<prompt> Human: Hiya, so Ive been lurking for a long time but I know enough to know that I know nothing, so I normally dont comment or vote on anything.My question is this: Yesterday I opened up a Roth IRA with my bank, a credit union Ive been a member of all my life. I am a full time student, very early 20s but I also own a small consulting company and a few lucrative websites. This has allowed me to lead a debt-free life despite my full time student expenses, and I have decided that rather than spending my extra money on things I enjoy and travel, it stands to reason that I should be investing as soon as I am able, which I believe is now. So with that background out of the way, everybody on here seems to have a Roth IRA, and I get that tax free withdrawals are a good thing in the long run, but when I saw the interest rate offered by my bank, it was atrocious, at just under 1. I made the deposit necessary to open the account, but I also trade stocks through Robinhood where my consulting knowledge has allowed me to earn a significantly higher return. So this subreddit and many financial advisors all claim that the Roth should be my first step, but all I see is a chunk of assets that I cant use for stocks. What would you do in my position? Should I continue to maximize out the Roth year after year, blindly hopeful that the rates will get better? Because I feel like Ive missed the boat and really found myself in a time where secure investments lose in the long run when compared with inflation.  <response>: The issue is that your bank is probably only offering you a CD as an investment choice. You need to open an IRA with a financial institution that offers better investment options and that gives exposure to the stock market. 