John Weale, chief financial officer of Bermuda-based reinsurer IPC Re.

How do you invest? A mix of stocks, mutual funds and money market instruments, managed locally as well as overseas.

What and when was your first ever investment? A post-office savings account, opened for me by my mother when I was a child (7 or 8 years old). My first equity investment was AIG, through an employee stock purchase plan.

Do you do your own investing? Yes, although since my most recent investments have been in mutual funds, I'm using fund managers' expertise. The trick, of course, is picking the right fund managers.

What was the best (most successful) investment you ever made? AIG stock

What was the worst (least successful) investment you ever made? ITC Deltacom - a tech stock recommended by a broker. I compounded the error by buying more as the price fell (it now trades at nine cents!!).

What was the longest investment you ever made? AIG stock, first bought back in 1985.

What was the shortest investment you ever made? A tech stock IPO, which I can't remember the name of - both the buy & sell were broker-recommended. I held the stock for about six weeks. Generally, I only invest with a long term view.

Biggest missed opportunity? There are always too many of them, in hindsight. Mostly it's a case of never realising the opportunity was there until too late. However, one stock I did actually own has been a real rollercoaster ride - the highs and lows and swings in between over time have been amazing. Sadly, I failed to sell it at its peak when it was trading in the $80 to 90 plus range, just below my target price, for a couple of weeks. Within three weeks of its peak it was back close to my purchase price. It now trades at $2.09.

What would you never invest in? These days, I would never invest in something I didn't understand the fundamentals of. Unfortunately, that wisdom has only been gained through experience.