Stocks, Gold, Funds, or Bitcoin: Unlocking the Formula to Grow Your First Ten Thousand into a Million with Two Experts from Two Asset Worlds

In an era of high financial market volatility, many people seek new ways to grow wealth. Yet, simultaneously, a significant number still fear and choose to "hold onto cash" without action. However, in reality,doing nothing may be the most dangerous choice.

"Investing carries risks..." is a phrase many hear and understand when entering the investment world. But even more important to realize is that "doing nothing and staying idle comes at the highest cost."

Thairath Money in collaboration with Creative Talk the organizer of Creative Talk Conference 2026 (CTC2026), created a special session on the Future Stage inviting two gurus from opposite poles of finance and investment to share perspectives.

• Lookmoo - Narumol Boonsanong Deputy Managing Director of Finansia Syrus Securities Public Company Limited, Certified Financial Planner (CFP®), and board member of the Financial Planning Association of Thailand.
• Niran Fuwatthananu-kul CFA, Chief Executive Officer of Binance TH by Gulf Binance (BINANCE TH).
• Rada - Lapatsrada Pipat Head of Content, Thairath Money (moderator).

Together, they explored the question "How to invest when money no longer follows old rules." They combined traditional finance with the digital asset world to clarify why we need to start investing, how to start, what to invest in, and ideas for building a portfolio that can reach a million.

The cost of staying idle... devouring wealth.

Many often hear the warning that "investing involves risk," but the greater danger is the "risk of not investing," because the silent enemy eating away at our money is inflation.

Narumol illustrated this clearly using the "noodle index," comparing the price of one bowl of noodles from the past to the present. Where once a bowl cost 30-40 baht, now it has soared to 60-80 baht, and at tourist spots or malls, prices have jumped to 100-150 baht.

More alarming is medical inflation, which is unavoidable as humans inevitably face illness. Narumol compared the price of the same medicine bottle bought at a pharmacy for 150 baht versus inside a hospital, especially private ones, where the cost can rise to 700 baht—an increase of over 200%.

Besides basic necessities, Niran added that education costs are another black hole draining wealth, especially international school tuition fees, which rise annually and almost never decrease.

This confirms that simply leaving money in deposits earning minimal interest, further reduced by a 15% tax on interest income, will never protect us from rising living costs in the future.

Knowing we must invest, the next question is how to allocate money without failure?

Main portfolio versus trading portfolio.

Narumol recommended portfolio allocation principles for salaried workers and business owners by dividing into two main parts to balance stability and excitement, consisting of:

• Core Port, the main pillar of the household: This part focuses on capital protection, aiming for steady returns to generate passive income, targeting a minimum of 4% or trying to reach 8-10% per year. Assets here include quality fundamental stocks, mutual funds, bonds, or structured notes.
• Trading Port, the speculative portfolio: For those seeking excitement, Narumol gave examples for those wanting to trade crypto or TFEX to generate short-term returns.

To illustrate, Narumol suggested a model: if you have 10 million baht, allocate 9 million baht to the Core Port to safely generate income, and 500,000 to 1 million baht to the Trading Port for speculative trading as you wish.

If the Trading Port profits, transfer gains back to the Core Port. If the Trading Port loses 1 million baht, though painful, the household remains secure thanks to the 9 million baht Core Port. This is better than risking all 10 million baht in high-risk assets without allocation.

Bitcoin and crypto: a new tool for diversification.

From a younger generation's perspective, digital assets have become a new and often first choice, though they are often seen as highly volatile and risky. So why do people still enter this field?

Niran provided background to reshape understanding of Bitcoin, recalling the 2008 economic crisis when the US Federal Reserve printed massive money, causing the currency’s value to decline continuously.

As a result, Bitcoin was created as Digital Gold, limited to 21 million coins worldwide. As demand from institutional investors and people worldwide grows, its value has soared.

But does Bitcoin really beat inflation or is it just a speculative coin?

Niran compared Bitcoin’s purchasing power, citing that in 2016, a US house costing about $280,000 required 664 Bitcoin to buy, but in 2024, despite the house price nearly doubling to $430,000, it needed only 6.6 Bitcoin—showing Bitcoin’s value increase.

This proves that in the long term, Bitcoin can protect wealth and decisively beat inflation. Today, global financial institutions like Visa, Mastercard, Citibank, world-class universities like Harvard, and politicians like Donald Trump officially acknowledge this asset.

Looking back 10 years, commodities yielded 1.3-1.5%, gold averaged 6.9% per year, and the Nasdaq technology index averaged 19% per year, whereas Bitcoin averaged a remarkable 121.6% per year.

However, crypto is risky with brutal cycles; every four years prices can plunge 58-73%. Thus, Niran recommends typical portfolios allocate only 5-10% (conservative) or 10-20% (risk lovers) into crypto, focusing on large coins like Bitcoin.

Two gurus' quick portfolio formula.

Narumol shared valuable lessons from over 30 years in Thailand’s stock market since 1993, including the World Trade Center crisis when the index fell from 1,700 to 200-300 points, emphasizing that emotion and psychology separate survivors from losers.

“Lookmoo’s secret formula isBuy good stocks during the darkest hours,andBe brave among the fearful.””Narumol said.

When the index dropped to 300 points, everyone fled in fear, but that was when millionaires filled their portfolios. When it bounced back to 1,700-1,800 points, they sold for profit. Every market has emotional cycles. When gold sellers start talking, it’s a signal to sell. When analysts predict a market crash and investors quit, that’s when to prepare to buy.

Narumol’s three criteria for selecting quality stocks during a panic market:

• Look at dividend yield: It should be above 4-5% at an acceptable price level.
• Consistency: Dividends paid every year for the past 5 years without fail.
• Look at the 52-week price range: If discounted 50% from the high but fundamentals remain strong and dividends are stable, buy gradually.

Niran added that crypto markets follow the same emotion. In 2021, Bitcoin peaked at $65,000; greed pushed buying. Then it plunged to $15,000, fear set in. Those who bought at $15,000 saw prices soar past $120,000 two years later. It’s the cycle of buying when others fear and selling when others greed.

Additionally, Binance TH simulated a dollar-cost averaging (DCA) investment of a 25,000-baht monthly salary, allocating 30% (7,500 baht monthly) consistently over 5 years (end 2020 to present), comparing two models.

• Conservative portfolio (safe approach): Comfort-focused with 10-15% cash, 40-50% core stocks, 5% gold, and 5-10% crypto (no alternative assets), resulting in about 700,000 baht growth with peace of mind.
• Aggressive portfolio (growth-focused): Fast-paced with 5% cash, 50% tech/growth stocks, 5% gold, 10-20% crypto, and 20% alternative trending assets, exchanging risk for potential to exceed 1,000,000 baht.

The aggressive portfolio reaches a million faster due to Bitcoin’s role as a performance accelerator in bull markets.

Starting with your first 10,000 baht, how?

If you have your first 10,000 baht ever with no investment portfolio and want to start investing, both experts left practical advice:

Traditional finance side:

• Start with mutual funds, calculating money’s growth over time. Narumol pointed out that if you consistently save 10,000 baht annually for 30 years (without withdrawing), compound interest works wonders.
• At 5% annual return, after 30 years your money grows to 7 million baht.
• If you increase risk by adding crypto and tech stocks for a 10% return, after 30 years it could grow to nearly 20 million baht.
• However, beginners should not jump into buying individual stocks or speculative coins immediately. Start with mutual funds like SET50 index funds or US S&P500 funds with low fees, and monitor which large companies your fund manager invests in.
• "You’ll learn the behavior of those stocks along the way. Once skilled, you can allocate half your money to individual assets."Narumol said.

Digital asset side:

• Set aside the first 1,000 baht to invest in knowledge. Niran sharply observed that 10,000 baht might be too little to diversify effectively across many assets.
• For beginners, take 1,000 baht first—not to buy assets but to invest in education: buy good books, enroll in courses, or subscribe to advanced AI programs to discover your risk profile. If you can’t sleep when markets fall, avoid heavy crypto exposure.
• "Once you understand yourself and gain knowledge with the first 1,000 baht, the remaining 9,000 baht can be planned and invested wisely."Niran said.

Whether you choose traditional finance with clear legal protections or the high-return digital asset world, the most crucial lesson for all investors is: "There are no shortcuts, and ignorance comes with a cost as high as inflation."

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