Oh, the account was growing long, and Owain's obduracy became ever easier to understand.

Indeed, a 10-year-old who makes just one $2,000 deposit at 8 percent will see the account grow to $138,000 by age 65.

After five years, that account grows to $10,770 before tax.

In 20 years, your account will grow, with compounding, to $34,400.

Ultimately, their pay depends on the amount of assets they manage, so they do have an interest in seeing your account grow.

And they said that at a rate of return of 5.3 percent, an account for an individual could grow to $202,000 over 35 years.

The taxable account would grow to $25,300, after taxes, so the total funds available to spend would be $115,300.

"If you are going to do anything," he said, "wait until the third year" and let the account grow in the meantime.

And because money compounds over time, long-term accounts can grow rapidly.

The account is growing by $3 million, to $15 million, of annual billings.