What’s Out There
Experienced investors know that financial markets are cyclical. Unfortunately, people too often put emotional interest ahead of financial prudence. Having worked through the dot.com and real estate bubbles, we’ve seen first hand how reactionary thinking breeds instability and leads to booms and busts. Worse yet, the financial industry plays its own dangerous game. Professionals whose livelihood depends on the generation of commissions are less likely to engage in prudent management. Firms facing this conflict of interest will seek their own benefit at the expense of the client, often herding people into opaque structures or using product sales to churn their clients’ accounts. In this system, there is no arbiter; no accountability. We think there is a better way.