It's been a difficult week for Australian shares, with continued conflict in the Middle East sending the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) tumbling. At the time of writing on Wednesday afternoon, the index is down 1.82% for the day, and down 3.1% since the geopolitical uncertainty kicked off at the weekend.
At times like these, scared investors flock to safe-haven assets or to ASX 200 shares with a proven track record of reliability.
If you need a reminder of the power of investing in the right stock, here's a look at two of the tried and tested ASX 200 stocks that have given some of their investors millionaire status.
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Fortescue Ltd (ASX: FMG)
Fortescue shares have been caught up in the latest sharemarket downturn. At the time of writing, the stock is down 2.48% for the day to $19.10. For the year to date, the ASX 200 shares have dropped 13.82%.
Some investors may be fretting. But if you'd invested $5,000 in Fortescue between July 1999 and May 2003, when the stock was just a tiny 1 cent per share, you'd be sitting on an absolute fortune today.
With a gigantic 190,700% all-time increase, committed investors who contributed $5,000 would have $9.54 million today. It's a smidge below the $10 million mark thanks to this week's decline. Earlier in the week, it would have been well above.
And that doesn't include the income from dividends either. At its latest FY26 half-year result, the miner announced an interim dividend per share of 62 cents.
REA Group Ltd (ASX: REA)
The real estate advertising company's share price suffered a gradual but consistent decline after it appointed a new CEO in late August. And by the end of the year, it had shed 30% of its value. And the declines continued in 2026.
Thankfully, there has been an uptick over the past five days. At the time of writing, the ASX 200 shares are 0.88% higher at $163 a piece.
Like Fortescue, REA Group has been trading on the ASX since 1999 at $1.09 per share. But if you'd waited until August 2001 (when the shares had dropped to just 8 cents each) and invested your $5,000, you'd be looking at a 203,687% increase in value. That translates to $10.18 million today.
Again, this doesn't include any income from dividends. REA Group's latest interim dividend for the FY26 half year is $1.24 per share.
