DEAR HARRIETTE: My wife and I have dabbled a bit in the stock market since we have been married. I’m a lot more interested than she is, but we have been making decisions about what to buy together. It was fun during the pandemic, too, because we made some money investing in technology and services that people were using a lot to get by. But now we have hit a wall.
My spouse doesn’t believe in cryptocurrency, but I want to buy some. Should I invest under both of our names or just mine? I wouldn't want to do it without her, but I also don't want to go against her wishes by including her in something she doesn't believe in. -- Investor
DEAR INVESTOR: Be transparent with your wife. It’s less about including her name and more about informing her that you want to make an investment in this area even though she isn’t comfortable with it. Tell her of your intentions. Since you are a couple, even if you don't put her name on something, you can still share the wealth should you reap any.
If she is willing to learn, teach her what you have discovered about the future of cryptocurrency so that she can become familiar with it. Many people are leery of it, in large part because they don’t understand what it is. Essentially, it is a digital form of currency. For a primer, visit medium.com/srmkzilla/abc-of-cryptocurrency-2b3e0ecef16d.
The more your wife learns about this new form of trading, the better she will be at making a decision about investing. If she maintains her lack of interest, so be it. If you intend to invest anyway, do so openly and honestly so that there are no surprises.