This month marks the 10th anniversary of the opening rounds of the great financial crisis. Though years in the making, it was finally in June 2007, that two Bear Stearns hedge funds created to invest in sub-prime mortgages, collapsed. This triggered an attempt by many banks, such as RBS, to shore up their own capital […]
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What does disruption mean for investing?
June 1, 2017 
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Can a disciplined investment process deal with rapid change? Rigorous analysis of historic numbers seems at odds with disruption and a radically different future. Economic revolution seems to question the very concept of consistent growth. The process of investing may now need to adapt to involve informed guesswork on innovation and adoption of technology. Investors […]
Continue reading The Problems with MiFID
April 4, 2017 0 Comments
Years in planning and one year late, the European Union’s wide-ranging new MiFID II regulation is still going to catch-out much of the industry. Although European, it will impact global asset managers, and may herald change across the industry. No-one yet quite knows how it will work in practice. The aim – to fully and […]
Continue reading 8 years on, has Lehman cut global bank risks?
September 15, 2016 0 Comments
The Great Financial Crisis still casts a shadow in the industry, eight years on. The fear remains that it might not be the main event, but simply advance warning of something bigger. After two decades of accumulated bank leverage and a few years of irresponsible lending, the remedy has mainly been sticking plasters. Regulation has […]
Continue reading What will Brexit do to the UK economy?
June 24, 2016 2 Comments
The challenge for the UK is to move to being a good neighbour with the EU rather than a reluctant tenant. But how bad is Brexit for the British economy and stock market? Already it looks like the Pound has made a lot of the adjustment – a fall that may have been necessary anyway […]
Continue reading History can guide Investors on EU Referendum
June 20, 2016 0 Comments
Seasoned investors know that stockmarket sell-offs eventually offer buying opportunities. Indiscriminate falls in share prices mean bargains are available. But, putting this into practice takes real courage. It is rarely possible to get in at the bottom, so some immediate losses are likely. How can investors make stockmarket volatility pay off? It can be useful […]
Continue reading Why are commodities over-represented in indices?
October 19, 2015 0 Comments
Do investors have an outdate view of commodities? Far from helping to diversify portfolios, or representing a tangible way to benefit from economic growth, commodities have become volatile financial plays. A misguided view of the nature of these assets has resulted in them being over-represented in indices. Indeed, many passive investors may be surprised to […]
Continue reading Risks are growing in big equity and bond funds
April 16, 2015 0 Comments
Money printing and the current stockmarket boom are increasing systemic risk, pushing problems into new areas. Now the questions is; are some asset managers too big to fail? The financial crisis highlighted risks in banks and insurance, but other areas have been overlooked. Finally, regulators are beginning to recognise risks in the investment sector, and […]
Continue reading Will China be sucked into the currency wars?
April 9, 2015 0 Comments
Currencies are fast becoming 2015’s big investment risk. A factor once largely ignored can now make or break performance. Already, sharp moves this year in the Swiss Franc and Euro have hit some funds hard. But, do investors get enough information from managers about the risks being run? Although many funds do not hedge, monthly […]
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Behavioural Edge 
Fund liquidity – the key issues
How should investors view fund liquidity? After an unexpected high-profile fund gating, this risk is now front-of-mind for advisers and clients. More regulation lies ahead, but debate is needed. There is a danger that the wrong lessons will be drawn from recent events. Stockmarket liquidity ebbs and flows, with wider sentiment often exaggerating investor pressure […]
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