Four buys in the Trading 212 SIPP today: more SMGB, a brand-new position in BNKE, more McDonald's (MCD), and more Twin Vee PowerCats (VEEE). On the face of it, a bizarre crew — chips, euro-zone banks, a burger chain and a Florida boat builder. But they actually make a neat portfolio: one sector ETF I keep feeding, one new sector I've never owned before, one unglamorous compounder, and one tiny, honest bit of fun. Different corners of the world doing different jobs — and the same old rule tying them together: buy what you understand, keep the speculative bits small, and give it time.
── SMGB: The Chip Machine Keeps Earning Its Keep ──
First up, more SMGB — the VanEck Semiconductor UCITS ETF. I keep adding to this one because the thesis keeps holding: the entire modern world runs on chips. Every phone, every data centre, every AI model, every car, every toaster that's vaguely smart is built on semiconductors. And SMGB owns the picks and shovels of that whole industry in one fund — the designers, the manufacturers, the equipment makers, the lot. I don't need to guess which one wins. The fund owns the basket.
Yes, it's a thematic ETF, which means more volatility than a plain index fund. Chip stocks swing — and when they swing, they swing hard. That's the trade-off you accept for the concentration. I keep the position at a sensible size so the swings don't threaten anything else, and I keep feeding it as a long-term bet on a genuinely structural trend: everything digital eats semiconductors, and that appetite isn't going down.
── BNKE: A Brand-New Sector — Euro-Zone Banks ──
Then something I've never owned before: BNKE, the Amundi EURO STOXX Banks UCITS ETF. That's a brand-new position for me — my first-ever euro-zone banking exposure, and my first-ever pure sector bet on financials.
My thinking here is straightforward. European banks have spent well over a decade repairing their balance sheets after the financial crisis and the subsequent euro-era wobbles — higher capital, stricter regulation, fewer boom-and-bust tactics. They're not the swashbuckling banks of the 2000s. They're steadier, better capitalised, and — importantly for an income investor — several of them pay proper dividends you can actually set your watch by, which suits me down to the ground at 66.
Add in higher interest rates, which means banks can earn more on their lending margins, and there's a decent case that a beaten-down, unloved corner of European equity markets has room to run while the rest of the world chases AI and US mega-caps. Is it a sure thing? No — banks are leveraged businesses that live and die on credit, rates and the economy, and Europe's growth has been sluggish. But as a single, small, sector-level position in a broader portfolio it adds a bit of genuine diversification I didn't have before — and 'new to me' is exactly how a portfolio should keep growing.
── MCD: Not Keen on the Food, Love the Shares ──
More McDonald's (MCD) — and I keep saying the same thing I said last time: I'm not that keen on the food, but I'm very keen on the shares. McDonald's isn't really a restaurant company. It's one of the greatest franchise and real estate machines ever built — 40,000+ locations in over 100 countries, where the company owns or long-leases many of the buildings, rents them to franchisees, and collects a royalty on top. Landlord first, burger seller second.
That model prints cash in good times (everyone's still after a quick, cheap meal) and holds up remarkably in bad times (when people trade down from fancier restaurants, McDonald's often picks up the traffic). The dividend has been raised every year for nearly five decades and then some. It is boring, dependable, and exactly the kind of thing I want more of in a pension. The fries aren't for me — the income is.
── VEEE: A Small, Honest Top-Up on the Powercats ──
And the odd one out — more Twin Vee PowerCats (VEEE). This is the little Florida boat manufacturer I bought into earlier with a small amount and a small expectation: they make power catamarans, the brand is growing, and the recreational boating market isn't going anywhere. I'm adding a little more, but I'm keeping it tiny and honest.
VEEE is not the serious part of my portfolio. It's a micro-cap, it's volatile, and there's every chance it does very little or worse. I own it with my eyes fully open, sized so that even a total failure wouldn't register on my monthly plan. That's the correct way to run a speculative small position: the index funds, the established compounders and the boring stuff do all the heavy lifting, and a position like this is optionality on top — a bit of fun, not a load-bearing wall. You never know, and sometimes the odd ones turn into the best ones.
── One Plan, Four Corners ──
So that's today: a chip basket, a new banking sector, a burger landlord, and a tiny powercat. Four very different investments, one plan. Inside the plan, each one has a distinct job — SMGB feeds a structural trend, BNKE opens a new diversifying sector, MCD compounds steadily and pays income, and VEEE is a small, clearly-labeled punt. Nothing here was bought without knowing roughly why I own it and how big it should be.
That's the discipline that's served me well and the message of this whole website: keep buying what you understand, keep the speculative corners small, and give the compounding room to work. It's not glamorous, but it's how wealth actually gets built — slowly, patiently, one sensible top-up at a time. Happy days ahead.
As ever, nothing on this site is financial advice. I'm a 66-year-old UK investor sharing what I do with my own SIPP. Every one of these — an ETF, a sector fund, a share and a micro-cap — can go down as well as up, and SMGB, BNKE and especially VEEE are more volatile than a plain index fund. Past performance doesn't guarantee future results. Do your own research, understand what you own, and never invest money you can't afford to lose. I sleep fine owning this lot. Make sure you would too before doing anything similar.