Suggestions
Ben Ashby
I analyse, risk manage & fix complex problems.
Ben Ashby is a seasoned finance professional with a diverse educational background. He holds a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) in Finance & Technology from the University of Cambridge, a Master’s Degree in European Economics & Politics from the University of Essex, a Bachelor of Science (BSc) from City, University of London, and a Professional Certificate in Data Science from Harvard University. Ben has held key leadership roles in prestigious organizations, including being a Partner at Good Governance Capital Ltd, Managing Director at JPMorgan Chase & Co., Managing Director at HSBC Global Banking and Markets, Executive Director at J.P. Morgan, and serving in various capacities at Credit Suisse First Boston and HM Revenue & Customs.
Highlights
“If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.” - Mark Twain
Over the years I have been asked by students, interns and amateur investors about how to get a better understanding of what is going on in financial markets when not an active participant.
One of the key questions is: what is worth reading and, more importantly, paying for?
1) Unfortunately, much of the traditional press has failed to keep up with the rise of modern media, there are far better – and cheaper – alternatives in podcast form or on Substack and Twitter.
2) Of the traditional press, only the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg are worth paying for.
3) Unfortunately, a lot of the rest have become increasingly politicised and have decided to inject more opinion in lieu of reporting; this is especially true around Trump & Brexit.
Whether Brexit ultimately proves to be a good thing remains to be seen. It should have become increasingly clear that the EU’s desire for red tape is highly detrimental to Europe’s economic and political health.
4) The increased opinion might be fine if it wasn’t for the fact that some of the ‘takes’ are really, really bad.
I could give you lots of examples of this, but the one below is particularly outstanding.
This was written by a senior journalist in a ‘premier financial publication’ about a headline article that appeared in a competitor, The Times (of London). TBC, the Times article is fine
I don’t know about you, I might forgive the ignorance of taxation, economics and even history if it wasn’t for the complete lack of basic statistical literacy.
#finance #money #investing #economy #riskmanagement #bonds
"My predictions are notably inaccurate" - Robert Caro
So they let me out, and this is what happens...
On the webinar, I explain why:
-
We are heading towards a fiscal crisis in many Western countries.
-
Many ESG-related 'initiatives' will likely be bad investments, especially electric vehicles (sorry, Elon).
-
Achieving Net Zero is likely to be extremely difficult in the face of growing voter pushback. Even worse, we may have underinvested in energy resources - fundamental to the modern economy.
-
And why Emerging Markets may offer better value for longer-term investors (For more details, check out my colleagues at Rayliant Global Advisors Phillip Wool & Jason Hsu posts)
Thanks to my fellow guests Olivia Cooper and Louis Gargour for their insight (and patience!) and the one and only Renato Prieto, CFA, CAIA, for hosting & Evenco International for arranging.
#investing #portfoliomanagement #bonds #rates #economy #esg #economy
