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Leverage Publications to Sumarize

Section titled “Leverage Publications to Sumarize”

Research Date: 2026-03-05

United States

Section titled “United States”

Books

Section titled “Books”

Lifecycle Investing: A New, Safe, and Audacious Way to Improve the Performance of Your Retirement Portfolio

Section titled “Lifecycle Investing: A New, Safe, and Audacious Way to Improve the Performance of Your Retirement Portfolio”
  • Author(s): Ian Ayres, Barry J. Nalebuff
  • Year: 2010
  • Publisher/Platform: Basic Books
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Two Yale economists argue that young investors should employ up to 2:1 leverage on equities, diversifying their human capital across time rather than concentrating all market exposure in later career years. Simulations show expected retirement wealth 90% higher than lifecycle funds and 19% higher than 100% equity portfolios. The book is the single most cited popular work on leveraged equity investing for retail investors.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0465018291 | https://www.lifecycleinvesting.net/

The Value of Debt in Building Wealth: Creating Your Glide Path to a Healthy Financial L.I.F.E.

Section titled “The Value of Debt in Building Wealth: Creating Your Glide Path to a Healthy Financial L.I.F.E.”
  • Author(s): Thomas J. Anderson
  • Year: 2017
  • Publisher/Platform: Wiley
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Part of a three-book series, this volume teaches how to strategically use debt to maximize wealth and freedom, encouraging readers to rethink debt as a tool rather than a burden. Anderson provides practical frameworks for managing both sides of a personal balance sheet and building a “glide path” to financial independence.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1119049296 | https://www.amazon.com/Value-Debt-Building-Wealth-L-I-F/dp/1119049296

The Value of Debt: How to Manage Both Sides of a Balance Sheet to Maximize Wealth

Section titled “The Value of Debt: How to Manage Both Sides of a Balance Sheet to Maximize Wealth”
  • Author(s): Thomas J. Anderson
  • Year: 2013
  • Publisher/Platform: Wiley (New York Times bestseller; one of Ten Best Business Books of 2013)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The foundational book in Anderson’s series, presenting a new vision of the strategic role of debt in individual and family wealth management. Challenges the conventional advice to eliminate all debt, arguing that thoughtful leverage can improve after-tax outcomes and financial resilience.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1118758618 | https://www.amazon.com/Value-Debt-Manage-Balance-Maximize/dp/1118758617

The Value of Debt in Retirement: Why Everything You Have Been Told Is Wrong

Section titled “The Value of Debt in Retirement: Why Everything You Have Been Told Is Wrong”
  • Author(s): Thomas J. Anderson
  • Year: 2015
  • Publisher/Platform: Wiley
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Focuses specifically on how retirees and pre-retirees can strategically use debt to improve retirement income and flexibility. Challenges the near-universal financial planning advice to be debt-free in retirement, providing case studies and frameworks for HNW investors.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1119019985 | https://www.amazon.com/Value-Debt-Retirement-Everything-Wrong/dp/1119019982

Leveraged Trading: A Professional Approach to Trading FX, Stocks on Margin, CFDs, Spread Bets and Futures for All Traders

Section titled “Leveraged Trading: A Professional Approach to Trading FX, Stocks on Margin, CFDs, Spread Bets and Futures for All Traders”
  • Author(s): Robert Carver
  • Year: 2019
  • Publisher/Platform: Harriman House (UK)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Written by a former AHL/Man Group portfolio manager, this book focuses on safe leveraged trading — specifically avoiding overbetting and overtrading. Carver introduces the Starter System and shows how to size leverage correctly across margin accounts, CFDs, spread bets, and futures. Practical and systematic; the most authoritative retail-facing text on leverage mechanics.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0857197214 | https://www.amazon.com/Leveraged-Trading-professional-approach-trading/dp/0857197215

Margin Trading from A to Z: A Complete Guide to Borrowing, Investing and Regulation

Section titled “Margin Trading from A to Z: A Complete Guide to Borrowing, Investing and Regulation”
  • Author(s): Michael T. Curley
  • Year: 2016 (updated edition)
  • Publisher/Platform: Wiley (Wiley Trading series)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: A comprehensive step-by-step guide to the mechanics of margin accounts: how Regulation T margin calls work, minimum maintenance requirements, short selling, memorandum accounts, options, portfolio margining, and hedge fund applications. Uses a hands-on approach with worked examples. The definitive US regulatory reference for retail margin traders.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1119108511 | https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Margin+Trading+from+A+to+Z

The Leverage Equation: How to Work Less, Make More, and Cut 30 Years Off Your Retirement Plan

Section titled “The Leverage Equation: How to Work Less, Make More, and Cut 30 Years Off Your Retirement Plan”
  • Author(s): Todd Tresidder
  • Year: 2018
  • Publisher/Platform: Financial Mentor (self-published)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: Former hedge fund manager turned financial educator presents nine principles of leverage for building wealth and accelerating retirement. Covers financial leverage alongside time, technology, systems, and network leverage. More accessible/motivational than technical; relevant to HNW investors exploring portfolio leverage as part of a broader wealth strategy.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1939273024 | https://www.financialmentor.com/educational-products/ebooks/leverage-equation

Leveraged Investing for Beginners: How to Maximize Stock Market Returns in Your 20’s and 30’s

Section titled “Leveraged Investing for Beginners: How to Maximize Stock Market Returns in Your 20’s and 30’s”
  • Author(s): Nick Allpress
  • Year: 2015
  • Publisher/Platform: Amazon Kindle (self-published)
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: Low
  • Summary: A brief Kindle primer on leveraged investing aimed at young retail investors in their 20s and 30s. Limited academic rigor but accessible entry point; covers basic margin concepts and why early leverage may enhance long-term returns.
  • URL/ISBN: ASIN B010MTW132 | https://www.amazon.com/Leveraged-Investing-Beginners-Maximize-Returns-ebook/dp/B010MTW132

Academic Papers

Section titled “Academic Papers”

Leverage Aversion and Risk Parity

Section titled “Leverage Aversion and Risk Parity”
  • Author(s): Clifford S. Asness, Andrea Frazzini, Lasse Heje Pedersen
  • Year: 2012
  • Publisher/Platform: Financial Analysts Journal, Vol. 68, No. 1
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Argues that leverage aversion changes modern portfolio theory predictions: safer assets must offer higher risk-adjusted returns than riskier assets. Shows that a risk parity portfolio (which requires leverage to equalize risk across asset classes) outperformed the US market by approximately 4% per year over 1926–2010. Essential theoretical basis for leveraged diversified portfolios.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1990493 | PDF: http://docs.lhpedersen.com/LeverageAversionRP.pdf

Smart Leverage? Rethinking the Role of Leveraged Exchange Traded Funds in Constructing Portfolios to Beat a Benchmark

Section titled “Smart Leverage? Rethinking the Role of Leveraged Exchange Traded Funds in Constructing Portfolios to Beat a Benchmark”
  • Author(s): Multiple (arxiv preprint)
  • Year: 2024
  • Publisher/Platform: arXiv
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: Recent academic work challenging earlier consensus that LETFs are unsuitable for long-term holding. Finds that information-ratio-optimal strategies using broad stock market LETFs can not only outperform the benchmark but achieve partial stochastic dominance over standard ETF strategies in terms of terminal wealth. Significant for retail investors interested in long-horizon LETF strategies.
  • URL/ISBN: https://arxiv.org/html/2412.05431v2

The Financial Illiteracy and Overconfidence of Margin Traders

Section titled “The Financial Illiteracy and Overconfidence of Margin Traders”
  • Author(s): SEC DERA staff
  • Year: Published by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Publisher/Platform: SEC / DERA Working Paper
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Government research paper examining margin trading by retail investors; documents the relationship between financial literacy, overconfidence, and leveraged investing outcomes. Important counterpoint to pro-leverage literature, grounding the discussion in behavioral finance and retail investor protection.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.sec.gov/files/dera_wp_fin_illiteracy_and_overconfidence_margin_traders.pdf

Return Stacking and Portable Alpha: An Investor’s Guide

Section titled “Return Stacking and Portable Alpha: An Investor’s Guide”
  • Author(s): Brennan Basnicki, Tim Pickering (Auspice Capital)
  • Year: 2025
  • Publisher/Platform: SSRN / Auspice Capital
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: A comprehensive investor-facing guide to return stacking as the retail accessible evolution of institutional portable alpha. Explains how investors can achieve more than $1 of market exposure per $1 invested by overlaying uncorrelated strategies (managed futures, trend-following, global macro) on top of traditional stock/bond allocations using leverage embedded in fund structures.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5382795

Beyond the Status Quo: A Critical Assessment of Lifecycle Investment Advice

Section titled “Beyond the Status Quo: A Critical Assessment of Lifecycle Investment Advice”
  • Author(s): Aizhan Anarkulova, Scott Cederburg, Michael S. O’Doherty
  • Year: 2023 (SSRN); presented at AEA 2025
  • Publisher/Platform: SSRN (abstract ID 4590406); University of Arizona
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: A major academic challenge to the Ayres-Nalebuff lifecycle leverage thesis. Using a broad international dataset, the authors find that the optimal household portfolio is 33% domestic / 67% international stocks with 0% bonds — achieved through international diversification rather than leverage. Their simulations show that a leveraged 60/40 strategy with 55% borrowing requires a 24.4% savings rate to match the utility of saving 10% with the optimal all-equity strategy. One of the most rigorous counterarguments to leveraged lifecycle investing in the recent literature.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4590406

Stocks for the Long Run? Evidence from a Broad Sample of Developed Markets

Section titled “Stocks for the Long Run? Evidence from a Broad Sample of Developed Markets”
  • Author(s): Aizhan Anarkulova, Scott Cederburg, Michael S. O’Doherty
  • Year: 2022
  • Publisher/Platform: Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 143, No. 1 (pp. 409–433)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Uses return data from 39 developed countries spanning 1841–2019 to show that there is a 12% probability that a 30-year diversified investor loses relative to inflation. Challenges the conventional wisdom that stocks are safe over long holding periods. Important context for any leveraged long-horizon strategy, since the historical US record overstates expected returns due to survivorship bias.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3594660 | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0304405X2100310X

Beyond the Status Quo: A Critical Assessment of Safe Withdrawal Rates

Section titled “Beyond the Status Quo: A Critical Assessment of Safe Withdrawal Rates”
  • Author(s): Aizhan Anarkulova, Scott Cederburg, Michael S. O’Doherty, Richard W. Sias
  • Year: 2023
  • Publisher/Platform: SSRN (abstract ID 4227132)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Extension of the Cederburg et al. international evidence framework to the safe withdrawal rate question. Uses the same broad international dataset (39 countries, 1841–2019) to show that conventional 4% safe withdrawal rate guidance is dangerously optimistic when international return distributions are used instead of the US survivorship-biased record. The paper directly challenges whether leveraged accumulation strategies that rely on US-style expected returns are built on realistic foundations. Essential companion paper to the “Beyond the Status Quo” lifecycle investment paper.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4227132

Betting Against Beta

Section titled “Betting Against Beta”
  • Author(s): Andrea Frazzini, Lasse Heje Pedersen
  • Year: 2014
  • Publisher/Platform: Journal of Financial Economics (also NBER Working Paper 16601)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The theoretical and empirical foundation for understanding why leverage-constrained investors overpay for high-beta assets, creating a persistent low-beta anomaly. Demonstrates that investors who cannot use leverage overweight risky securities, depressing their expected returns. Directly underpins the leverage-aversion rationale for risk parity and leveraged low-volatility strategies. A cornerstone paper for sophisticated retail investors implementing factor-based leveraged portfolios.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2049939 | PDF: https://pages.stern.nyu.edu/~lpederse/papers/BettingAgainstBeta.pdf

Leverage Is a Double-Edged Sword

Section titled “Leverage Is a Double-Edged Sword”
  • Author(s): Avanidhar Subrahmanyam, Ke Tang, Jingyuan Wang, Xuewei Yang
  • Year: 2024
  • Publisher/Platform: Journal of Finance, Vol. 79, No. 2 (April 2024)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Uses proprietary intraday futures brokerage data to show that leverage’s effect on performance is critically dependent on investor skill. For unskilled investors, leverage amplifies losses from lottery preferences and the disposition effect. For skilled investors, leverage stimulates liquidity provision and enhances returns. Regulatory increases in margin requirements decrease skilled investors’ returns but enhance overall market returns and reduce volatility. The most rigorous recent demonstration that leverage is harmful for average retail investors.
  • URL/ISBN: Wiley: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jofi.13316 | SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3855181

Long-Term Returns Estimation of Leveraged Indexes and ETFs

Section titled “Long-Term Returns Estimation of Leveraged Indexes and ETFs”
  • Author(s): Hayden Brown
  • Year: 2023
  • Publisher/Platform: arXiv (preprint 2301.03186)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: Provides mathematical bounds for the log-returns of leveraged ETFs held for multiple days. Key finding: if the S&P 500’s average annual log-return continues at or above its historical 6.58% level and the standard deviation of daily returns stays below 1.25%, a 2x daily leveraged S&P 500 ETF will perform at least as well as the S&P 500 long-term. Offers more nuanced conditions than the simple “leveraged ETFs decay long-term” narrative that dominates popular discourse.
  • URL/ISBN: https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.03186

Portable Alpha for the (Taxable) Masses: Can Capital Efficient Funds Live Up to the Hype?

Section titled “Portable Alpha for the (Taxable) Masses: Can Capital Efficient Funds Live Up to the Hype?”
  • Author(s): Michael Crook
  • Year: 2023
  • Publisher/Platform: SSRN (abstract ID 4356984)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Examines capital-efficient retail ETF products (90/60 “portable alpha” funds such as NTSX) for taxable individual investors. Finds that 90/60 strategies have a role to play as equity replacements and for implementing portable alpha in taxable accounts, after accounting for taxes and fees. Provides the most thorough retail-investor analysis of whether levered 60/40 strategies deliver on their theoretical promise.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4356984

Lifecycle Investing: The Full Diversification Problem

Section titled “Lifecycle Investing: The Full Diversification Problem”
  • Author(s): Boris Müller
  • Year: 2024
  • Publisher/Platform: SSRN (abstract ID 4776778)
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Extends Markowitz mean-variance analysis to dynamic multi-period lifecycle portfolio selection including capital flows. Formalizes “time diversification” as a second dimension of the full diversification problem alongside cross-asset diversification. Provides theoretical framework for assessing leveraged lifecycle strategies that seek to distribute equity exposure more evenly across time.
  • URL/ISBN: SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4776778

The Unique Risks of Portfolio Leverage: Why Modern Portfolio Theory Fails and How to Fix It

Section titled “The Unique Risks of Portfolio Leverage: Why Modern Portfolio Theory Fails and How to Fix It”

Compounding Effects in Leveraged ETFs: Beyond the Volatility Drag Paradigm

Section titled “Compounding Effects in Leveraged ETFs: Beyond the Volatility Drag Paradigm”
  • Author(s): Multiple authors (arXiv preprint under review)
  • Year: 2025
  • Publisher/Platform: arXiv (preprint 2504.20116)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: Challenges the dominant “volatility drag” framing of leveraged ETF long-term performance. Shows that LETF performance depends fundamentally on return autocorrelation: in markets with independent returns, LETFs exhibit positive expected compounding effects; in trending markets, performance is enhanced; but in mean-reverting markets, underperformance occurs. Provides a more complete analytical framework than the simple volatility-drag narrative for retail investors evaluating long-horizon LETF strategies.
  • URL/ISBN: https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.20116

White Papers

Section titled “White Papers”

Risk Parity: Why We Lever

Section titled “Risk Parity: Why We Lever”
  • Author(s): Clifford Asness (AQR Capital Management)
  • Year: 2014
  • Publisher/Platform: AQR Capital Management (Perspectives series)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: AQR’s practitioner-facing explanation of why risk parity strategies require leverage: because bonds and other lower-volatility assets have superior risk-adjusted returns but insufficient raw returns, leverage is required to bring them to equity-level expected returns. Directly applicable to sophisticated retail and HNW investors implementing risk parity portfolios.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.aqr.com/-/media/AQR/Documents/Insights/Perspectives/Risk-Parity-Why-We-Lever.pdf

Leveraged Strategies: Benefits of Implementing a Moderate Amount of Leverage

Section titled “Leveraged Strategies: Benefits of Implementing a Moderate Amount of Leverage”

Return Stacking: Strategies for Overcoming a Low Return Environment

Section titled “Return Stacking: Strategies for Overcoming a Low Return Environment”
  • Author(s): Rodrigo Gordillo (ReSolve Asset Management), Corey Hoffstein (Newfound Research)
  • Year: 2021
  • Publisher/Platform: ReSolve Asset Management / Newfound Research
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The seminal paper introducing “return stacking” as a concept accessible to retail investors. Tests a portfolio targeting a 60/40 base with 30% managed futures and 30% global macro stacked on top (160% total exposure via leverage). Demonstrates that if the overlaid assets are non-correlated, additional leverage can reduce total portfolio risk. Foundation document for the return-stacking ETF product category.
  • URL/ISBN: https://catalyst-insights.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Return-Stacking-Paper-ReSolve-Newfound.pdf

Leverage in Portfolios

Section titled “Leverage in Portfolios”
  • Author(s): Verus Investments
  • Year: 2021
  • Publisher/Platform: Verus Investments (research paper)
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Institutional research paper examining the role of leverage in diversified portfolios, covering conditions under which leverage improves risk-adjusted returns and discussing practical implementation considerations. Applicable to HNW investors with access to institutional-grade leveraged structures.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.verusinvestments.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Leverage-in-Porfolios.pdf

WisdomTree Efficient Core: Capital Efficiency in Portfolio Construction

Section titled “WisdomTree Efficient Core: Capital Efficiency in Portfolio Construction”
  • Author(s): WisdomTree Research
  • Year: 2023 (November)
  • Publisher/Platform: WisdomTree (whitepaper)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: WisdomTree’s research demonstrating how portfolio scaling (“return stacking”) using a 90/60 stock/bond structure (as implemented in NTSX) creates capital-efficient portfolios that historically produced a higher Sharpe ratio than the S&P 500 (0.66 vs. 0.52). The paper extends Cliff Asness’s 1996 levered 60/40 research and provides the analytical basis for the WisdomTree Global Efficient Core UCITS ETF, making leverage-embedded diversification accessible to both US and European retail investors.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.wisdomtree.eu/-/media/eu-media-files/other-documents/research/whitepapers/wisdomtree-efficient-core.pdf

Blogs & Online Resources

Section titled “Blogs & Online Resources”

How to Beat the Market Using Leverage and Index Investing — Optimized Portfolio

Section titled “How to Beat the Market Using Leverage and Index Investing — Optimized Portfolio”
  • Author(s): John Williamson (Optimized Portfolio)
  • Year: Ongoing (primary article est. 2020+)
  • Publisher/Platform: optimizedportfolio.com
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Comprehensive retail-investor guide to leveraged index investing, covering margin accounts, leveraged ETFs, HFEA, lifecycle investing, risk parity, and modern capital-efficient strategies. Includes reviews of specific products (NTSX, UPRO, TMF) and portfolio strategies. One of the most thorough public resources for US retail investors on this topic.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.optimizedportfolio.com/how-to-beat-the-market/

HEDGEFUNDIE’s Excellent Adventure (UPRO/TMF) — Bogleheads Forum

Section titled “HEDGEFUNDIE’s Excellent Adventure (UPRO/TMF) — Bogleheads Forum”
  • Author(s): “Hedgefundie” (pseudonymous Bogleheads user), summarized at multiple sites
  • Year: 2019 (original posts); ongoing discussion
  • Publisher/Platform: Bogleheads.org forum
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: The original Bogleheads forum thread introducing the HFEA strategy: a 55/45 allocation between UPRO (3x S&P 500) and TMF (3x long-term treasury bonds), creating effective 165/135 equity/bond exposure. Launched significant retail interest in leveraged risk parity approaches. Summarized comprehensively at optimizedportfolio.com and hfea.neocities.org.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=272007 | Summary: https://www.optimizedportfolio.com/hedgefundie-adventure/

Leverage — Bogleheads Wiki

Section titled “Leverage — Bogleheads Wiki”
  • Author(s): Bogleheads community (wiki)
  • Year: Ongoing
  • Publisher/Platform: Bogleheads.org
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Community-edited wiki article covering the two primary methods of index leverage (margin accounts and leveraged ETFs), their relative tradeoffs, risks of margin calls, and the volatility drag problem with leveraged ETFs. Includes practical guidance on when leveraging index funds makes sense from a Bogleheads philosophy perspective.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Leverage

Leveraged Funds — Historical Modeling — Bogleheads Blog

Section titled “Leveraged Funds — Historical Modeling — Bogleheads Blog”
  • Author(s): Bogleheads community
  • Year: 2022
  • Publisher/Platform: Bogleheads.org blog
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Data-driven analysis of how leveraged funds have performed historically across various market conditions, providing empirical context for retail investors considering long-term leveraged strategies.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.bogleheads.org/blog/2022/12/25/leveraged-funds-historical-modeling/

Return Stacking — Newfound Research / returnstacked.com

Section titled “Return Stacking — Newfound Research / returnstacked.com”
  • Author(s): Corey Hoffstein (Newfound Research), Rodrigo Gordillo (ReSolve)
  • Year: 2021–ongoing
  • Publisher/Platform: thinknewfound.com / returnstacked.com
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Comprehensive blog and educational resource for the return-stacking framework, including primers, portfolio examples, podcast episodes, and product descriptions. The primary public-facing hub for retail investors interested in capital-efficient, leveraged diversification strategies. Hoffstein’s content is among the most rigorous retail-accessible writing on modern leverage applications.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.thinknewfound.com/ | https://www.returnstacked.com/

Leverage Series — Early Retirement Now (ERN / Big ERN)

Section titled “Leverage Series — Early Retirement Now (ERN / Big ERN)”
  • Author(s): Karsten Jeske, PhD (CFA; former Federal Reserve economist)
  • Year: 2016–2022 (series of posts)
  • Publisher/Platform: earlyretirementnow.com
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: A rigorous multi-part series on leverage in the context of early retirement planning, written by a PhD economist and former Federal Reserve researcher. Key posts include: “Lower Risk Through Leverage” (July 2016, implementing leverage via bond futures for risk parity), “Seven Reasons in Defence of Debt and Leverage” (December 2016), “Using Leverage in Retirement — SWR Series Part 49” (November 2021, borrowing against portfolio to address sequence risk), “Low-Cost Leverage: The Box Spread Trade” (December 2021, obtaining cheap margin via options box spreads at near-risk-free rates), and “Timing Leverage in Retirement — SWR Series Part 52” (March 2022). One of the most analytically rigorous freely available US retail resources on practical leverage applications.
  • URL/ISBN: https://earlyretirementnow.com/tag/leverage/

Canada

Section titled “Canada”

Books

Section titled “Books”

The Smith Manoeuvre: Is Your Mortgage Tax Deductible?

Section titled “The Smith Manoeuvre: Is Your Mortgage Tax Deductible?”
  • Author(s): Fraser Smith
  • Year: 2002
  • Publisher/Platform: Trafford Publishing / Outspan Publishing
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The founding text of Canada’s most prominent leveraged investing strategy, which converts non-deductible mortgage debt into tax-deductible investment loan debt through a re-advanceable mortgage and HELOC structure. Fraser Smith, a Victoria BC financial strategist, pioneered the approach that has since been implemented by thousands of Canadian homeowners. The original and most referenced edition for the underlying framework.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1553696414 | https://www.amazon.ca/Smith-Manoeuvre-Fraser/dp/1553696417

Master Your Mortgage for Financial Freedom: How to Use The Smith Manoeuvre in Canada to Make Your Mortgage Tax-Deductible and Create Wealth

Section titled “Master Your Mortgage for Financial Freedom: How to Use The Smith Manoeuvre in Canada to Make Your Mortgage Tax-Deductible and Create Wealth”
  • Author(s): Robinson Smith
  • Year: 2019
  • Publisher/Platform: Influence Publishing
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The authoritative modern update to his father Fraser’s original book, written by Robinson Smith after helping over 500 families implement the strategy. Covers the current Smith Manoeuvre implementation including re-advanceable mortgages, HELOC investing, tax deductibility, and portfolio construction. The current go-to reference for anyone implementing the strategy today.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1999171605 | https://smithman.ca/book

The Smart Debt Coach: Secrets of the Rich to Increase Your Wealth and Security

Section titled “The Smart Debt Coach: Secrets of the Rich to Increase Your Wealth and Security”
  • Author(s): Talbot Stevens
  • Year: 2020
  • Publisher/Platform: Financial Success Strategies Inc.
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Talbot Stevens is Canada’s foremost expert on “responsible leveraged investing.” This book expands on his earlier booklet with new strategies developed after the 2008 financial crisis, covering how to strategically use debt to reduce bad debt, increase savings, and improve investment returns. His books have collectively sold nearly a quarter million copies. Specifically focused on the Canadian tax and regulatory context.
  • URL/ISBN: ASIN B08R55W5S2 (Kindle) | https://www.amazon.ca/Smart-Debt-Coach-Increase-Security-ebook/dp/B08R55W5S2

Dispelling the Myths of Borrowing to Invest: Does Conservative Leverage Make Sense for You?

Section titled “Dispelling the Myths of Borrowing to Invest: Does Conservative Leverage Make Sense for You?”
  • Author(s): Talbot Stevens
  • Year: Various editions (booklet; Kindle edition 2020)
  • Publisher/Platform: Financial Success Strategies Inc.
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Stevens’s foundational booklet on responsible leveraged investing for Canadians, presenting the case for conservative leverage while honestly addressing the risks. Preceded The Smart Debt Coach and remains relevant as a concise introduction to the topic within the Canadian context.
  • URL/ISBN: ASIN B08R59WV3L (Kindle) | https://www.amazon.ca/Dispelling-Myths-Borrowing-Invest-Conservative-ebook/dp/B08R59WV3L

Financial Freedom Without Sacrifice: How to Cut Expenses, Invest and Increase Security Without Lowering Your Standard of Living

Section titled “Financial Freedom Without Sacrifice: How to Cut Expenses, Invest and Increase Security Without Lowering Your Standard of Living”
  • Author(s): Talbot Stevens
  • Year: 1996 (original); Kindle edition 2020
  • Publisher/Platform: Financial Success Strategies Inc.
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Stevens’s flagship personal finance book with over 145,000 copies sold. Covers more than 150 strategies to free up money for investing and increase financial security. Includes material on leverage and borrowing to invest within a broader wealth-building framework. Relevant background context for Canadians new to the concept.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0969687306 | https://www.amazon.ca/Financial-Freedom-Without-Sacrifice-Expenses-ebook/dp/B08R5VRYWG

Borrowing To Invest For Beginners: The Pros And Cons Of Borrowing To Invest

Section titled “Borrowing To Invest For Beginners: The Pros And Cons Of Borrowing To Invest”
  • Author(s): Will Newyear
  • Year: 2021
  • Publisher/Platform: Self-published
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: Low
  • Summary: A beginner-level introduction to borrowing to invest, available on Amazon.ca. Explains the basic concept that investing borrowed money can be an effective way to boost potential returns provided investments increase at a rate exceeding borrowing costs. Limited analytical depth but accessible entry point for Canadian beginners.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-9798764088556 | https://www.amazon.ca/Borrowing-Invest-Beginners-Pros-Cons/dp/B09LGJSYVJ

Academic Papers / Regulatory Papers

Section titled “Academic Papers / Regulatory Papers”

Guidance on Borrowing for Investment Purposes

Section titled “Guidance on Borrowing for Investment Purposes”
  • Author(s): Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO, formerly IIROC)
  • Year: Multiple versions; most recent current
  • Publisher/Platform: CIRO (Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The primary regulatory guidance document for Canadian registered representatives advising clients on borrowing-to-invest strategies. Covers suitability requirements, supervision obligations, documentation standards, and key risk disclosures. Essential reference for understanding the Canadian regulatory framework within which leveraged investing advice is given.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.ciro.ca/newsroom/publications/guidance-borrowing-investment-purposes

Regulators Need to Act on Leveraged Investing

Section titled “Regulators Need to Act on Leveraged Investing”
  • Author(s): FAIR Canada (Foundation for Advancement of Investor Rights)
  • Year: 2009 (original); subsequent updates
  • Publisher/Platform: FAIR Canada
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Consumer advocacy submission arguing that leveraged investing is not suitable for most retail investors and that current regulatory requirements provide inadequate investor protection. Documents the systemic problem of unsuitable leveraged investing recommendations and calls for regulatory action from the CSA. Important counterpoint to pro-leverage commercial literature.
  • URL/ISBN: https://faircanada.ca/submissions/leveraged-investing/

Heads You Lose, Tails You Lose: The Strange Case of Leveraged ETFs (Parts 1 and 2)

Section titled “Heads You Lose, Tails You Lose: The Strange Case of Leveraged ETFs (Parts 1 and 2)”
  • Author(s): FAIR Canada
  • Year: 2009
  • Publisher/Platform: FAIR Canada
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: FAIR Canada’s report examining the risks of leveraged and inverse ETFs for retail investors, arguing these complex products are systematically misunderstood and misrepresented. Provided the basis for subsequent regulatory scrutiny of leveraged ETF marketing in Canada.
  • URL/ISBN: https://faircanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/090713-ETF-Update-FINAL.pdf

Income Tax Folio S3-F6-C1: Interest Deductibility

Section titled “Income Tax Folio S3-F6-C1: Interest Deductibility”

Borrowing for Investment Purposes — Suitability and Supervision

Section titled “Borrowing for Investment Purposes — Suitability and Supervision”
  • Author(s): Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)
  • Year: Current (updated from IIROC original)
  • Publisher/Platform: CIRO (Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: A companion document to the CIRO Guidance on Borrowing, focused specifically on dealer supervision obligations and suitability determinations when recommending leveraged investing strategies to retail clients. Documents the required client assessment process (debt-service ratio, debt-to-net-worth ratio, emotional tolerance for volatility), mandatory risk disclosures, and ongoing supervision requirements. Provides the most detailed regulatory framework for advisors and sophisticated clients navigating the compliance environment around leverage in Canada.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.ciro.ca/newsroom/publications/borrowing-investment-purposes-suitability-and-supervision-0

Leveraged Investing — Body of Knowledge

Section titled “Leveraged Investing — Body of Knowledge”
  • Author(s): FP Canada (Financial Planning Standards Council)
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: FP Canada (fpcanada.ca)
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: FP Canada’s professional Body of Knowledge guidance on leveraged investing, setting out what Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Qualified Associate Financial Planner (QAFP) practitioners must understand. Requires planners to evaluate leverage suitability factors, estimate after-tax net returns of leveraged strategies, explain benefits and risks, and identify additional regulatory disclosures. Defines the professional competency standard for leveraged investing advice in Canada.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.fpcanada.ca/en/bok/bok-statement?topicUrl=investments&articleUrl=leveraged-investing

Australia

Section titled “Australia”

Books

Section titled “Books”

Borrowing to Invest: The Fast Way to Wealth? A User’s Guide for Borrowers

Section titled “Borrowing to Invest: The Fast Way to Wealth? A User’s Guide for Borrowers”
  • Author(s): Noel Whittaker, Paul Resnik
  • Year: 2002
  • Publisher/Platform: Simon & Schuster Australia (East Roseville, NSW)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: The foundational Australian book on borrowing to invest, co-authored by one of Australia’s most respected financial advisors (Whittaker, the bullish half) and a more risk-averse counterpart (Resnik). Covers negative gearing, how to start borrowing, margin loans versus equity loans, costs, investment choices, and associated risks. The balanced “dialogue” format makes it accessible and appropriately cautious for retail investors. The definitive Australian text on the subject.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0731811724 | https://www.qbd.com.au/borrowing-to-invest-the-fast-way-to-wealth/noel-whittaker-paul-resnik/9780731811724/

Motivated Money: You’ve Invested Well? Compared to What?

Section titled “Motivated Money: You’ve Invested Well? Compared to What?”
  • Author(s): Peter Thornhill
  • Year: 2004 (original); 6th edition 2020
  • Publisher/Platform: Self-published (motivatedmoney.com.au)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: With over 40,000 copies sold, this is one of Australia’s most influential personal investing books. Thornhill challenges conventional thinking and advocates investing in productive assets, especially industrial shares, including through gearing (debt recycling). His own strategy involves gearing modestly into the share market using dividends to service debt. The 6th edition provides guidance for the current decade.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0975179604 | https://motivatedmoney.com.au/

Strong Money Australia: How to Gain Financial Independence and Create a Life of Freedom

Section titled “Strong Money Australia: How to Gain Financial Independence and Create a Life of Freedom”
  • Author(s): Dave Gow
  • Year: 2022
  • Publisher/Platform: Self-published (ISBN available via Booktopia/Amazon)
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: From the author of the popular Strong Money Australia blog, this is a roadmap to financial independence in Australia covering index fund investing, share vs. property comparison, and wealth-building strategies. Discusses gearing and debt recycling within the context of an overall financial independence plan. Dave Gow retired at 28 on a forklift driver’s income.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0645632408 | https://strongmoneyaustralia.com/book/

United Kingdom & Europe

Section titled “United Kingdom & Europe”

Books

Section titled “Books”

Risk Parity: How to Invest for All Market Environments

Section titled “Risk Parity: How to Invest for All Market Environments”
  • Author(s): Alex Shahidi
  • Year: 2022
  • Publisher/Platform: Wiley
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Written for both individual and professional investors, this book explains risk parity theory and practice in accessible terms, covering how to build a truly balanced asset allocation by equalizing risk contributions rather than capital weights. Since risk parity at meaningful diversification levels requires leverage, the book addresses implementation including the use of bond futures and leveraged products. Applicable to UK and European sophisticated retail investors.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-1119812562 | https://www.amazon.com/Risk-Parity-Invest-Market-Environments/dp/1119812569

Leveraged Trading: A Professional Approach (UK edition)

Section titled “Leveraged Trading: A Professional Approach (UK edition)”
  • Author(s): Robert Carver
  • Year: 2019
  • Publisher/Platform: Harriman House (UK publisher)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: (Also listed under US Books above, but UK-authored and UK-market relevant.) Carver’s systematic approach is directly applicable to UK retail investors trading via spread bets, CFDs, or futures — the instruments most readily available in the UK for leveraged portfolio exposure. His framework for position sizing and leverage management is instrument-agnostic and equally applicable to UK/European contexts.
  • URL/ISBN: ISBN 978-0857197214 | https://www.harriman-house.com/leveragedtrading

Germany

Section titled “Germany”

Aktieninvestments mit Kredit hebeln — Gerd Kommer Invest

Section titled “Aktieninvestments mit Kredit hebeln — Gerd Kommer Invest”
  • Author(s): Gerd Kommer (German financial advisor, author of the German equivalent of “A Random Walk Down Wall Street”)
  • Year: 2022 (November); updated 2025 (November)
  • Publisher/Platform: gerd-kommer.de
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Germany’s most authoritative passive investing commentator examines leveraged equity investing (Kreditinvestieren) with rigorous attention to evidence. Kommer argues that leverage on a diversified equity portfolio is theoretically justified under lifecycle-investing conditions, but that in practice the psychological barriers, forced liquidation risk, and German tax complexity (Abgeltungssteuer complications on leveraged products) make it unsuitable for most German retail investors. Covers margin loans (Lombardkredit), leveraged ETFs, and the academic literature (Ayres-Nalebuff, Frazzini-Pedersen). The authoritative German-language resource on the topic, updated to reflect new evidence as of November 2025.
  • URL/ISBN: https://gerd-kommer.de/aktieninvestments-mit-kredit-hebeln/

Investieren auf Kredit — Finanzfluss

Section titled “Investieren auf Kredit — Finanzfluss”
  • Author(s): Thomas Kehl, Mona Linke (Finanzfluss founders)
  • Year: Current (updated regularly)
  • Publisher/Platform: finanzfluss.de / YouTube
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Finanzfluss is Germany’s leading personal finance and investing platform (4M+ YouTube subscribers, 1M+ website visitors/month). Their “Investieren auf Kredit” (Investing on Credit) article and associated video content covers whether borrowing to invest makes sense for German retail investors: the math of leverage, Lombardkredit mechanics, margin loans from German brokers (Flatex, Consorsbank, Comdirect), interest rate considerations, and the specific tax treatment. A primary entry point for the German-speaking retail investor community on leverage topics.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.finanzfluss.de/geldanlage/investieren-auf-kredit/

Lombardkredit — So können wir unser Portfolio hebeln — DIY Investor (diyinvestor.de)

Section titled “Lombardkredit — So können wir unser Portfolio hebeln — DIY Investor (diyinvestor.de)”
  • Author(s): Axel (pseudonymous German private investor blogger)
  • Year: 2019 (February)
  • Publisher/Platform: diyinvestor.de
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: First-person practical guide to using a Lombardkredit (securities-backed credit line) to lever a German retail investor’s equity portfolio. Covers which German and Austrian brokers offer Lombardkredite, typical LTV ratios (50–70% for broad equity ETFs), current interest rates, and the author’s own experience implementing a modest leverage strategy. While lower credibility than institutional sources, it represents an authentic practitioner perspective from within the German retail investing community.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.diyinvestor.de/lombardkredit/

Switzerland

Section titled “Switzerland”

Lombardkredit als Eigenkapitalrendite-Turbo — Schweizerfinanzblog

Section titled “Lombardkredit als Eigenkapitalrendite-Turbo — Schweizerfinanzblog”
  • Author(s): Schweizerfinanzblog.ch (Swiss personal finance blogger)
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: schweizerfinanzblog.ch
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: Medium
  • Summary: Swiss personal finance blog post examining the use of Lombard loans (Lombardkredit) as a leverage tool for Swiss retail and HNW investors. Covers typical Lombard loan terms from Swiss private banks vs. online brokers (Swissquote, Saxo Bank Switzerland), LTV ratios for different asset classes under Swiss rules, and the tax treatment of investment loan interest under Swiss cantonal tax rules. Authentic voice from within the Swiss-German personal finance community.
  • URL/ISBN: https://schweizerfinanzblog.ch/lombardkredit/

Lombard Loans in Switzerland Explained — Moneyland.ch

Section titled “Lombard Loans in Switzerland Explained — Moneyland.ch”
  • Author(s): Moneyland.ch editorial team
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: moneyland.ch (Swiss financial comparison platform)
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Switzerland’s leading financial product comparison platform provides a comprehensive guide to Lombard loans from Swiss banks and brokers. Covers eligible collateral (equities, bonds, investment funds, ETFs), typical LTV ratios by asset class, current interest rates from major Swiss institutions, and how Lombard loans compare to margin accounts. Moneyland.ch is authoritative and regulatory-compliant, and their Lombard loan coverage is the best freely available Swiss-market reference.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.moneyland.ch/en/lombard-loan-switzerland

What Is a Lombard Loan? — Swissquote

Section titled “What Is a Lombard Loan? — Swissquote”
  • Author(s): Swissquote Bank SA
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: swissquote.com
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Swissquote, Switzerland’s leading online investment bank, provides a detailed educational guide to Lombard loans as a strategic financing tool, covering how the product works for retail and HNW clients on their platform, eligible securities, LTV ratios, and how the credit line can be used for leveraged investing or liquidity management without asset liquidation. Primary commercial reference for Switzerland’s most accessible institutional online leverage product.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.swissquote.com/en/invest/lombard-loan.html

Lombard Loan in Switzerland: Your Options for 2025 — Alpian Bank

Section titled “Lombard Loan in Switzerland: Your Options for 2025 — Alpian Bank”
  • Author(s): Alpian (Swiss digital private bank)
  • Year: 2025
  • Publisher/Platform: alpian.com
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Digital private bank Alpian’s 2025 guide comparing Lombard loan options across Swiss providers (UBS, Julius Baer, Lombard Odier, Swissquote, and Alpian itself). Covers minimum portfolio thresholds, interest rates, LTV ratios, application process, and scenarios where Lombard loans are strategically useful. Provides the most current comparison of Swiss Lombard loan products available online.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.alpian.com/blog/lombard-loan-switzerland/

France

Section titled “France”

ETF à Effet de Levier — Avenue des Investisseurs

Section titled “ETF à Effet de Levier — Avenue des Investisseurs”
  • Author(s): Nicolas (pseudonymous; French Chartered Financial Analyst and private investor)
  • Year: Current (regularly updated)
  • Publisher/Platform: avenuedesinvestisseurs.fr
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Avenue des Investisseurs is France’s leading independent passive investing blog (author is a CFA charterholder). Their leveraged ETF guide covers the mechanics of daily-reset leveraged ETFs, the volatility decay problem, conditions under which long-term holding can outperform, and which UCITS-compliant leveraged ETFs are accessible to French investors through PEA (Plan d’Epargne en Actions) and CTO accounts. Includes analysis of specific products (Amundi, Lyxor/Société Générale leveraged UCITS ETFs). The primary French-language authoritative retail resource on leveraged ETF investing.
  • URL/ISBN: https://avenuedesinvestisseurs.fr/etf-a-effet-de-levier/

Compte sur Marge Interactive Brokers — Avenue des Investisseurs

Section titled “Compte sur Marge Interactive Brokers — Avenue des Investisseurs”
  • Author(s): Nicolas (pseudonymous; CFA charterholder)
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: avenuedesinvestisseurs.fr
  • Relevance: Medium | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Companion article covering Interactive Brokers’ margin account (compte sur marge) for French investors — one of the few accessible routes to personal leverage for French retail investors outside leveraged ETF structures. Covers margin rates, eligible assets, regulatory requirements under French/EU rules, and the tax treatment of margin interest in France. Essential for French investors interested in direct portfolio leverage beyond ETF products.
  • URL/ISBN: https://avenuedesinvestisseurs.fr/courtier/interactive-brokers/compte-sur-marge/

Nordic & Scandinavia

Section titled “Nordic & Scandinavia”

Belåning (Margin Lending) Educational Resources — Nordnet

Section titled “Belåning (Margin Lending) Educational Resources — Nordnet”
  • Author(s): Nordnet Bank AB
  • Year: Current
  • Publisher/Platform: nordnet.se / nordnet.no / nordnet.dk / nordnet.fi
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: Nordnet, the leading Nordic online brokerage operating in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland, provides comprehensive educational content on margin lending (“belåning” in Swedish/Norwegian, “belåning” in Danish, “vakuusluotto” in Finnish). Covers eligible securities, loan-to-value ratios for different asset classes, margin call mechanics, and responsible use of leverage. As the dominant retail brokerage across all four Nordic markets, Nordnet’s educational resources represent the primary institutional retail leverage reference for the Nordic region. Direct leverage access through Nordnet’s platform is one of the most accessible routes for Scandinavian retail investors.
  • URL/ISBN: https://www.nordnet.se/se/tjanster/borshandel/borshandel/belaning.html

RikaTillsammans — Investera med Lån (Borrowing to Invest)

Section titled “RikaTillsammans — Investera med Lån (Borrowing to Invest)”
  • Author(s): Jan Bolmeson (founder, former FIRE investor and personal finance educator)
  • Year: Ongoing
  • Publisher/Platform: rikatillsammans.se
  • Relevance: High | Credibility: High
  • Summary: RikaTillsammans (“Rich Together”) is Sweden’s largest and most respected independent personal finance community, founded by Jan Bolmeson who achieved financial independence at 36. The community forum and blog content on “investera med lån” (investing with loans) and “belåna portfölj” (leveraging a portfolio) provides Sweden’s most substantive retail investor discourse on leveraged investing, covering Nordnet margin loans, leveraged ETFs available on the Swedish market, and the lifecycle investing framework adapted to Swedish pension and tax structures (ISK, KF accounts). Primary reference for Swedish-language leveraged investing discussion.
  • URL/ISBN: https://rikatillsammans.se/