When I had the pleasure of introducing Paul Volcker at a conference, I referred to him as “the man who saved the country.” This was not hyperbole. It is hard to remember the deep trouble we were in, more than 40 years ago, when inflation reached 13% in 1979. Times were terrible. A generation’s life savings, invested mostly in bonds, …
Combining Conventional Investing with a Lifetime Income Guarantee: A Blueprint for Retirement Security
by Thomas L. Totten and Laurence B. Siegel The central problem in achieving retirement security: Longevity risk Why is it so difficult to save for retirement in such a way that the retiree feels financially secure for the rest of his life? Why is so much effort spent on investment optimization, withdrawal rates, and other strategies designed to increase the …
Preparing a Multi-Asset Class Portfolio for Shocks to Economic Growth
by Eugene Podkaminer, Wylie Tollette and Laurence Siegel Many investor portfolios are propelled by assets tied to economic growth. Over the past two decades, increasing emphasis has been placed on reaching for ever higher returns, with the result that portfolios have become even further skewed toward growth assets. Diversification, a powerful force in portfolio construction, has been hobbled by high …
How Paul Volcker Saved Our Country
When I had the pleasure of introducing Paul Volcker at a conference, I referred to him as “the man who saved the country.” This was not hyperbole. It is hard to remember the deep trouble we were in, more than 40 years ago, when inflation reached 13% in 1979. Times were terrible. A generation’s life savings, invested mostly in bonds, …
Clay Christensen: Disruption and Innovation Can Solve Global Poverty
Disrupt. Innovate. If these words echo through your head like a familiar TV show theme song, you’ve been influenced – whether you know it or not – by Clayton Christensen. A Harvard professor, businessman, and guru of disruptive innovation, Christensen has altered our vocabulary, inspired a generation of startup entrepreneurs, and made a bundle on the speaking circuit at $100,000 …