Here’s some useful hints and tips which will help when preparing a csv file of investments to import into the Genovo Investment Library.
CSV file / Not Excel file
Although they look and appear very similar, it is essential that the file you create is saved as a standard csv file and not an excel (.xlsx) file.
File format
The first row of your csv file must contain the field names for the investments you’re uploading. Each subsequent row corresponds to an investment in your Investment Library that you wish to add or update. Each column represents an attribute of the investment. The investment consists of a series of fields that are delimited by commas.
Maximum number of investments
You can only import a maximum of 50 investments into your Investment Library at one time. If you wish to import more than 50 investments you will need to create multiple csv files.
Use of commas in field values
If the content of a field (e.g investment objective) contains a comma, a new line, or a double quote, the whole of the content must be wrapped in double quotes. e.g. "The objective of this investment is to provide growth, income and steady returns over the term of investment."
Use of double quotes
If a field contains a double quote, the double quote must be escaped by preceding it with another double quote e.g. "This investment is the ""gold"" standard in investment planning".
Empty field values will be ignored
You do not need to include an equivalent field in your csv file for all of the fields within the Investment Library. Neither do you need to map all of the fields in your csv file to a field in Genovo. If a field in Genovo is left unmapped it will be ignored.
Multiple mappings
Although unlikely, it is possible to map one field in your csv file to multiple fields in Genovo.
Mandatory fields
The 'Unique Identifier' and 'Investment' fields are mandatory fields, and you must map a field in your csv file to these 2 fields.
The 'Unique Identifier' field is a particularly important field as it is used to match existing investment records on update. In terms of a unique ID, you may wish to use something like the SEDOL number of a fund or apply your own unique ID e.g. Genovo Portfolio 1. Ultimately it doesn’t matter what you use as an ID, provided it’s unique and doesn’t change once it’s been allocated to an investment record.
Other supporting info
Be mindful that csv files downloaded from third party apps such as FE or Morningstar may contain other bits of information at the top, or bottom, of the file e.g. “Charges correct as at 26 November 2019.” This will need to be removed from the csv file before it is uploaded into Genovo otherwise it could be seen by the importer as another investment record.