Portfolio Tracking for Couples: Managing Joint Investments
Managing investments as a couple is one of the most delicate aspects of personal finance. It's not just about numbers: it's about trust, transparency, different priorities, and life goals that evolve over time.
This guide shows you how to use DonkyCapital to build a shared view of your couple's finances, while maintaining full autonomy over each individual portfolio.
Common Situations: Which One Is Yours?
Not all investing couples are the same. Here are the four most common situations and how each can benefit from a shared tracking system.
New couple starting to invest together
You've just decided to share the financial side of your life too.
Starting from scratch is the best time to establish good habits. Set your target allocation together, choose the platforms to use, and track every contribution from day one. With DonkyCapital you can create a shared portfolio and two individual ones in minutes.
Married couple with mixed assets
You have separate accounts, joint accounts, real estate, and perhaps life insurance policies.
The main challenge is getting a consolidated view of all your wealth. DonkyCapital lets you create separate portfolios for each account/asset and aggregate them into a single dashboard. See your couple's net worth at a glance.
Partners with semi-separate finances
Each manages their own investments, but you have shared goals (home, retirement).
The ideal structure: two fully independent individual portfolios, plus a third "shared goal" portfolio where you both contribute. DonkyCapital lets you track each person's percentage contributions and monitor progress toward the goal.
Family building a children's education fund
Beyond personal investments, you're building wealth for your children.
Create a dedicated education fund portfolio, separate from the couple's portfolio. Track monthly contributions, monitor long-term performance, and check if you're on track with your goal (e.g. €50,000 by 2035). One portfolio per purpose makes everything clearer.
The Challenges of Couple's Portfolio Management
Here are the most common difficulties couples face when trying to manage investments together — and how DonkyCapital solves them.
| Challenge | Why it matters | DonkyCapital solution |
|---|---|---|
| Shared visibility | Without a common view, it's impossible to make informed financial decisions as a couple. One partner may have a distorted perception of total wealth. | Aggregated dashboard showing all portfolios (individual and shared) in a single screen. No more Excel files shared via email. |
| Financial communication | Conversations about money are among the leading causes of conflict in couples. They often stem from the absence of clear, shared data. | Objective, real-time data eliminates ambiguity. The monthly dashboard naturally becomes the agenda for your couple's financial review. |
| Different risk tolerance | It's perfectly normal for two people to have different risk profiles. Managing a single hybrid portfolio can lead to suboptimal compromises for both. | Separate portfolios for each partner (with their own asset allocation) plus a shared portfolio with agreed allocation. Autonomy + shared vision. |
| Different brokers | Partners often use different brokers (Degiro, Scalable, Interactive Brokers, etc.). Consolidating the view is difficult without a dedicated tool. | CSV import from any broker. Each portfolio in DonkyCapital can use a different broker, but all flow into the same aggregated dashboard. |
| Tax reporting | In many countries, investment gains must be reported separately by each spouse. Having organised data is essential. | Each DonkyCapital portfolio tracks capital gains, losses, and dividends by period. Tax reports are always available. |
| Contribution tracking | Who contributed how much to the shared fund? The lack of tracking can create tension, especially when incomes are asymmetric. | Every transaction records date, amount, and type. You can filter by period and portfolio to verify exactly who contributed what and when. |
How to Set Up Your Couple's Portfolio
Follow these four steps to have a clear and functional structure from day one.
Create individual portfolios
Each partner creates their own DonkyCapital account and imports their existing investments via CSV from their broker or manual entry. Individual portfolios remain private and under each person's control.
Create the shared portfolio
Create a third portfolio named "Couple" or with the name of your shared goal (e.g. "Home 2027", "Joint Retirement Fund"). Enter the transactions for investments you make together.
Set contribution percentages
Decide together how much of your monthly income to direct to the shared portfolio. DonkyCapital lets you track each person's contributions and easily calculate whether they're proportional to income or fixed.
Monthly review together
Set aside 20-30 minutes per month to review the dashboard together. Check the shared portfolio's performance, verify that month's contributions, discuss any rebalancing. Having objective data makes the conversation easier and less emotional.
Financial Conversation Starters for Couples
Before starting to invest together, it's worth aligning on some fundamental questions. Here are five conversation starters with context to approach them the right way.
What is our main financial goal as a couple over the next 5 years?
Buying a home, building a retirement fund, creating an emergency fund, or simply growing wealth? The answer shapes everything: time horizon, acceptable risk, and instruments to use. Start with the goal, not the product.
How much are we willing to lose (temporarily) without losing sleep?
Risk tolerance is personal and often differs between partners. There's no right answer. The important thing is finding an asset allocation for the shared portfolio that both can emotionally sustain through 30-40% market downturns.
How do we handle unexpected financial expenses? Do we draw from investments?
Having an emergency fund separate from investments (typically 3-6 months of expenses) avoids having to liquidate positions at bad times. Decide together the fund size and where to keep it (savings account, money market ETF).
Do we want to keep some completely autonomous investments?
Many couples find it healthy to keep a "personal" share of investments that each manages with full autonomy — without having to justify every choice. This reduces tension and respects individual autonomy while maintaining a shared vision.
How do we track and share information about our investments?
Financial transparency doesn't mean total access to all accounts, but having a shared view of the big picture. DonkyCapital lets you create periodic reports and shared dashboards without showing every single transaction.
DonkyCapital's Multi-Portfolio Features
DonkyCapital is designed to manage multiple portfolios — perfect for couples and families with complex financial structures.
Unlimited portfolios
Create as many portfolios as you need: one per broker, one per goal, one for unlisted assets. There's no limit to the number of portfolios.
Aggregated view
The main dashboard shows the total across all portfolios: total net worth, aggregated performance, overall allocation. A single view of your entire financial situation.
Per-portfolio performance
Analyse each portfolio's performance separately: TWR, MWR, benchmark comparison. Useful for comparing returns of the individual portfolio vs the shared one.
Multi-currency support
Have investments in euros, dollars, pounds? DonkyCapital handles currency conversions automatically. View each portfolio in its original currency or everything converted to the base currency.
Custom categories
Assign custom categories to portfolios: "Home Goal", "Retirement", "Active Trading", "Long Term". Categories help navigate many portfolios and maintain clarity on the purpose of each one.
CSV import per broker
Import transactions from Degiro, Scalable Capital, Interactive Brokers, Trading 212, and many others. Each portfolio can use a different broker. No manual typing required.
Managing Separately vs Together: A Comparison
There's no single approach that works for every couple. Here's an honest comparison of the two main strategies.
| Aspect | Completely separate | Shared structure (with DonkyCapital) |
|---|---|---|
| View of total wealth | None. Each partner sees only their own investments. | Complete. Aggregated dashboard with all portfolios. |
| Individual autonomy | Maximum. No compromises on investment choices. | Preserved. Individual portfolios remain separate and private. |
| Planning shared goals | Difficult. Requires manual calculations and constant communication. | Simple. Dedicated portfolio per goal, with progress tracking. |
| Financial transparency | Low. Often based on estimates and verbal communication. | High. Objective data, updated in real-time, always verifiable. |
| Money conversations | Based on estimates, can generate conflicts. | Based on real data, more constructive and less emotional. |
FAQ on Joint Portfolio Management
Do we need a joint bank account to invest together?
No. You can create a "shared" portfolio in DonkyCapital without a joint bank account. Each partner can make contributions from their individual account to the account dedicated to shared investments. DonkyCapital tracks contributions regardless of which bank account is used.
What happens to the shared portfolio if we separate?
DonkyCapital keeps precise track of all contributions: who contributed what and when. This data can be exported at any time and used as documentation for asset division. It's advisable to agree upfront on division rules when you create the shared portfolio.
How do we handle one partner being more involved in investing than the other?
DonkyCapital doesn't require both partners to access the platform with the same frequency. The more active partner can manage the portfolio and periodically share reports with the other. The important thing is to have at least a monthly review together to maintain alignment on shared goals.
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