Linux Pop!_OS:

Best one for gamers. The user interface is very similar to Windows. They have support for nvidia and amd gpu, as they come bundled with proprietery amd/nvidia gpu drivers. That is what makes them suitable for gamers, as they work out f=of the box for gpu.

Installating OS:

Download, install using these links:

https://bln364.com/dual-boot-pop-os-and-windows-10/

The only deviation from steps in link above, is that we will be doing partitioing of our hard drive withn windows OS itself. Details below:

steps:

1. Download Pop!_OS ISO:

 I downloaded "Linux Mint 19, Cinnamon 64-bit" edition. Follow link below to get Linux mint.

https://pop.system76.com/

Click "Download" button, and then click on "download 21.10" (this is the latest as of Jan, 2022). If you have "nvidia" graphics card, then choose the one with "download 21.10 (nvidia)".

2. Copy ISO files to USB drive:

You need linux already installed in order to copy the iso to usb from within linux. We don't use UUI to burn the iso as explained previously. Use cp cmd as explained under installation.

1A. Use cp cmd to copy to usb drive

sudo cp /home/aarav/Downloads/Pop-os_21.10_amd64_nvidia_3.iso /dev/sdb => Do not use /dev/sdb1. See in "Linux Installation section for details"

3. Reboot Windows:

Once copied, plug it in windows laptop and goto "advanced startup", and choose USB drive (as detailed in Linux installation section. The system boots directly into Pop!_OS on reboot.

4. Setup:

After initial language setting, and other minor things, it will give 2 options "clean install" or "custom (advanced) install". Choose "custom (advanced)" for dual boot, else it will wipe out windows OS.

Next it will take you to which partition to use for Linux OS. Here we select the partion that we created in windows. If you haven't created partitions in windows, you can create partitions here by clicking on "modify partitions" at the bottom left of the screen.

We need 3 partitions: one for root (/), one for boot (/boot/efi) and last one for swap. For me it showed  unallocated partition /dev/sda3 that I created in windows. To modify this partition to have 3 partitions within it, I click on "modify partition", and follow instructions to change partition size to have root, boot and swap. Once done, click apply. Partitioning is done, and we come back to main "install popup". Here we need to assign the 3 partitions correctly. To do that, we follow stesp below:

  • root: We need to have root partition. Select that /dev/sda3 or whatever partition we assigned for that. choose "use partition", "Format" and "use as" root (/). Filesystem is left as "Defaut (ext4)".
  • boot: We need to have a partition for "use as " "boot (/boot/efi). select that /dev/sda4 partition. We don't format it, as it's from windows efi.
  • swap: We select /dev/sda7 or whatever swap partition we created in gparted. We will use that as swap partition by selecting "use as" swap.

We need to have all 3 paritions assigned, or else else "erase and install" button to continue won't be clickable. Once we click on "erase and install", installation starts.

Once done, we have

 

 

 

 

Deals:

Here are the deals from 2023. For deals from 2022, go to DEALS 2022

Deals starting from November till Christmas are under "Black Friday - 2023". go to BLACK FRIDAY - 2023

I've sticky deals and regular deals. Regular deals are posted below which are offered just one time. Sticky deals have separate section of their own, as they refer to deals which are offered multiple times a year.

 

 

2023: 

 


 

11/21/2023: AT&T Fiber Internet plans with $350 in Visa Gift cards

Look in "internet services" under services section for details of the offer: internet service

 


 

11/21/2023: WeBull Brokerage Bonus Offer of up to $18K for IRA transfer => expires 19th Dec, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

11/14/2023: Ebay 5% off (max $50 discount) with code: TAKE5BOFA => expires 12/31/2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: stores

 


 

11/05/2023: Capital One - $1500 bonus for $100K+ in deposit in Savings account (nationwide) => expires Dec 6, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

11/05/2023: CIBC - $500 bonus for $50K+ in deposit in Savings account (nationwide) => expires Dec 19, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

11/01/2023: Fidelity Starter Pack + Fidelity Bloom Offer of $230  - expires Dec 11, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

10/30/2023: Taco Bell - Free Doritos locos Tacos in app => expires Nov 5, 2023

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

 


 

10/28/2023: Robinhood (RH) Brokerage Offer of 1% bonus on total assets transferred  (3% bonus on IRA transfers) - expires Dec 8, 2023 expires Apr 30, 2024

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

10/20/2023: TastyTrade (previously known as TastyWorks) Brokerage Bonus Offer of $2K for $100K+  - expires Mar 31, 2024

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

10/20/2023: Chime - $245 in SwagBucks for $200+ in direct deposit within 30 days (nationwide) => expires Oct 31, 2023 (extended to Nov 30, 2023)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

10/15/2023: WeBull Brokerage Bonus Offer of $2400 - $8000 for depositing $100K+ in securities and/or cash => expires 30th Oct, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

10/11/2023: Dominos Offer - 1 Free Medium Pizza with online order of $7.99 or more (incl Tax) => expires 02/11/2024

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

 


 

10/10/2023: Dell Inspiron Laptop for $308 (possibly $208 with 2 Amex cards): 

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

 


 

10/10/2023: Target : Free 10 Progresso Canned soup + $8 money maker=> expires on 10/31/2023

Look in "food/grocery" section for details of the offer: food/grocery

 


 

10/03/2023: National Taco Day deals - Oct 4 only

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

 


 

10/01/2023: M1 Finance Brokerage Bonus Offer of $250-$15000 for transferring stocks - expires Nov 15, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

10/01/2023: Wells Fargo - $325 for $1K+ in direct deposit within 90 days (nationwide) => expires Nov 13, 2023 (extended to Jan 16, 2024)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

09/27/23: Olive Garden - Unlimited Pasta for $14 - limited time:

Look in "restaurant" under food section for details of the offer: restaurants

 


 

09/15/2023: American Express - $250 bonus for $500+ in direct deposit by Dec 10, 2023 (nationwide for Amex Credit card members only) => expires Oct 31, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

08/09/2023: Taco Bell - Free Doritos locos Tacos every Tuesday from 08/15 - 09/05:

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

 


 

08/01/2023: Costco: 1 year membership for $60 (includes $45 Costco eGC + $40 off $250+ online purchase) => expiry unknown

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: stores

 


 

06/01/2023: Mobil1 Oil Rebate: $6 to $10 per 5 quart oil, Limit 2 per household. Available at multiple stores for various prices => Runs from 3 months from 06/01/2022 to 08/31/2022

Look in "gasoline/oil deals" under Auto section for details of the offer: gasoline/oil deals

 


 

05/27/2023: Southwest $500 GC for $430 on costco.com : expires 05/28/2023 

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

 


 

05/26/2023: ebay - Refurbished Eufy RoboVac G32 Pro for $60 (with 2 yr warranty)

Look in shopping section for details of the offer: homeowner items

 


 

05/01/2023: UMB checking account $400 offer (only valid in select states). =>  expires Sept 30, 2023 (extended to Nov 30, 2023)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

04/14/2023: Sam's Club : Free Chloe's Frozen pop 12 ct box => expires after 1st 5000 redemptions

Look in "food/grocery" section for details of the offer: food/grocery

 


 

04/12/2023: Cheap ticket from USA to India 

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

 


 

04/02/2023: P&G - $15 rebate on $50+ for P&G selected items bought from any store: valid 04/02/23 to 06/30/23

Look in "stores" under shopping section for details of the offer: stores

 


 

03/31/2023: PNC - $400 bonus for direct deposit (nationwide ??) => expires June 30, 2023 (extended to August 31, 2023) (extended to Oct 31, 2023) extended until 01/02/2024

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

03/17/2023: TBK - $600 bonus for direct deposit + other activities (only in selected states) => expires May 27, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

03/14/2023: Southwest: 20% Off Points Bookings With Promo Code SAVE20NOW => expires 03/16/2023

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

 


 

03/10/23: Groupon Gift Card Offer - Buy Various GC on discount (expiry - unknown):

Look in gift card section for details of the offer: gift cards

 


 

03/03/2023: Southwest $500 GC for $430 on costco.com : expires 03/05/2023

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

 


 

03/03/2023: US Bank - $600 for $10K+ in direct deposit in 3 months(only in selected states) => expires Apr 11, 2023 

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

03/01/2023: Pennzoil Oil Rebate: $20 reabte for 10 quart synthetic oil => Runs from March 1, 2023 - September 30, 2023

Look in "gasoline/oil deals" under Auto section for details of the offer: gasoline/oil deals

 


 

02/05/2023: Amazon - 1 TB Crucial MX500 SSD for $62, 2TB for $117

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

 


 

02/01/2023: Free Hard Disk Monitoring Software for download - expires Feb 28, 2023

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

 


 

01/25/2023: Truist - $400 for $1K+ in direct deposit (only in selected states) => expires Apr 14, 2023, extended to July 25, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

01/19/2023: Dell - 27 inch 1080P gaming monitor for $200 + Free $125 Dell Promo GC - expiry unknown

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

 


 

01/16/2023: Walgreens - Multiple items for cheap at Walgreens for week of 01/15/23 to 01/21/23

Look in "Personal care & Apparel" under shopping section for details of the offer: Personal Care & Apparel

 


 

01/13/2023: Chase Checking + Savings Account $900 offer => Expires Apr 19, 2023 Expires Jan 24, 2024 Expires Apr 17, 2024

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

01/09/2023: Walgreens 5X7 magnet photo for $1 - Code 5x7MAG (expires 01/10/2023)

Look in "photo" under shopping section for details of the offer: photo

 


 

01/07/2023: Lowes (Select stores only) - 65W/90W LED bulbs for ~$0.20 to $0.30 per bulb => on clearance

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

 


 

01/05/2023: Public Brokerage Bonus Offer of $600 for depositing $100K+ => continuation from 2022

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


 

01/01/2023: P&G - $15 rebate on $50+ for P&G selected items bought from any store: valid 01/01/23 to 04/01/23

Look in "stores" under shopping section for details of the offer: stores

 


 

01/01/2023: Dominos Offer - $3 Tip for carryout order of $5 or more (incl Tax) => expires 03/26/2023

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

 


 

12/30/2022: M1 Finance Brokerage Bonus Offer of $250-$10000 for transferring stocks - expires Feb 28, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

 


Deals 2020:

Here are the archived deals from 2020. For most recent deals goto DEALS

 

2020:

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/25/2020: Walgreens cheap toothpaste offer from 27 Dec:

Every year, walgreens/CVS offer free or cheap toothpaste razor around Thanksgiving/Christmas. This year walgreens is offering a couple of items for cheap as toothpaste, razors, body wash, detergent, etc.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14727830-walgreens-free-crest-0-12-colgate-more-starting-dec-27

one such deal is for shaving cream. You get $4.50 for 2 shaving gels and get $4 in walgreens cash. You have 1 year to use your walgreens cash, before they expire.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14732000-2-count-7-oz-gillette-series-shave-gel-4-walgreens-rewards-4-25-free-store-pickup

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/14/2020: McDonalds Holiday deal from Dec 14 - Dec 24:

One free item each day with any purchase of $1+.  You need a McDonald App though. On Dec 24th, you can get free item w/o needing to purchase anything else. My kids like the apple pie and some other pie that they sell for a dollar. Or you can buy McCafe for $2.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14685083-mcdonald-s-daily-holiday-deals-free-any-size-hot-or-iced-coffee-w-minimum-1-purchase-via-mcdonald-s-app

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/14/2020: Free $10Walgreens GC with purchase of $30 GC for Dominos pizza: expires 12/19/2020

This is a yearly sale at Walgreens that has been going on for the last couple of years around Christmas/Thanksgiving. They offer $10 Walgreens GC free with purchase of select GC during Christmas holidays. This year they have so far offered $10 free walgreens GC with purchase of 2 Dominos GC. The lowest denomination Dominos GC that you can buy at walgreens is $15, so effectively you get $10 off (or 33% discount on Dominos GC). I always consider Pharmacy GC at par value, since youcan use pharmacy GC (as CVS, Walgreens) to pay for prescriptions.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14700779-10-walgreens-gift-card-free-when-you-buy-2-domino-s-15-each-gift-cards-in-store-only-30

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/10/2020: $300 Visa Gift card for $291:

This is a money maker of $9. You can use the Visa Gift card to pay doctor's bills, insurance, utilities, etc (don't use it to buy expensive stuff online, as it won't give you any protection that credit cards provide)

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/officedepot-com-gcm-save-15-instantly-on-300-visa-giftcard-2/

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/10/2020: BBVA select credit card with $1000 sign on bonus:

This is one of the best sign on bonus. See in "credit cards" section: credit cards

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/04/2020:  $200 Visa GC Offer at Lowe's:

Lowe's is selling $200 Visa gift card with $15 free Lowes egiftcard. You have to buy $200 Visa GC in Lowes store, and then get get $15 Lowes GC by going to a website as mentioned in link below. Not a great offer, as you pay about $200+$7=$207 for visa GC and get $200 Visa GC+ $15 GC. That implies that you get $15 Lowes GC for $7 effectively. Since Lowes GC go on sale for 20% off, you are getting about $5 Lowes GC for free. Not worth for me, but if you have a chase offer, it might save you few more bucks.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/lowes-purchase-200-visa-giftcard-get-15-visa-giftcard-limit-2-stack-with-10-chase-offer/

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/28/2020: Bio Bidet from amazon for $25:

This Bio Bidet is on sale for a pretty good price. It has dual nozzle spray. Cheapest ones go for $20, so $25 for a high rated bidet isn't bad.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14635759-bio-bidet-slimedge-dual-nozzle-toilet-attachment-25-free-shipping

Direct link is here:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CGVBZGL

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/25/2020: 15 piece PC tool kit for ~$15:

If you have to do any work on PC (i.e opening it, unscrewing parts etc), this is a good tool kit to have. I bought something similar to this for free about 10 years ago from Rosewell and it's still working great. This is little expensive compared to the free one, but considering all the free items with it (4 items in total), might be worth it. It's free shipping

https://slickdeals.net/f/14611366-15-piece-rosewill-tool-kit-rtk-015-computer-tool-kit-10oz-rosewill-compressed-gas-duster-rosewill-anti-static-wrist-strap-band-for-12-49-fsss

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/22/2020: 4K projector for $1000:

Finally a 4K projector for < $1000. Good deal, avialable from both Adorama and B&H Photo Video.  Both of these are reputable merchants, so can't go wrong with any of them. If you have american express Credit card, they have $25 credit for spending $250+ at adorama, so you may want to buy from Adorama to get extra $25 off.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14558183-benq-tk800m-3000-lumens-4k-uhd-home-theater-projector-with-hdr-and-hlg-999-free-shipping

 


 

11/20/2020: Krispy Kreme $25 egiftcard for $20:

UPDATE: 05/01/2021: Offer still ongoing on groupon. Also, chase cards or other credit cards were giving 10% back on groupon (see under offers in your credit card website), so use those cards to maximize the deal.

Groupon has Krispy Kreme $25 egiftcard for $20. Using a cashback website will earn you some cashback too (topcashback and ebates have 10% cashback on this, as it's a local deal). I'm not a fan of giftcards, but Krispy Kreme ones are safer, since they can be used in store only?, and hackers don't target these. Krispy Kreme has some of the best donuts that I've eaten. My kids love it too. They usually have promotion for "get 1 dozen glazed donuts free when you buy a dozen". Since their regular price is $12/dozen, you get 24 donuts for $12 or $0.50/donut. With 20% giftcard, you are paying $0.40 for each donut, which is the cheapest donut you can find anywhere (including walmart). Any groupon coupons don't apply on giftcards.

https://www.groupon.com/deals/krispy-kreme-e-gift-card

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/19/2020: Paypal Offer for $25:

If you have a paypal account, they have a promotion going where if you if you make 3 transactions of  $35+ each at participating merchants, they give you $25 credit. One of this is walmart.com. Just just buy $35+ physical GC on walmart.com in 3 separate transaction, and choose "paypal checkout" instead of your credit card. For "paypal checkout" to show up, in step 3 of "place order", click edit to change your credit card, then click "more", and it will show you "paypal checkout" option. Payapl offers are hit or miss. If you don't get the credit, there is no use calling customer service as they won't even know about the offer and don't have any way of verifying it. So, at your own risk 

https://slickdeals.net/f/14570765-get-25-cashback-for-your-holiday-shopping

UPDATE (12/15/2020): Paypal, as usual, didn't pay the bonus to anyone. I got a coupon for $25 after emailing them. If you don't email them, you will get nothing. There's no customer service number to call. See in comments section in above link, on how to write the email.

 


 

11/18/2020: American Express Offer for $20 on $300 Amex GC: (expiry: unknown, usually amex offers remain there for a while, until enough people have signed up).

UPDATE 05/01/2021: people are still getting this offer on their credit cards.

On your amex credit card, you may see an offer to get $20 in credit, for purchasing $300 in Amex GC. Buy an egift card. You can get the purchase fee waived by applying code: AXP1220HP. This is free $20, since you can use the virtual Amex card most of the places online (i.e pay bills for your internet, phone, utilities, doctor, etc)

 https://slickdeals.net/f/14559713-amex-offers-spend-300-at-amexgiftcard-com-receive-20-credit-valid-for-select-cardholders

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/18/2020: Subway Offer - BOGO (expires 11/22/2020):

https://slickdeals.net/f/14567279-subway-restaurant-any-subway-footlong-b1g1-free-w-qr-coupon

 buy 1 get 1 free. So, 2 foot long veggie subway with veggie patties for $7 (or veggie delite without a veggie patty for $6). You can also get 2 free cookie by submitting a review on link provided on your receipt (even though it's for next purchase, they will allow on same purchase, atleast mine does :)

 


 

11/17/2020: All Restaurant/Fast food deals:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14460488-top-restaurant-fast-food-deals-pizzahut-domino-s-papa-john-s-coupons-thanksgiving-dinners-roundup

Someone took the effort to put all the coupons ann deals available on a lot of fast food places.

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/17/2020: 5 free face masks from American Express:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14557976-5-free-masks-from-american-express

Do not create a new account. Just use guest checout, and provide any name for your company, and your home shipping address. You don't need to be an amex card holder. Anyone can get a set of 5 masks for free.

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/14/2020: Capital one bank 360 checking account $400 offer => Expires Jan 26, 2021

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/11/2020: Subway Offer - BTGO (expiry unknown):

https://www.subway.com/en-us

 buy 2 get 1 free. You see a banner as pop up, there's no promo code. You add 3 footlong, and it should deduct the price of 1 at checkout. If it doesn't show, that means that store is not participating in the offer, so try another store. A decent deal, although not as good as BOGO offer

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/11/2020: Philips Toothbrush for $11 at Kohls:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14536622-kohls-cardholders-philips-sonicare-series-2-plaque-control-rechargeable-toothbrush-11-after-rebate-fres-store-pickup

Philips sonicare rechargeable toothbrush almost always goes on sale for $10 or so at Kohls around BF. This is a good deal as the cheapest replacement head for this sells for $5 or more. So, better to buy a new toothbrush every year and keep your teeth clean.

 


 

11/02/2020: Amazon Panel giving $10/month for surveys: (still LIVE as of 05/01/2021)

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/amazon-shopper-panel-earn-10-per-month-for-uploading-receipts-completing-surveys/

Go to panel.amazon.com in your browser, or download the app "amazon shopper panel" directly on phone. You will be on waitlist initially. People are reporting they get in within a week or so. If you do get in, you have to upload 10 receipts every month to get $10 for that month. Even if the offer ends, it's good to cash in while you can.

UPDATE 05/01/2021: I've already gotten $10/month for 6 straight months now, so the deal is still ongoing.  This is the easiest $10 that you can make every month.


 

EXPIRED: 11/02/2020: Dollar General offer for Hot Wheel Toy: BOGO

BOGO for Hot wheels car (around 50 cents each), Valid 5th Nov to 7th Nov.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14495273-bogo-hot-wheels-and-matchbox-cars-at-dollar-general-11-5-11-7

If you have kids (especially boys), you can't get a better deal, as the lowest Hot wheels cars you can buy at any store in USA is for $0.75 (that too on sale). DG has this deal may be once or twice a year, so stock up for a year. Not sure if $5 off $25 coupon also applies. That will make it even sweeter.

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/01/2020: BestBuy Tripod offer for $10:

camera tripod for $10:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14483195-best-buy-sunpak-platinumplus-5858d-58-tripod-black-9-99-store-pick-up-9-99

Whenever there's a tripod on sale for $10, it will go on "deals" section here. Why? Because a tripod lasts for a year, no matter how expensive you buy. So, for $10, use it and throw it after it breaks to buy a new one !!

 


 

EXPIRED: 10/30/2020: HSBC offer: $180 credit for HSBC premier checking account or HSBC credit card holders.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/targeted-hsbc-earn-up-to-180-for-existing-checking-customers/

For those who applied for HSBC premier checking earlier for $720 in bonus, can get an additional $30/month for 6 months by meeting requirements above. Some people got email, while some had banner on their online account. There's nothing to sign up or anything for confirmation. It's automatic. As long as you meet the requirements, you get the monthly bonus. I believe it's for everyone who has premier checking account, since the FAQ says that anyone meeting requirements will get bonus. I've attached a screenshot from my account. The banner doesn't appear all the time and is random.

 This is the link with offer details: https://www.us.hsbc.com/checking-accounts/campaigns/premier180/

This is a screenshot of the link, incase the link stops working: hsbc_mc_offer_detail.png

 


 

EXPIRED: 10/21/2020: Skyone bank checking/savings $700 offer

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/skyone-200-checking-700-savings-bonus/

This is one of the best offers out there to get $700 + $25 Amazon gift card. This was the best bonus offer after a long dry spell of 6 months. Unfortunately the offer expired in just a couple of days.

 


 

EXPIRED: 10/21/2020: Taco Bell Offer: Free Nacho

Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 10/28/2020 (wed):

https://slickdeals.net/f/14453675-taco-bell-steal-a-base-free-doritos-taco-locos-on-10-28

 


 

EXPIRED: 10/16/2020: chipotle "BOGO" offer:

You  buy one at full price, and get one for free, so basically 2 for the price of one on 10/31/2020 (sat):

https://chipotle.com/boorito

This promotion from chipotle of "buy 1 get 1 free" comes every couple of months in some way or other. This time it's as halloween special, and you will need to order digitally (i.e order thru chipotle.com or thru their app). You have to text them some "marketing code" from their social media site to a number noted on the link above. This has to be done between 29th and 31st of October, and then they send you a code for redemption for any order placed on 31st Oct only. I still need to find out what the "marketing code" is.

 


 

EXPIRED: 09/06/2020: Microcenter Offer for Free USB Flash drive and SD card:

You need to provide an email address, and need to show the barcode that you receive in email. Valid until Sept 15, 2020

https://slickdeals.net/f/14281367-microcenter-in-store-coupon-32gb-micro-center-usb-3-0-flash-drive-microsd-card-free

 


 

EXPIRED: 06/01/2020: HSBC Offer for $720 signon bonus:

HSBC checking account offer for $700 with direct deposit totaling $5K/per month for 6 consecutive months. Open the one with the $700 offer (3% cash back) as $475 offer (Exclusive Welcome Deposit offer) gives you much less with almost same requirements. $700 offer gives you 3% on your direct deposit amount for 6 months. You can move the cash from checking to any other savings account which gives you higher interest rate, as the bonus doesn't require you to keep that money in HSBC account.

https://www.us.hsbc.com/checking-accounts/campaigns/premier-checking

There's also a slickdeals offer for getting $125 thru paypal. Might as well as take advantage of this, while you are opening the checking account, so that you can move move any money in checking account to this savings a/c to get 1% interest. This $125 is non taxable as it's not interest, and not offered by hsbc. So, total bonus would be $825 minus tax, not too bad in this non existent interest rate environment.

https://slickdeals.net/f/13983881-hsbc-direct-savings-account-earn-1-30-apy-extra-125-sd-bonus-member-fdic

Both offers end by Jun 30, 2020.

 


 

EXPIRED: 05/05/2020: SubwayOffer: BOGO

buy 1 get 1 free. So, 2 foot long veggie subway with veggie patties for $7 (or veggie delite without a veggie patty for $6). Expiry not mentioned (still valid as of 05/29/2020). You can also get 2 free cookie by submitting a review on link provided on your recipt (even though it's for next purchase, they will allow on same purchase, atleast mine does :)

https://slickdeals.net/f/14029208-subway-buy-one-get-one-free-footlong-app-orders-or-online

 


 

EXPIRED: 04/28/2020: Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 04/28/2020:

same as earlier deals posted below.

 


 

EXPIRED: 04/21//2020: Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 04/21/2020:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13992104-taco-bell-restaurant-doritos-locos-taco-free-drive-thru-orders-only-valid-4-21-20

Original nacho flavor, as well as flaming hot flavor, both valid for this promo. You can always substitute with beans to make it vegetarian. These normally cost $2. For party of 4, savings of $8 at a minimum, depending on how many times you can circle around the drive thru.

 


 

EXPIRED: 04/17/2020: Wells Fargo Bank Offer for $400:

$400 bonus with direct deposit

https://bonusoffer.wf.com/bonusoffer

pretty simple requirements. Make Direct deposit (thru your emplyer) of $4K or more in total in 3 months. You don't need to keep all of that money in wells fargo account. You can take out anything over $1500 ($1500 is needed to avoid the fees. But if you have direct deposit, that you don't even need that $1500 in there as there's no monthly fees for accounts having direct deposit).

 


 

EXPIRED: 04/08/2020: CIT Bank Offer for $300:

CIT Savings account with $150 or $300 bonus + 1.75% APY (nationwide): updated 04/23/2020 1.55% APY. updated 05/14/2020: 1.45% updated 05/30/2020: 1.25%. The way rate is going down, it may be below 1% in next few days.

https://cit.com/cit-bank/savings-builder-account-bonus-spring

None of the websites show bonus anymore. Offer still valid though. When opening account, make sure the documents state this $150/$300 bonus, and save that document in your personal computer just in case.

The bonus implies 0.6% extra APY assuming you keep $50K for a year. So, even if rates go down to 0.5%, you will still get at least 1% APY for a year, not too bad for 2020. Looks like in order to get 1.75% for all of your deposit, you need to do a monthly deposit of $100, else you get only 1.15% for your balance under $25K, and 1.75% for balance over $25K. Also their rates look consistent based on rate history, however that's changed in 2020 (i.e didn't use to be a bait and switch company, which reduces the rates immediately after getting new customers, but 2020 they are going all in). Keep $50K for about 4 months to be guaranteed a bonus.

https://www.depositaccounts.com/banks/cit-bank.html#rates

 


 

EXPIRED: 03/30/2020:Taco Bell Offer for free Nacho:

Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 03/31/2020:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13944521-taco-bell-free-nacho-cheese-doritos-locos-tacos-on-tuesday-3-31-20-drive-thru-only

Free for drive thru. Normally costs $2. My kids love it. For party of 4, savings of $8 at a minimum, depending on how many times you can circle around the drive thru.

 


 

EXPIRED: 12/25/2019: MSI Laptop offer for $549:

17.3" MSI Laptop for $549 or less:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13620961-msi-gf75-17-3-gaming-laptop-1080p-i5-9300h-8gb-ddr4-256gb-nvme-gtx1650-4gb-549-after-100-rebate-free-s-h

You get $100 rebate card, and can use $25 off $250 deal from american express (if you have it). With tax laptop will be ~$550, which is the lowest price for this MSI 17.3 inch laptop. In fact, it's the best laptop deal for 17 inch laptop.

 


 

EXPIRED: 11/23/2019: 70 inch BestBuy TV offer $550:

70" Samsung TV for $550:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13610116-my-best-buy-member-access-samsung-70-class-led-6-series-2160p-smart-4k-uhd-tv-with-hdr-un70nu6070fxza-best-buy-550

Best price for Samsung TV for > 65". Samsung 65" TV go for $500, 75" go for $700, so this is good bang for buck. Would like to get 75" samsung for this price, may be 2020 black friday, if you can wait a year.

 


 

 

New York

Nothing lures more than going to New York, the world's most busy city.

Passes:

Buy a pass if you are new to New york city and plan to spend a few days there. These are top passes for New York. All 3 Big players GoCity, Sightseeing Pass and CityPass, are selling passes for NewYork, which entails good competition. Prices are as of Dec, 2021.The link lists all of them: https://www.nycgo.com/things-to-do/tours-in-nyc/attraction-passes.

Conclusion:

For a family of 4, it costs $500 (2 adults + 2 kids) for New york city pass (which allows 6 attractions). This is the lowest, but Gocity pass allows 4 more attractions for $750 for family of 4. For $250, it may be worth it, if you want to be more flexible. Other 2 unlimited attraction passes are more expensive and cost around $1000 for a family of 4. There's no way you can cover more than 2 attractions in a day, especially if you are new. However "10 day unlimited pass" is a good option as you can cover atleast 25 attractions in 10 days which would be about $10/attraction per person for a family of 4. Nothing can beat that price !!

 

Top attractions:

You can find a lot of attractions in New york, some free too. I'm going to list the paid ones next (along with regular adult prices for each), and free ones below that. Below are top attractions, along with prices.

Paid attractions:

  • Tallest buildings: There's a race to the top. New York has an extra charm for visiting tallest buildings, and all tall buildings are in the race competing for your dollar.. avg price is $50 to get to the top of the building, and once you are on top, you don't find it worth $50. However once you do it for New York, you don't need to do it in any other city. Just do one of them. My choice would be "Edge at Hudson Yards".
    • Empire State building => $45. This is very overrated.
    • Edge at Hudson Yards => $40. This is my top choice. They have a glass bottom, which is cool to see. Also, they have glass sides, so you can literally see from top to bottom (it's scary too).
    • Top of the Rock Observation deck => $40. Nothing extraordinary here.
    • One world Observatory => $40. Same as everyone else.
  • Museums:
    • Metropolitan Museum of Art => $25. Highly recommended. This is one museum you should do, even if you skip on all other museums.
    • American Museum of Natural History =>  $25
    • Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum => $33. OK as all 3 in one place. Cool to see the inside of submarine.
    • 9/11 Memorial and Museum => $28
    • Guggenheim Museum => Never saw this.
  • Cruises => generally $40. All of the cruises are almost same. Just do one of them.
    • Circle Line NY city landmark cruises => $37
    • Liberty Super Express cruise => $37
    • Harbor Lights cruise
  • Big Bus Hop on, Hop off => $60. This is very overrated. If you go in cold weather (Nov-May), weather is so cold, that you can't sit on the upper deck. If you sit inside, you can't see anything.
  • Statue of Liberty and Ellis+Liberty Island Ferry => $25 for general admission. Generally both the Ferry and Liberty and Ellis island tour tickets are included. This is the most famous tourist attraction. Your trip to New York would be incomplete if you don't get a picture here :) Best to go early morning as the lines are long, and you spend 1/2 a day visiting this place.
  • Madame Tussauds New York => $40. This is worth it as they have multiple floors and lots of Indian celebrities too.

Free Attractions:

  • Downtown: Mahattan Downtown is a place to see so many things. Few free ones are:
    • 9/11 Memorial center
    • Wall Street (Big Bull):
  • Times Square:
  • Macy's:

NYC Transportation:

It's not unusually expensive to rent a car in NYC. However, parking that car is even more expensive than renting it. You may have to pay > $30/day for car parking, and that allows you to get in and out only once. If you plan to stay in suburbs as New Jersey or elsewhere, then renting a car may make sense. However, the amount of time you will spend driving to NYC is just too much. Also, you can't drive into NYC island for 3 reasons. First, it's very high traffic, secondly parking is very expensive and thirdly you have to pay huge toll everytime you drive your vehicle into NYC. I would advise to get a hotel in NYC island itself, even if it's expensive. Off season, you can find a lot of cheap hotels in NYC itself (for $100/night or less). That way you won't need to rent a car, as the system of subway (underground metro trains), buses and intercity trains will carry you from almost anywhere to anywhere in suburbs or city of NYC.

Single rides on Subway trrais is expensive, so get a 7 day or 30 day pass. 7 day pass costs $33/adult and is well worth the cost as single ride is $2.50/ride. So, just 2 rides a day will recover your cost. Also, children under 44 inches tall don't need to pay. I've seen even taller kids (54 inches or so) riding free.

Here's the link for Subeay fares: https://new.mta.info/fares

 

 

Free Attractions:

 

Global stocks:

There are millions of businesses around the world. Most of them are private, meaning it's owned by an individual like us, and the profit/loss is kept  by the individual owner of the business. Such business or companies are called "private". On the other hand, we have some business whose owners decide to take the company public, meaning they allow other people to become part owners of their company. The business owner issues shares of the company, and depending on what % of shares an individual has, that decides the ownership of the company for that person. Such companies are called "public" companies. The term "public" is misleading, since public companies usually implies government companies (i.e public service meaning services provided by government). But here "public" companies mean companies those are listed on stock exchanges.

Stock Exchanges:

There are stock exchanges where buying/selling of stocks happen. A company can list their stock on any exchange, meaning they allow buying/selling of their stocks on that trading exchange. A company can list their stocks on multiple exchanges also, so that there can be more trading. Usually big companies list their stocks in big stock exchanges, so that they can get better price or more visibility/liquidity in their stock. Also, it's considered a prestige symbol for a company to be listed in a big renowned stock exchange.

These are biggest stock exchanges of the world: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stock_exchanges

Stock Market index:

These exchanges also develop an index to track the performance of the companies trading on their exchange. There are lot of stock market index (not only the ones created by the exchanges, but also ones that are created by other companies or individuals). A stock market index is a index of a group of companies, weighted according to preference of that index creator.

For ex, if I wanted to make a index called "hot index", I can include maybe 5 hottest stocks as Tesla, Paypal, Netflix, Nvidia and Apple in the index. Now I assign may be 30% weightage to Apple, 20% each to Tesla and Nvidia and 15% each to Paypal and Netflix. If the price of each of these stocks is $100, then the resulting price of the index for 1 "unit" of index can be chosen to be anything, but that will contain stocks in that proportion. Let's say 1 "unit" of this index is chosen to be $100, then there will $30 worth of apple stock, $20 worth of Tesla, $20 worth of Nvidia, $15 worth of paypal and $15 worth of netflix.

Just because there is a index someone created, doesn't mean that index is traded. Someone will need to create a fund or a security which mimics that index. Then he will need to go to an exchange and ask them to list his "security" over there. Then he can start selling it to people on the stock exchange. If there is enough interest in that index, then people may start buying that security, which mimics that index. For providing this service, the person who is providing this fund, may charge an "expense ratio" which is a percentage of  fees that he/she charges every year from that "fund" itself. So, if a fund charges 1% expense ratio, that means $1 will be automatically deducted from that fund every year (assuming fund's avg market value is $100 for that year), w/o anyone doing anything. This expense ratio is separate from the "transaction fees" that you incur on selling/buying this fund. Transaction fees are levied by the brokerage firm who are providing you the service of buying/selling. Expense ratio is levied by the fund itself.

Usually indexes have weight assigned according to the market cap of the company (i.e a bigger company has a higher weight in index than a smaller company). This works well in practice, since larger companies are not only less volatile, but also more likely to survive in distressed scenarios. If we give every company a equal weight, then the index may become very volatile, and also it doesn't seem fair to give a very small company with $100M revenue the same weight age as a company with $100B in revenue. If the smaller company grows by 10X, then total revenue of 2 companies will only go up by 1%. It makes sense that index should go up by 1% or so, not by 50%, when the total sales of both the companies combined has gone up by only 1%. That's why most indices of world weigh individual companies in the index based on market cap.

Is there an Ideal Index?

What we are doing with all these index funds is trying to find a subset of stocks that will beat the market (i.e basket containing all stocks such as Wilshire 5000 is the market). It's a difficult problem to find an index that will always beat the market in future. People keep on looking at past data and come up with list of companies that have generated the best return, and form an index based on that. But there is no guarantee that such an index will also generate the best return in future. In fact, chances are higher that such an index will generate lower returns in future, since the stocks in such indices have already run their course, and are more likely to under perform the market. So, unless an index can time the market of dropping companies and adding companies at the precise time, they will always just perform at market in long runs. They may over perform the market for some period of time, but then they will underperform for a while, resulting in an avg performance, which is same as that of market.

One other thing that seems intuitive in making an ideal index is to just make an index of 50 largest companies in country, let's say USA. As we'll see later, these 50 largest companies comprise about half of total market cap of USA. So, it's diversified enough. Also, any small cap company that starts growing and become big enough to be in top 50, will be picked up by this index, and will start reaping the benefits of extra returns that these new companies provide. One risk here is that by limiting ourselves to top 50 companies, we miss out on big run up of small companies. Let's say a small company like Tesla which goes public at $1B valuation won't get included in this index until it gets to $100B valuation. So, we miss out on the 100X return that this stock provided (going from $1B to $100B). After Tesla gets included in index when it gets to $100B, we may not get 100X return on this stock anymore. So, a better approach might be to expand the number of companies allowed in our ideal index to have may be 100-200 companies. That way we'll pick up these small companies in our index when they get to may be $50B or more. Or may be we might want to have 400-500 companies so that we pick up these companies when they get to $10B valuation. That way, we'll be able to get most of the return of these small companies. This is precisely what S&P500 is. So, our ideal index started turning into S&P500 index, and we keep on expanding it further, it becomes W5000. If we make our index comprise too many small companies, then the risk is that we may lower our return since majority of these small companies will go bankrupt. But again, since their contribution is so small, it may not affect our index negatively in any big way, but may help our index in big positive way (especially if even 1 of these companies goes 100X in valuation). So, there's an ideal number where you can stop to maximize your index return (Look at historical data for last 20 years, and solve it as a Machine learning line fit problem). But truth be told, you can NEVER beat the market return in any statistically significant way over a long period of time by picking stocks !!

So, the answer, there's no Ideal Index for a long period of time :(

Market Cap by countries:

All the stocks trade on one of the above stock exchanges. There are about 50,000 public companies listed on one or multiple of these stock exchanges. This link shows how global market cap changed over the last 50 years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_stock_market_capitalization

What is the global market cap of all companies in the world?

Global market cap was $1T in 1975 with only 15K companies. It went to $30T in 2000, and was $125T as of 2021 with about 50K companies. From 25% of world GDP in 1975 (GDP=$5T, Market cap=$1.2T) the total stock market cap went to over 135% of GDP in 2021 (GDP=$96T, Market cap=$125T). Below we'll see the market cap of companies from each country, as well as market cap of companies listed on the stock exchanges of these countries. From above link, we do see that the total market cap of all listed companies in just the top 20 countries is about $100T (as of 2020). So, pretty reasonable to guess that total market cap would be about $110T in 2020 (assuming 90% of market cap is captured by top 20 countries). For 2021, stock markets went up by further 15%-20%, so total market cap for all companies worldwide would be at least $125T at the end of 2021.

NOTE: There is lot of disparity online on what is the market cap of all companies worldwide. We can't figure out market cap, by just adding market cap of all listed securities on all the exchanges of the world, as many exchanges allow foreign companies to be listed too, which may result in double counting of these companies when adding up the global market cap. The wikipedia link above seems to be most authentic as it only shows domestic companies listed for each country. However, looking at wiki link above, the total market cap of all companies from top table is way over $100T, while bottom table lists total market cap as $96T for 2020. $96T is definitely incorrect, and should be somewhere around $110T (I haven't added it up yet).

Major Stock exchanges and their index:

Below are the largest stock exchanges for each country as per the market cap of all the companies trading on that stock exchange, as well as some of the popular index created by those exchanges. Market cap includes not only equities, but also bonds, commodities, foreign exchange, or any other things that are traded on that stock exchange (many times there are dedicated stock exchanges for trading commodities, futures, etc. i.e London Metal Exchange for trading options on metals). We will have to subtract out other market caps from below market cap to get "equity" only market cap, but that's hard to do. So, we'll just live with below market cap reported, assuming 70%-80% of that is due to "equity" market cap. USA has the largest equity market cap at $40T-$50T, with China and Europe coming in at $15T each.

USA: Total Market cap of domestic companies = $40T (as of Dec 2023)

Stocks listed on US exchanges have total market cap of $40T as of 2020, implying 40% of the world's market cap is due to US domestic companies. USA has 2 stock exchanges, NYSE and Nasdaq. These are also the 2 biggest stock exchange of world, where you can almost find any well capitalized stock to trade. It's considered a symbol of pride for a company to be listed on any of these 2 stock exchanges. There are about 5000 domestic public companies in USA (as of mid 2022). Most of them trade on one of these 2 US stock exchanges (but not both). US stock exchange also allow trading of many international stocks, which are public companies in some other countries (1500 such foreign companies are listed on these 2 stock exchanges). Likewise, US stocks trade on other stock exchanges of the world too.

  • NYSE: NYSE or New York Stock Exchange is the oldest exchange (formed in 1792, but got it's NYSE name in 1817), and has stringent requirements for listing. It has about 2500 companies listed with market cap of $23T ( as of Jan, 2018). About 2000 of these are domestic companies, while remaining 500 are foreign companies from 45 different countries (as of mid 2022).
  • NASDAQ: Nasdaq exchange on the other hand is a much newer exchange formed in 1971. It's an electronic exchange, and listing requirements are not as stringent as NYSE, so most small growing companies list on Nasdaq. It has about 4000 listings with total market cap of over $11T (as of Jan 2018). About 3000 of these are domestic companies, while remaining 1000 are foreign companies (as of mid 2022).
    • NOTE: Nasdaq inc is the company that owns Nasdaq exchange, that is itself listed on Nasdaq exchange. It's ticker symbol is NDAQ and it makes money from listing all these companies on it's stock exchange. It's essential to differentiate b/w Nasdaq Inc and Nasdaq exchange, they are not the same.

This is a chart from 2022 showing market cap/number of companies for both exchanges: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1277216/nyse-nasdaq-comparison-number-listed-companies/

As of Nov, 2021, NYSE had total market cap of $28T, while Nasdaq was $24T due to rapid rise in stock price of Tech companies.Tech stocks have since then cratered, but the total valuation of these companies is still mind boggling at $40T as of the end of 2022. To get US market cap, we have to subtract these foreign companies, which Wilshire 5000 index does (It lists only domestic companies,find link FIXME??)

Major indices in USA: (we'll look at these US indices in detail in other section)

  • S&P500 (Standard and Poor's 500): This is the most widely used index which has top 500 companies from both NYSE and Nasdaq. It incorporates all sectors of market, and gives a weighted sum to the companies based on their market cap. The S&P 500 represents about 80% of the total value of US stock markets.
  • DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average): This has top 30 blue chip (mega cap) companies, and the index aims to be representative of America’s economy. As a result, industries tend to be represented proportionally. However, the biggest drawback is that it's constituents are weighted based on stock price and not based on market cap. This can really distort the real picture, as stock price has nothing to do with total market value of the company (i.e a company with lower stock price may have much higher market cap than another company with much higher stock price). So, even smaller companies may have big influence on the index.
  • Nasdaq 100: This has 100 of the largest technology companies listed on the Nasdaq exchange. The weights of the constituents in the index is based on the companies market capitalizations, but it's largely tech stocks here. It's very volatile by nature, but has delivered the best return since it's inception.

China:

Stocks listed on Chinese exchanges have total market cap of $14T as of 2020, which makes them the second largest, though well behind USA. Reason on why the market cap of all companies listed on chinese exchanges is much lower than those of US exchanges, is primarily due to the fact that chinese exchanges mostly allow domestic companies to be listed on their exchange. They also have a concept of A-shares and B-shares. A-shares are securities issued by domestic companies of China, that trade in local currency yuan Renminbi aka RMB. B-shares are shares issued by Foreign companies that want to list on Chinese exchanges, and they trade in USD. A-shares are for domestic investor, while B-shares are for foreign investors. Any investor can buy both A and B shares, however, it's easier for domestic investors to buy A shares, while it's easier for foreigners to buy B shares. A-shares account for 2/3 of Chinese market cap, while B-shares account for remaining 1/3. So, 2/3 of $14T = $9T, which is close to the market cap of all domestic Chinese companies. Mainland China has 3 stock exchanges: Shanghai Stock exchange, Shenzhen stock exchange and Beijing Stock exchange.

  • SSE: Shanghai stock exchange is the biggest stock exchange of china with market cap of $8T of all listed companies (3rd largest in the world behind NYSE and Nasdaq),
  • SZSE: Shenzhen stock exchange is the seventh largest in the world with market cap of $6T (as of 2021 end).
  • BSE: Beijing stock exchange is the newest exchange which was established in 2021. NEEQ exchange was reformed and transformed into BSE. Primary purpose was to serve small and medium sized enterpries (SME).

 Major indices in China:

  • SSE Composite index: This is the most widely used index used to track performance of Chinese equities. It tracks all 2000 or companies listed on SSE. It's base day is Dec, 1990 and base value is 100. As can be seen, in first 10 years, the index went from 100 to 2000 implying a 20X growth in just 10 years. It reached an all time high of 6000 in 2007, but since then has remained below 4000.
  • CSI 300 (Chinese Securities index 300): This replicates the performance of the top 300 stocks traded on SSE and SZSE. It has two sub-indexes: the CSI 100 and the CSI 200 Index. Over the years, it has been deemed the Chinese counterpart of the S&P500 index and a better gauge of the Chinese stock market than the more traditional SSE Composite index. It's base day is Dec, 2004 and base value is 1000. As can be seen, this index has mostly gone up and given better return than SSE Composite index. Reason are: first it's more diversified, and secondly it's base value is taken at a time, when the market was pretty low.

Europe:

Total market cap of all companies in Europe is about €15T (in currency Euro which is at par with US dollar, i.e 1 USD = 1 Euro) as of Nov, 2021 (no credible source, just an estimation). While every European country has its own stock exchange, there are five major ones that have a combined market capital of over $1 trillion. Two of these are included in the top 10 global stock exchanges - Euronext and London Stock exchange.

  • Euronext N.V: Euronext, also known as European New Exchange Technology (Euronext N.V.), was founded by the merger of European Union (EU) stock exchanges at the turn of the 21st century, following the introduction of the common currency known as Euro. Euronext had a total market cap of $7T as of 2021, and is the 4th largest stock exchange as measured by market cap.
  • LSE: London Stock Exchange has 2 main markets on which companies trade - main market and alternative market. The main market is home to over 1,300 large companies from 60 countries. LSE has a total market cap of about ~$3.5T and is the 10th largest stock exchange.

Major indices in Europe:

  • FTSE-100 (The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index): Also called the “Footsie” or UK-100, it tracks the 100 largest companies listed on LSE, in terms of market capitalization. Top companies in the index are Royal Dutch Shell, Unilever, HSBC, BP, etc. It includes foreign companies too that are based outside of UK.
  • DAX 30 (Deutscher Aktien Index): This index includes 30 of Germany's largest stocks listed on Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE). The DAX represents about 80 percent of the total market value of shares traded on German Stock Exchange. It's price weighted rather than market cap weighted. Major companies are BMW, Volkswagen, Lufthansa, Adidas, Siemens, Merck, etc.
  • STOXX: STOXX is a swiss index provider formed in 1997. It came up with several indices starting in 1998 which became very popular. It's most popular indices are as follows:
    • EURO STOXX 50: This index is made up of fifty of the largest and most liquid stocks in EuroZone countries only (not All of Europe). The index was introduced in 1998. It was retroactively plotted back starting from year 1986, with base value of 1000 assigned to the index for Dec 31, 1991 closing. As of 2021, it's value is ~4000, implying 4X appreciation in 30 years ( => 5% return per year). The total market cap was about €3.6T as of April 2021. This index has 60% market cap of all of Eurozone stock market.
    • STOXX EUROPE 50: Since EURO STOXX 50 was limited to EuroZone countries only, STOXX EUROPE 50 index was designed to capture 50 largest stocks in all of European countries (which includes 18 countries). It's very similar to EURO STOXX 50 and performance is also similar.
    • STOXX EUROPE 600 (STOXX 600 or SXXP): This index contains 600 large, mid and small companies among 17 European countries, covering approximately 90% of the market capitalization of the European stock market (not limited to the EuroZone). The top countries that make up about 70% of the index are UK (composing around 22.3% of the index), France (composing around 16.6% of the index), Switzerland (composing around 14.9% of the index) and Germany (composing around 14.1% of the index). It's base value was taken as 100 as of Dec 1991. It reached an all time high of ~500 in Nov, 2021. The total market cap was about €12T as of April 2021. If we go with STOXX600 capturing 90% of the market, then total Europe Stock market cap would be around $13T, which closely matches with $15T of European Stock market cap.

Japan:

Japan has Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) owned and operated by Japan Exchange group as of 2011. Japan Exchange group also owns 2 other stock exchanges in Japan, and is the only exchange of Japan. Japan Exchange group has market cap of ~$7T and is fifth largest stock exchange.

Major indices in Japan:

  • Nikkei 225: This index is the most popular index outside of US indices. It measures the performance of 225 large, publicly owned companies in Japan from a wide array of industry sectors. It started to be calculated a long time back since 1950. I believe the base value was 100. It was retroactively calculated since 1914 when the value was 20. The index went from 20 in 1915 to 40 in 1945 (annual return of 2%-3%). After the end of world war 2, index went to 100 by 1950 and then to 1000 by 1960 (implying 20% yearly return). By 1975, it reached 4000, and by 1989 it reached 40,000 which was the peak. From then it crashed, and remained close to 10,000 until 2012. By 2021, it manged to get back to 30,000 level.
  • Topix: Topix index tracks all 1700 domestic companies listed on TSE. It's market cap was ¥200T as of 2011 (100 yen = 1 USD, so market cap was ~$2T).

Hong Kong:

Hong Kong Stock Exchange is the 6th largest stock exchange, with a market cap of about $6T (as of 2021).

India:

2 largest stock exchange in India are Bombay stock exchange (BSE) and National Stock exchange (NSE). They have market cap of around $4T each as of 2021. BSE is the oldest exchange which was started in 1875, while NSE is the newer one started in 1992. About 4000 companies trade on the stock exchanges at BSE and NSE. A company can list it's shares on both NSE and BSE and you can buy/sell interchangeably. As of 2020, about 5K firms are listed on BSE and 2K on NSE. Apart from these there are 20 regional Exchanges connected via the Inter-Connected Stock Exchange (ICSE).

Major indices in India:

  • Sensex: This comprises of 30 largest companies traded on BSE. It was created in 1986 by S&P. It comprises of about 45% of BSE market cap. In Dec 2023, Sensex market cap was about $1.7T, while BSE market cap was $4T.
  • Nifty: It's known as Nifty 50 or CNX Nifty. It comprises of 50 largest companies traded on NSE. It was created in 1996. 

Canada:

Toronto:

Australia:

Korea:

Russia:

Brazil:

Latin America: Brazil and Mexico are the only 2 countries relevant here, as they have GDP > $1T and have large population over 100M. Brazil's stock exchange is B3, while Mexico's stock exchange is is

Major indices:

World:

There are couple of world indices that try to mimick