I was retained by the trade group, Regional Investment Bankers Association (RIBA), to produce a series of articles about the basics of investing. The articles were written for retail investors who were beginners, and they were published under the by-line of (RIBA) members in their local news and business publication. The program was a successful tool for business development for members, publicity generation for the group and its’ members, and finally as an education tool to bolster RIBA’s non-profit status. The article below is the sixth in the series and offers an overview of mutual fund investing. Such a series, if written today, would need to include a separate article on exchange traded funds, which offer many compelling benefits over mutual funds.