Challenge yourself to free gold

Do you love speculating on explorers and miners but have limited cash and risk tolerance?

Do you have friends who want to learn about mining investing but stay away because of the risk?

Are you competitive and want a chance to win at investing on a weekly basis?

Do you like free gold?

If you answered Yes to any of the above, Stockpools next stock picking challenge is a perfect fit.

Stockpools is fantasy sports for stocks. With an investing platform that both mimics the real deal and creates competition with other investors, it’s a totally risk-free platform to explore investing – and win
prizes should your portfolio be the best.

The Stockpools site is always up and running, but through the summer they are partnering with Kitco on a Minerals Market Challenge.

It’s a Stockpools competition focused on explorers and miners. And the prizes fit the bill: Stockpools is giving away $16,000 worth of physical gold.

Here’s the deal. The competition starts on June 5th and runs for ten weeks. Competitors make their stock picks on the weekend and then bite their nails through the week to see who comes out on top.

There are seven categories: precious metals, zinc, copper, lithium, uranium, cobalt, and graphite. Each category will offer six options and players have to pick and rank their top three. There is also a default eighth category for the contest’s two title sponsors, Northern Vertex Mining and Kootenay Silver. Both title sponsors are default picks in every portfolio.

For the first eight weeks, the top two portfolios each week win half an ounce of gold.

For weeks nine and ten Kitco and Stockpools have upped the ante: the top two performers will each get a full ounce of the yellow metal.

It’s a great structure. First, it’s risk-free investing, which means all the fun of speculating on mining stocks without having any of your own capital on the line. There is no cost to enter.

Second, it’s limited. With only six companies in each category, making picks is a manageable challenge even for a novice investor.

Third, you can participate as much or as little as you like. You can make your picks and not change a thing for the full ten weeks, or you can watch the markets and alter your portfolio each weekend.

Fourth, you might learn something. If you’re a precious metals fiend, the competition might encourage you to learn a bit about cobalt and graphite. If you love energy metals, a bit of time spent on zinc might be a good thing. And no matter what your favorite sector, you’ll likely encounter at least a few companies for the first time. Maybe you’ll find a diamond in the rough that will earn a place in your real portfolio.

And did I mention the $16,000 worth of gold on the line?

Fantasy sports is popular for a reason: people love to bet, especially when winning requires some serious insight, but people also hate to lose. Stockpools is very clever in applying that concept to investing. Players get to bet, compete, and perhaps win, while learning about companies and sectors that offer the potential for real investing returns.

To play, and perhaps win, click here.