what are readers
saying?

“It’s the secret hiding in plain sight. Enterprises founder – and families lose their homes – because owners are deprived of the knowledge that would have saved them from the cyclical pitfalls in the capitalist economy. The experts did not (and still do not) see these crises coming, but no-one need fall victim to the next crash. Akhil Patel documents the inside story with a blow-by-blow account of the trends that make the difference between wealth and the fatal wounds endured by those who remain wilfully blind.”

With an impressive grasp of financial and economic history, the author paints a colorful picture of the interplay of economic forces and investor emotion that drives market cycles and the principal periods of boom and bust that many of us have experienced. But more than that he sets out practical ideas on how to navigate them. All investors should read this book.

The Secret Wealth Advantage fills a big missing piece of a financial puzzle that has been bugging me for over 30 years: I only wish I had read this at the start of my financial career. It has now usurped Reminiscences of a Stock Operator as my number one investment book recommendation. I never thought that would be possible. Akhil’s work is worth 1000 times the cover price, although I could be undervaluing it enormously.

Akhil Patel’s “The Secret Wealth Advantage” actually contains secrets! I was blown away by some of the correlations Patel found between the signal and the noise. “The Secret Wealth Advantage” is like having a translator to today’s volatile economic environment and helps you turn uncertainty into clarity, especially when it comes to long term planning. If you don’t read this book, don’t blame me.

Entrepreneurs are the rockstars of the business world, disrupting industries and creating wealth. But sometimes, even the most successful entrepreneurs can’t seem to catch a break. Economic cycles wreak havoc on even the most promising businesses. The problem is that many entrepreneurs are too focused on the bottom line to notice the warning signs. They don’t have time to become experts in investing. That’s why I endorse Akhil Patel’s book “The Secret Wealth Advantage.” It’s the first macroeconomic model that made sense to me and it helps entrepreneurs stay ahead of the curve. Ignore this at your peril.

“You don’t know what you don’t know” circulated through my mind as I read Akhil’s book, The Secret Wealth Advantage. Page after page, concept after concept, much of what I thought I knew about economics and finance was challenged and enhanced. There is so much we don’t know about the financial system, boom and bust cycles, credit and – money! What propels the complexity and causes crises? What makes it tick and click along? Akhil explains it all with depth and simplicity. The Secret Wealth Advantage is a timely and important book that will help anyone – novice or pro – gain fundamental insights that change the way we should think about, and create wealth.

This is a brilliant book – absorbing, enlightening, unputdownable. By bringing the role of land in the economy back into view, it makes dazzlingly clear what drives the cycle and when it will turn. This is a must-read for anyone who invests in property or stocks.

Extremely well written; clearly thought through; and very convincing. I will certainly use the 18-year cycle in future.

The Secret Wealth Advantage is a beautifully written book, using stories to illustrate each stage of the wealth cycle, providing markers to track it in real-time and real-life actions to take advantage of the cycle. It provides clear explanations of how and why the cycle takes place and why no one sees it. If you want to save yourself a lot of money in the market from trial and error, and years of study, then this book is a must-read for all investors, young and old. Great work, Akhil!