Free courses
All courses, free and in plain words.
15 short courses on money and investing in real life, one path from what money is to your first written plan. Each lesson takes a few minutes, and every course stays open to you, in any order.
Part 1: The basics
What money is, how banks and the economy work, what inflation does to your savings, and the safety net to build first.
Course 1 · Beginner
What money is: from barter to digital euros
Where money came from, why it works and what it is today: barter and IOUs, coins, paper money, gold, 1971, bank money, the euro, the franc and the digital euro.
Who it is for: For anyone who wants to start at the very beginning and finally understand what money is and why it works. No prior knowledge needed.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 2 · Beginner
How banks work
What really happens to the money in your account, how banks create money, what central banks and interest rates do, who protects your savings, what went wrong in 2008, and what to ask before you sign.
Who it is for: For anyone with a bank account who wants to know what really happens to the money in it, who protects it and what to ask before signing.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 3 · Beginner
The global economy in plain words
Growth, inflation, interest rates, jobs, trade and debt: the big numbers on the evening news, what they mean, and how they reach your wallet.
Who it is for: For anyone who hears about inflation, interest rates and recessions in the news and wants to know what they mean for daily life. No prior knowledge needed.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 4 · Beginner
Wake-up call: what happens to money that sits still
What inflation does to your savings, what not investing really costs, and how to step out of the work-earn-spend loop. Real prices, plain sums, no products.
Who it is for: For anyone with savings in a current or savings account who wants to know what rising prices do to them. No prior knowledge needed.
8 lessons · 55 min · Free
Course 5 · Beginner
Foundations first: safety net, debt and compounding
Before any investing: know where your money goes, build an emergency fund, clear expensive debt, and understand how compounding works for you and against you.
Who it is for: For anyone who wants solid ground before investing: a clear budget, a safety net and no expensive debt. A good first course at any age.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Part 2: How investing works
How markets work, what you can invest in, what index funds are, how to handle risk and how your own mind gets in the way.
Course 6 · Next step
How markets work
Exchanges, buyers and sellers, prices, orders, crashes and recoveries, and why markets around the world move together.
Who it is for: For anyone who has never bought a share and wants to understand what happens on a stock exchange before they put money in.
7 lessons · 49 min · Free
Course 7 · Next step
What you can invest in
Cash, shares, bonds, funds, property, gold and insurance-based savings: what each one is, what it can do for you and what can go wrong.
Who it is for: For anyone with money set aside who wants to see the options side by side before deciding anything.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 8 · Next step
Indexes and index funds
What the DAX, MSCI World and S&P 500 really are, how they are built, and how index funds follow them, at what cost.
Who it is for: For anyone who keeps hearing about index funds and ETFs, and wants to know what is inside them and what they cost before buying one.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 9 · Next step
Risk and diversification
What risk really is, how deep falls can go, how spreading your money helps, and why leverage is a different game.
Who it is for: For anyone who invests or plans to, and wants to know how deep a fall can go and how to spread their money so that one failure does not sink the plan.
7 lessons · 49 min · Free
Course 10 · Next step
Your investor mind
Why our brains trip us up with money, what the research shows, and simple rules that protect you from your worst moments.
Who it is for: For anyone who has ever bought on excitement or sold in a panic, or wants to avoid it, before real money is at stake.
6 lessons · 42 min · Free
Part 3: Going further
Currencies, crypto, pensions and tax, and how to read the news and charts. Take the ones that matter to you.
Course 11 · Going deeper
Currencies and forex
How exchange rates work, why they move, what they do to your money abroad and to your investments, and the plain numbers behind forex trading.
Who it is for: For anyone who travels, works across a border or holds foreign investments, and for anyone tempted by forex trading who wants the honest numbers first.
7 lessons · 49 min · Free
Course 12 · Going deeper
Crypto, explained honestly
What Bitcoin, blockchains and stablecoins really are, how volatile crypto has been, how custody and the EU's MiCA rules work, and where crypto fits in a plan, if at all.
Who it is for: For anyone curious about crypto or under pressure to buy it, who wants to know how it works and what can go wrong. No coin is recommended here.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Course 13 · Next step
Pensions and tax-smart saving
How pensions work in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, how big your gap may be, how tax rules shape your saving, and how to plan the years after work.
Who it is for: For anyone from 35 on who wants to know what their pension will really pay, how large the gap may be, and how tax rules shape their saving.
7 lessons · 49 min · Free
Course 14 · Going deeper
Reading news and charts
How to read headlines, central bank decisions, company results and price charts without being fooled, and when to ignore them.
Who it is for: For anyone who follows the markets in the news and wants to read a headline or a chart without being rushed into anything.
8 lessons · 56 min · Free
Part 4: Your plan
Bring it all together in one simple written plan.
Course 15 · Next step
Your first plan
Bring everything together in one simple written plan: your goals, your money check, your risk comfort, your mix, how to choose a provider, the red flags to check before you sign, and your first 90 days.
Who it is for: For those who have done the first courses, or know the basics, and want to put their own goals and numbers into one simple written plan.
7 lessons · 45 min · Free
What’s inside
- Short videos: About two minutes for each lesson
- Quizzes: Three questions after each lesson
- Calculators: Inflation, compound interest, an emergency fund and fees
- Certificate: For every course you complete
Begin with the first lesson today.
Your free account takes about a minute. Every course stays open to you, in any order.
The full lessons, videos and quizzes open after a free sign-in: your name, email, mobile number and a PIN. No card, no obligation.
General financial education. Hallycon Academy does not manage money, sell investment products or give personal advice. Examples in the lessons promise no return.