You can invest sensibly without being a markets expert. Copy trading replicates an experienced investor's positions on your own account, with your own capital, and the trader never touches your funds. This guide walks through the Barbell 2.0 strategy, a multi-asset approach inspired by institutional methods and built to beat the MSCI World with controlled risk.
Disclaimer: Financial investments carry risk, including total loss of capital. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This content is informational and does not constitute investment advice.
Who is behind the strategy
Yannis Mesquida, seven years in commodity trading in Geneva, now focused on multi-asset investing. The aim is to beat the MSCI World with a target of around 10% net a year (after the French flat tax), a controlled risk profile (maximum drawdown around 25%), recovery within roughly 18 months after a big drawdown, and low management fees throughout. The eToro profile is YannisMsq.
The idea: a diversified garden
The approach borrows from how institutional investors think. A simple picture helps: a garden where some plants grow fast (equities) and others survive storms (gold, bonds). It rests on two pillars, with an algorithmic system, including some AI, shifting the balance between them as conditions change.
Pillar 1: the Barbell 2.0 portfolio
A mix designed to balance growth and protection.
| Asset | Role | Characteristic |
|---|---|---|
| Global Equities (MSCI World) | Long-term growth | Historical return ~10%/year |
| Bitcoin (BTC) | High-potential alternative asset | Low correlation during some crises |
| Gold | Safe haven | Protection against inflation and crises |
| US Long-Term Bonds (TLT) | Shock absorber | Counter-cyclical to equities |
The strategy accesses these through CFDs (Contracts for Difference), which open a very broad range of instruments with low fees and good liquidity. A CFD is a derivative, so you replicate an asset's performance rather than owning it directly.
Pillar 2: trend-following strategies (CTA-like)
These algorithms aim to profit from market movement. Momentum rides existing trends, buying what rises and selling what falls, and works best in strongly directional markets in either direction. Mean reversion does the opposite at extremes, buying what has fallen too fast and trimming what has overheated, which works in markets that are going nowhere.
The strategy also uses CTA (Commodity Trading Advisor) and Managed Futures ETFs to catch directional trends across commodities, currencies and rates. DBMF (iMGP DBi Managed Futures Strategy ETF) replicates the major global CTA strategies, alongside trend-following bond and commodity ETFs. The point is that these instruments carry zero or negative correlation to equities during major crises, which is exactly what a Barbell needs.
During the 2022 bond crash, CTA strategies returned +25 to +40%. That is precisely when this part of the portfolio earns its place.
The AI layer adjusts the weight of the two pillars to the market context, which means more flexibility and tighter risk management.
Key metrics
| Indicator | Target | MSCI World (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|
| Target gross return | ~14.5%/year | ~10%/year |
| Net return (after French flat tax) | ~10%/year | ~7%/year |
| Annual volatility | ~13% | ~16% |
| Sharpe Ratio | > 1.3 | ~0.7 |
| Maximum drawdown | -25% | -57% (2008) |
| Recovery duration | < 18 months | 5+ years (2008) |
The Sharpe Ratio measures return per unit of risk. Above 1.3 is considered excellent, and the MSCI World at 0.7 is already a solid benchmark.
Practical conditions
The minimum that makes the diversification and risk management work is around $6,000, with $15,000 or more being the comfortable range, and scheduled contributions from $100 a month are a good habit. The core rule of caution is simple: the amount invested should never exceed 25% of your total financial savings, which keeps a single strategy from dominating your wealth. Plan on at least five years, since a long horizon is what smooths the cycles and lets returns compound.
Historical performance (2014 to 2024)
Simulations show outperformance versus the MSCI World across the period, except in 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2021. The strengths were smaller drawdowns through major crises, notably the COVID crash of 2020, at least 15 months above +8%, and steady resilience. Worth keeping in mind: the four worst months landed between minus 9 and minus 13 percent, and years of underperformance against the index do happen.
The simulations assume a $6,000 starting investment with gains not reinvested. In practice, letting gains compound makes a meaningful difference over the long run.
How the creator is paid
The model is transparent. eToro pays the trader 1.5% a year of the total amount managed, directly, so you pay nothing extra. The trader never has access to your funds and cannot make any withdrawal. eToro simply mirrors the trades and earns through transaction spreads.
Getting started in three steps
First, create your eToro account. Sign-up is quick, with identity verification (a photo ID and proof of address). Create your eToro account with the referral link ($50 USD bonus on sign-up).
Second, deposit in USD. The eToro account is held in dollars, and depositing euros triggers a 1.5% conversion fee worth avoiding. The simplest fix is to convert with a card built for foreign currencies, such as Revolut, Wise or N26, then transfer the dollars across. Other online banks work if they offer conversion, and eToro's own Money account is a slightly pricier fallback. The key move is to convert euros to dollars before transferring, so you skip the 1.5% FX fee.
Third, start copying. Search for the user YannisMsq, click Copy, and answer eToro's short questionnaire on CFDs and derivatives (the user guide helps if you get stuck). Set the amount to allocate, and from there every trade replicates automatically on your account.
Tax
Your eToro account behaves like a standard taxable brokerage account, and gains are subject to your country's capital gains tax. For French residents it counts as a compte-titres ordinaire (CTO), taxed at the 30% flat tax (12.8% income tax plus 17.2% social contributions), and eToro sends documentation each year to ease the declaration. That is why the roughly 14.5% gross target becomes about 10% net after the flat tax, still attractive against most available investments. If you live elsewhere, check your local rules for foreign brokerage accounts.
FAQ
Why eToro rather than another broker? It is well established, with fund protection up to €20,000 in Europe, and its copy trading is the most advanced and transparent on the market. CFDs keep trading fees low.
Can I lose all my capital? Yes. As with any investment, total loss is possible. Diversification and the algorithms aim to reduce that risk, not remove it, which is why you should never put more than 25% of your savings here.
How often should I check? This is long-term trading, so daily checking only adds stress. Looking in when the monthly update is posted on the profile is plenty.
Why Bitcoin? It is the reference crypto asset, with low correlation to traditional markets in some crises, which helps diversification. The position is kept small to control overall volatility.
Do I need a Revolut or Wise card? No, it is strongly recommended but not required. Any bank that offers currency conversion works. What matters is converting to USD before the transfer to avoid eToro's FX fee.
How is this different from an MSCI World ETF? An MSCI World ETF is 100% equities, passively held. Barbell 2.0 is multi-asset (equities, gold, Bitcoin, bonds) and actively steered by algorithms. The goal is a better Sharpe Ratio, more return per unit of risk, with a much smaller maximum drawdown than the pure index.
Copy trading next to other approaches
| Approach | Expertise Required | Time Required | Expected Return | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Savings account | None | Minimal | 3-5%/year | Very low |
| Index ETF (MSCI World) | Low | Low (DCA) | ~7-10%/year | Moderate |
| Copy Trading (Barbell 2.0) | None | Minimal | ~10% net/year | Moderate |
| Active personal trading | High | High | Variable | High |
Copy trading sits in a useful spot: no expertise needed, very little time, an attractive target return, and a professional running the strategy for you.
Next step: read the complete guide for detailed sign-up and tax instructions, then create your eToro account to begin.