Pay Yourself First: Jade Longano’s Smart Investing Philosophy

On the surface, finance can feel intimidating: spreadsheets, jargon, and men in grey suits. But Jade Longano, CFO of 10X Investments, has a refreshingly simple philosophy: pay yourself first, educate yourself on your EAC, and stay consistent.

This Women’s Month, Jade shares how she built her career in finance, the lessons she’s learned about money, and why she believes more women need to step into investing with confidence.

From Auditing to Fintech

After completing her schooling in Cape Town, she wasn’t sure which path to take, so she embarked on a few different adventures: a gap year in the UK, a finance degree at UCT, and then the accounting route that everyone said would “open doors.” Two weeks at a traditional audit firm was enough to know auditing wasn’t it.

“I realised quickly I didn’t want to spend years doing work that didn’t inspire me.”

So she pivoted. She applied for a few TOPP (Training Outside of Public Practice) articles. She joined Investec, where she rotated through private equity, wealth management, and asset management, even spending time in Sydney. The exposure and experience across the Investec Group were invaluable, but she quickly realised a role in a traditional corporate was not where she would build an impactful career.

That’s when she made the bold move of walking away from a safe job in asset management to join fintech. At JUMO, Jade led the partnerships team and was responsible for developing and executing the commercial strategy. It was here that she learnt how tech could push the bounds of what was possible even in the most remote markets. However, to successfully deliver bold ideas, one needs a disciplined approach.

This journey ultimately led Jade to join 10X as the CFO. A tech-enabled asset management business, chasing bold ideas with a strong management team that delivers exceptional results for all stakeholders and particularly clients.

Working as a Woman in Finance

Finance is still a male-dominated field, but Jade has seen how different cultures shape outcomes. At Ninety One, she gained a solid grounding in capital allocation and investment decision-making, but she was often in the minority in the teams in which she worked.

JUMO offered a different perspective as a fintech startup. A true meritocracy where the best ideas rose to the top, regardless of age or gender. Seeing so many young people and women in leadership roles was both empowering and energising.

Now at 10X, she has found a culture that feels like the best of both worlds: more collaborative, with a strong focus on people and clients.

Her message to women in finance is simple: back yourself. Choose workplaces that value your voice. Build networks with other women who can lift you up. And never let jargon convince you that you don’t belong in the investment conversation. Lastly, a lot of women in the industry end up in client-facing or sales-oriented roles. If you are passionate about investments and want to be in that area, don’t give up until you get there. Be over-prepared in every situation and network within the industry at every opportunity.

The One Rule That Matters: Pay Yourself First

“If you take nothing else from my story, remember this: pay yourself first,” Jade insists. Before bills, shopping, or holidays, she sets aside money for her future. A debit order ensures investing happens automatically. If you can’t afford the minimum right away, save into a money market account until you have enough for a lump-sum transfer.

Her investing philosophy is clear and practical:

• Start small; even R500 a month makes a difference.
• Use investment vehicles that discourage you from withdrawing, such as TFSAs and RAs
• Increase contributions every year.
• Don’t touch the money when markets dip.

“The industry thrives on complexity, but building wealth is about habit, not hype,” she says.

Money Mistakes to Learn From

When asked about money mistakes, Jade is candid: “Panicking during market downturns. In COVID, when markets fell sharply, I withdrew a portion of my investments, the worst thing you can do. The market eventually recovered, and I learned the hard way that the best strategy is often to sit tight.”

That lesson reshaped the way she thinks about investing. For long-term vehicles like retirement annuities (RAs) or tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs), the key is to stay invested and resist the urge to tinker. “Never cash out your pension when leaving a job. Rather, transfer it to a preservation fund so the money keeps working for you. And always maximise your RA contributions to benefit from the tax breaks, it’s free money from the government.”

Her takeaway is simple: discipline beats emotion. Markets will always move up and down, but investors who stay the course end up ahead.

Cut Your Fees Before They Cut Into Your Future

Jade doesn’t mince words about fees. “Every extra percentage point in fees is money you will never see again.”

She urges investors to get clear on their full cost stack: the investment itself, the platform you use, and the advisor fees that often sit quietly in the background. Once you have the full picture, she says it comes down to asking three deceptively simple but powerful questions:

• What am I paying? Don’t just look at the headline percentage. Dig into the Effective Annual Cost (EAC) and see what’s really coming off your returns each year.
• What am I getting? Match the cost against the actual value. Is your fund consistently outperforming? Is your advisor giving tailored guidance or just generic check-ins?
• Could I keep more of my money by switching products or providers? Loyalty is expensive in investing. If the same product or service exists at a lower cost, moving could save you years of contributions in the long run.

Her point is clear: fees aren’t abstract; they’re the difference between retiring comfortably and working longer than you need to.

Jade invests directly to keep costs low but admits there is a time for advice, especially with retirement, tax, and estate planning. “The value of advice is real, but you need to be sure it is worth what you are paying.” Her rule of thumb: run an annual comparison report and check your Effective Annual Cost. If it is above 2%, you are probably adding years to your timeline unnecessarily.

Find Your Why

Every woman needs a reason to start and stick with investing. For Jade, it is her daughter. “My why is giving her the freedom to choose a career she loves without financial pressure, and making sure I am never a burden to her later in life.”

Everyone’s why looks different, depending on where they are in life. For some, it might be putting money aside after having a baby to give them more opportunities in the future. For others, it may be building a safety net, allowing them the freedom to step away from a job that no longer serves them. And for many, it’s the peace of mind that comes from knowing they’ll be able to retire with security and independence at an early enough age to enjoy that retirement.

The number or the product is not what matters most. What matters is having a clear picture of what you are building toward. Smart investing is about starting where you are, even if it is small, and making decisions today that give you freedom tomorrow.