Difference Between Investment Vs Gambling

  1. Difference Between Investment Gambling And Speculation Pdf
  2. Gambling Company Stocks
  3. Difference Between Investment And Gambling Comparison Chart
  4. Difference Between Investment Speculation And Gambling In Tabular Form

The difference perhapsbetweena day trader and a true gambler is that the dav trader is not likely to lose everything, ' whereasthepuntergoingto the casino or the racescould lose allhis money in one day.The addicted gambler is doomed to lose because even ifhe wins he will tend to keep gambling until he does lose.An. One important difference between day trading and going to the casino is that when you go out to gamble, you have a negative expected return. In other words, the house is always expected to win over the long run, on average. Trading, however, if done skillfully and artfully, can put you in the position of the house. Feb 13, 2018  Gambling We often use the word savings and investment interchangeably, while both are different and both are necessary to secure our future.

Many people do not differentiate between the following terms when they invest their hard-earned money in different asset classes, particularly in stock market and often get confused between;

1. Saving

2. Investment

3. Speculations

4. Gambling


We often use the word savings and investment interchangeably, while both are different and both are necessary to secure our future. Saving is done for purchases and emergencies while investment is being done for creation of wealth. I have heard from most of the people that they are savings for their retired life, we need to understand that if we are saving for our retired life we need to invest that money to create wealth. We need to allocate the money wisely between saving and investment, it depends upon behavior of each individual and allocation can be made accordingly. In general, we shall allocate equivalent of three to six months expenses for savings and any excess over it should be allocated for investment.

There is a razor thin differentiation between investment and speculations, in reality it depends upon our own behavior as an investor to differentiate between investment and speculation. Investment and speculative deals are generally done for real assets.

Investment can be defined as “The employment of funds to acquire certain assets after due diligence for mid to long period of time, with the objective of wealth creation and additional income in future”

Difference Between Investment Vs Gambling

Speculative investment can be defined as “The employment of funds to acquire assets for shorter duration of time to take advantage of fluctuations in prices of underlying assets”

Difference between investment and gambling in tabular form

However, Gambling can be defined as “The employment of funds for entertainment/fun with the chances of return depends upon probability of certain situation or events”. For example, deploying funds on horse racing can be defined as gambling.

Key differential of investment vs speculation vs Gambling is;


1. Risk Analysis and Risk appetite: Investor will generally rely on the fundamental analysis of financials and other factors which can affect the price of the asset class and their decision to invest in particular asset is based upon certain fundamental values associated with the asset. Investors do have long term risk and return perspective. While speculators generally rely on the flow of the wind without analysing any fundamentals. Speculators do take higher risk for expects higher returns in short period. Gambler risk entire capital on bet and relay mainly on luck. They are the highest risk takers and ready to lose original investment also.

Difference Between Investment Gambling And Speculation Pdf

2. Price of the asset: Investor does not look at the price of the asset rather it looks at the asset itself to determine the decision to allocate some money now to get some money back later on. Investor does not get influenced by daily fluctuations of the asset price, because his/her allocation of money decision is based on the intrinsic value of the assets rather then price. Speculators look at the price of the asset to allocate the money and they do get influenced by the daily fluctuations of the price of the assets, aim of the speculator is to get some quick reward. Gambling is based upon odds and bets are placed only on assumptions.

3. Time Horizon: Investors allocate money for a particular asset for longer period while speculators allocate money for shorter period, on the other hand gambler place bet for immediate gain.

4. Leverages: An investor allocates money from its own resources for investment while and speculators may also rely on borrowed money to allocate. This is applicable mainly to assets belongs to equity market. Gambler generally allocate their own money and place bet for entertainment or fun.

An individual’s approach towards investment identifies the individual either investor or speculators. If an individual is investing without fundamental analysis, only on the basis of market sentiments and certain news, for a shorter duration can be defined as speculative investor. An Individual who invests with proper fundamental analysis for longer period of duration can be defined as investor.

In conclusion, Investor will get stable return over a long run and I advise all my readers to invest wisely after proper analysis of the company to secure their hard money for fairly good chances for creation of wealth. If you are a speculator, make sure your entry and exit to the market is at right time and always be ready to higher risk of loss of original investment in worst circumstances. Gambling should be avoided always and in most of the cases gambling is not legal also.



Day trading is a cousin to both investing and gambling, but it is not the same as either. Day trading involves quick reactions to the markets, not a long-term consideration of all the factors that can drive an investment. It works with odds in your favor, or at least that are even, rather than with odds that are against you.

Investing is slow and steady

Investing is the process of putting money at risk in order to get a return. It’s the way that businesses get started, roads get built, and explorations get financed.

Investing is very much focused on the long term. Good investors do a lot of research before committing their money because they know that it will take a long time to see a payoff. Investors often invest in things that are out of favor, because they know that, with time, others will recognize the value and respond in kind.

In contrast to investing, day trading moves fast. Day traders react only to what’s on the screen. There’s no time to do research, and the market is always right when you’re day trading. You don’t have two months or two years to wait for the fundamentals to work out and the rest of Wall Street to see how smart you were. And if you can’t live with that, you shouldn’t be day trading.

Day trading works fast

Trading is the act of buying and selling securities. All investors trade, because they need to buy and sell their investments. But to investors, trading is a rare transaction, and they get more value from finding a good opportunity, buying it cheap, and selling it at a much higher price sometime in the future. But traders are not investors.

Traders look to take advantage of short-term price discrepancies in the market. In general, they don’t take a lot of risk on each trade, so they don’t get a lot of return on each trade, either. Traders act quickly. They look at what the market is telling them and then respond.

They know that many of their trades won’t work out, but as long as more than half work, they’ll be okay. They don’t do a lot of in-depth research on the securities they trade, but they know the normal price and volume patterns well enough that they can recognize potential profit opportunities.

Gambling Company Stocks

Trading keeps markets efficient because it creates the short-term supply and demand that eliminates small price discrepancies. It also creates a lot of stress for traders, who must react in the here and now. Traders give up the luxury of time in exchange for a quick profit.

Speculation is related to trading in that it often involves short-term transactions. Speculators take risks, assuming a much greater return than may be expected, and a lot of what-ifs may have to be satisfied for the transaction to pay off. Many speculators hedge their risks with other securities, such as options or futures.

Gambling is nothing more than luck

Difference Between Investment And Gambling Comparison Chart

A gambler puts up money in the hopes of a payoff if a random event occurs. The odds are always against the gambler and in favor of the house, but people like to gamble because they like to hope that, if they hit it lucky, their return will be as large as their loss is likely.

Difference Between Investment Speculation And Gambling In Tabular Form

Some gamblers believe that the odds can be beaten, but they are wrong. They get excited about the potential for a big win and get caught up in the glamour of the casino, and soon the odds go to work and drain away their stakes.

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