Calm Money Coach

Brian Orlando

Money, markets, and mindset with CPA Brian Orlando. Helping Canadians build wealth through financial literacy, tax strategies, and smart investing, while exploring macro trends, business stories, fitness, and mental health. Because real wealth is more than just your portfolio.

Episodes

  1. 2D AGO

    The Crypto Math Nobody Shows You + Where 64 Cents of Every Dollar Goes | Complete Guide to Investing Parts 5 & 6

    Bitcoin has had 87%, 84%, and 77% drawdowns. A 5% allocation contributes 27% of your total portfolio risk. In Parts 5 and 6 of the Complete Guide to Investing, I cover the real math on crypto, what the "digital gold" narrative gets wrong, and then move into alternatives where hedge fund investors give up 64 cents of every dollar earned to managers. The advertised fee is 2-and-20. The actual fee is closer to 50%. Podcast Notes: If you're combining crypto + alternatives into one podcast episode, the natural break point is after the crypto outro ("position size accordingly"). You could do a quick "part two of today's episode" transition.If splitting them, crypto stands alone well at ~9 min and alternatives at ~8-10 min.The 5% allocation = 27% risk stat is the most counterintuitive and clip-worthy moment from crypto.The NBER 64-cents stat is the killer hook for alternatives. Lead the second half with it.For crypto, the Canadian-specific ETF callouts (BTCX.B, ETHX.B for TFSA/estate tax) are high value for your audience and differentiate from US content.Double check if the "$3.4 billion stolen in 2025" figure needs updating since we wrote the script in February.

    12 min

  2. MAR 14

    The Oil ETF That Lost 86% While Oil Went Up | Complete Guide to Investing Part 4: Commodities

    An oil ETF lost 86% while oil prices rose 50%. How is that possible? In Part 4 of the Complete Guide to Investing, I break down every major commodity with 125 years of return data. Gold at $5,300 with JP Morgan calling $6,300. The copper story nobody is talking about. And why this is the only asset class that quietly works against you over time. Same volatility as stocks. 600 basis points less return. Podcast Notes: The USO/contango trap is your strongest hook. Lead with it.Gold section is the meatiest. Worth flagging that gold at ~$5,300 (filmed early March) may have moved by the time this airs. Consider a quick verbal note if it's significantly different.The copper/AI data center angle (27 tonnes per megawatt, 50,000 tonnes per hyperscale facility) is the most forward-looking and shareable segment.Source audit is clean. All claims traced to named sources (CFA Institute, JP Morgan, World Gold Council, S&P Global, WisdomTree, DFA).

    8 min

  3. MAR 6

    The Complete Guide to Investing: Real Estate (Part 3)

    Yale Endowment is one of the most successful institutional investors in history. Their target return on real estate? About 6% after fees. Why would the smartest money in the room accept that? Because that's what's realistic. In this episode, I break down real estate as an asset class: public REITs vs private real estate, the fee structure that eats your gains, which property types are winning (data centers, industrial, self-storage), which ones are dying (office), and the simplest way to get exposure without buying a duplex. Part 3 in the Complete Guide to Investing series. If you missed Part 1 (Equities) and Part 2 (Bonds), go back and listen to those first. Follow Calm Money Coach on Instagram, Youtube, and TikTok for more. CALMMONEYCOACH is my Handle everywhere. calmmoney.ca

    14 min

  4. MAR 2

    Canada's Infrastructure Problem

    Every new home in Canada starts $107,000 in the hole before anyone picks up a hammer. Not the house. Just the pipes, the roads, and the water underneath it. And we need 3.5 million of them. In this episode, I break down the real math behind Canada's housing crisis, why municipalities own 60% of infrastructure but only get 8 to 10 cents of every tax dollar, how Toronto's development charges went up 906% in 15 years, and what countries like Japan, Vienna, and New Zealand actually did to fix it. I'm a CPA with 15+ years in finance. I don't have all the answers, but I know how to read the numbers. And the numbers are telling a pretty clear story. Follow Calm Money Coach on Instagram, Youtube, and TikTok for more. CALMMONEYCOACH is my Handle everywhere. calmmoney.ca

    13 min

  5. FEB 17

    Bonds in 2026: Duration Risk, the Mortgage Disconnect, and Why Japan's Bond Market Should Worry You

    In 2022, bonds lost 13%. The long bond ETF dropped 31%. The "safe" part of your portfolio got hit harder than most stock crashes. Now in 2026, bonds are paying real income again for the first time in over a decade. But something is happening in Japan that could push your mortgage rate higher, even if the Bank of Canada keeps cutting. In this episode I break down how bonds actually work, why duration is the risk nobody explains until it's too late, why your fixed mortgage rate doesn't follow the Bank of Canada, what happened on January 20th when Japan's bond market had its most violent day in modern history, the $250 billion yen carry trade, and what Canadian investors should actually do with their bond allocation. I also cover ZAG, VAB, ZFL, ZST, how GICs compare, and the tax optimization move that saves you almost half the tax on your fixed income. This is Part 2 of my series on every asset class ranked by actual returns. Part 1 covered equities. Links to other socials: calmmoneycoach.com

    13 min

  6. FEB 14

    Why Equities Win Long Term (And What the Data Actually Shows)

    Most people own stocks but don’t actually understand why they work. In this episode I break down equities from the ground up - why businesses compound, which sectors have actually performed, whether international stocks are worth it, and if factor investing actually works. This is part of an ongoing series covering every major asset class. Stocks are the foundation - so we’re starting here.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

    9 min

  7. FEB 10

    3 Industries Canada Could Dominate

    Canada exports $60 billion in minerals a year and doesn’t make a single smartphone. We have the richest uranium on the planet. And the Godfathers of AI are Canadian. So why aren’t we capturing the wealth? In this episode, I break down three generational opportunities sitting right under our feet: critical minerals and EV batteries, uranium and the global nuclear comeback, and Canada’s AI talent pipeline. The numbers might surprise you. I believe we all do better when everyone’s doing better. Let’s talk about what it looks like when Canada actually leads. Follow CalmMoneyCoach on Instagram and TikTok for more.

    8 min
  • 7 Episodes

About

Money, markets, and mindset with CPA Brian Orlando. Helping Canadians build wealth through financial literacy, tax strategies, and smart investing, while exploring macro trends, business stories, fitness, and mental health. Because real wealth is more than just your portfolio.

Information

  • Creator
    Brian Orlando
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    7
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Brian Orlando
  • Show Website
    Calm Money Coach