clubs, and obtained their very useful manual which describes completely and straightforwardly how to get started. Now up and running over a year, our club comprises 8 members who meet once a month, usually in a local pub, or club member's house and make decisions about which shares to buy or sell. Each member is assigned a number of companies to research for each meeting, where the club will decide if that company is worth buying, on the basis of that research.

Our club has been relatively successful in our first year investing. Recent acquisitions have seen our portfolio value rise 15% in the last quarter alone.

Most of our members live in Dublin, but for those living further afield, this web site has been a practical tool to keep all members informed about the latest club news, important dates and how our shares are performing. Now, even if some members cannot attend every meeting, they can stay informed and contact the club via e-mail. The web site has also made it much easier to track our portfolio, and get quick links to the important financial web sites.