Spanish engineer gets €150k, seeks investment advice

Receiving €150,000 at once and not knowing what to do with it

A professional collects a 90-day payment from a completed project and finds himself with over €150,000 in his account, mortgage-free, debt-free, and owning a house he doesn't need. The problem isn't earning it: it's that the money starts burning a hole in his pocket. "The cash burns my hands," he summarizes, asking for ideas on where to place it.

The profile is not that of a novice. He defines himself as an old-school software engineer, holding degrees in Systems, a Bachelor's, and Technical Engineering in Telecommunications. He works for insurers and banks migrating legacy systems while integrating artificial intelligence. "I'm not a script kiddie, nor do I design websites," he clarifies. The latest income came from leading a team for three months.

What to do with €150,000 when you already have a home and business

The first response received is the most obvious and one he dismisses himself. A whim car, like a Tesla, is useless to him: he barely uses his current vehicle, takes Uber to Barcelona from Sant Cugat, and his garage can't fit two cars. "Whim and done," he concludes.

He also doesn't want to enter businesses he doesn't master. Opening a bakery, a tobacco shop, or any classic transfer would require time and presence in an area he doesn't know. His own business already runs on his contact network. The idea of buying custom machinery and automation —not typical vending machines— attracts him due to his technical profile, but he sees the flaw: if it goes wrong, you can't get rid of that machinery even by flipping it, plus you have to pay rent for the premises.

Bitcoin, gold, deposits, and the bank calling

Proposals are divided into four blocks. The first, the loudest: cryptocurrencies and gold. He rejects them outright. Of Bitcoin, he says it is speculation for those with few coins wanting to make €20,000 quickly, not investment. Regarding gold, another participant defends buying it little by little so the tax agency (Hacienda) doesn't notice, although admits that once the money enters the account, it doesn't escape attention.

The second block is prudent: high-yield savings account or a three-month deposit while deciding. Here, a useful data point appears. One participant assures that a foreign entity with a branch in Spain paid him for a one-year deposit without being a new client or bringing in new money. He responds that he was already a client and expects a call from his bank manager, whose computer alerts trigger as soon as such an amount comes in: "It has peine several times offering their products."

The third block is fiscal. Saving part for taxes. A six-figure income is not tax-clean money, and forgetting pays with surcharges.

The most repeated advice: split into thirds

The most voted proposal overall is simple and requires no financial knowledge: one third to save or invest, one third to improve work tools, and one third to spend on enjoyment. It fits his case because he acknowledges his garage functions as a workshop and the business is his main asset.

Against this, the option of putting everything into a single unknown asset is dismissed without hesitation. "I know just enough Economics for my job," he admits, preferring not to risk in products he doesn't understand. It's the same logic that leads him to reject custom machinery: he controls engineering, not the market.

Backstage: luck, trolling, and a Lamborghini

Much of the conversation isn't about finance. It's about disbelief. That someone with a six-digit job doesn't remember a pending payment sounds, to many, like fiction. They accuse him of trolling, inventing professions —yesterday military, today engineer— and living a fictitious life. He responds with irony and assumes they've caught him.

The general tone is that of a community that accepts nothing at face value. To those boasting about money, the reply is a Lamborghini and the joke that Spain is a country of show-offs who barely register a few per year. To those asking for serious advice, the answer involves prostitutes, scams, or going all-in red. And in the middle, someone points out the obvious: if you really got paid that and didn't remember, you're lucky.

The matter stays there. No decision made, no product chosen, and a pending call from the branch manager. €150,000 waiting for a destination and a forum that can't agree on whether the problem is real or a character.