Compound Interest Explained: How It Builds Wealth and Deepens Debt | RFS 2026 Week 4

Week 4 of Rebel Finance School tackles the single most important force in personal finance: compound interest. Alan and Katie Donegan show you exactly how it works — how it quietly builds wealth when it's working for you, and how it traps people in debt when it's working against them. By the end, you'll: • Understand how compounding works well enough to explain it to someone else • See exactly why even a few years' delay in investing has an outsized cost • See why compounding can either build wealth or deepen debt • Notice why expensive debt does so much damage over time • Understand why time and interest rates matter so much This video is part of the free 10-week Rebel Finance School course. For the accompanying notes, spreadsheets, and bonus material, sign up here: https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/rfs/ Join the Facebook group for friendly support from like-minded people: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rebelfinance 🔗 Links Compound calculator: https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/take-control/compounding-calculator/ Should I pay off my mortgage or invest? https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/investing/should-i-pay-off-my-mortgage-or-invest/ My mortgage/student loan has an interest rate over 6%. What should I do? https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/investing/my-mortgage-is-over-5-what-should-i-do/ USA student loans https://www.choosefi.com/paying-off-student-loans-vs-investing/ UK student loans https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/take-control/student-loans/ Baby FIRE (and other FIRE terms explained) https://rebeldonegans.com/fire-terms-explained/ Just start (the cost of waiting) https://rebeldonegans.com/finance/investing/just/ Week 3 Money mindset - how to shift the beliefs that are holding you back - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IZ6iO3rAz0 Week 3 Money mindset how to get aligned - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ehgIlgWDVs Week 1 Mind the gap - how to increase your gap https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MmGqcHpJrM Salary trap- how to boost you