Global Multi-Asset Investment Strategist, True Insights

Jeroen Blokland

Global Multi-Asset Investment Strategist

Build Well-Diversified Multi-Asset Portfolios

True Insights

Our research helps investors build well-diversified multi-asset portfolios and profit from market developments. In addition, our unique and proven Macro – Sentiment – Valuation (MSV) investment framework ensures a consistent flow of new investment opportunities. Together with our market views, these opportunities will be reflected in our live ETF-based Global Multi-Asset Portfolios.

Cross Asset Strategy

<ul>
<li>This week, we look at the skewed US personal income and spending data, concluding that wage growth must take over quickly to keep spending afloat. </li>
<li>This week, we look at the skewed US personal income and spending data, concluding that wage growth must take over quickly to keep spending afloat. </li>
<li>We discuss the latest developments surrounding Bitcoin and a spot Bitcoin ETF. While approval odds steadily rise, low attention and trading volumes reveal that investors are preoccupied with AI. </li>
</ul>


This week, we look at the skewed US personal income and spending data, concluding that wage growth must take over quickly to keep spending afloat. 
This week, we look at the skewed US personal income and spending data, concluding that wage growth must take over quickly to keep spending afloat. 
We discuss the latest developments surrounding Bitcoin and a spot Bitcoin ETF. While approval odds steadily rise, low attention and trading volumes reveal that investors are preoccupied with AI. 


The Weekly Market Monitor – Spending Pressure, Labor Lull, and Bitcoin Fatigue

<ul>
<li>August and September are the weakest for Equities relative to Treasuries. Staying out of equities during those months would have significantly improved the risk-return profile of a multi-asset portfolio.</li>
<li>September high yield returns are mediocre at best, underpinning that the equity component of the asset class is the return-determining factor most of the time.</li>
<li>September is the only month in which Bitcoin realized a negative return on average. Finally, Gold returns have been solid in September.</li>
</ul>


August and September are the weakest for Equities relative to Treasuries. Staying out of equities during those months would have significantly improved the risk-return profile of a multi-asset portfolio.
September high yield returns are mediocre at best, underpinning that the equity component of the asset class is the return-determining factor most of the time.
September is the only month in which Bitcoin realized a negative return on average. Finally, Gold returns have been solid in September.


Seasonality: September Is a Bad Month for ALL Risky Asset Classes

<ul>
<li>The recent rise in interest rates is leading to a further shift in cross-asset valuation.</li>
<li>The volatility-adjusted yields of equity-related asset classes have become even less attractive than those of bond-related asset classes.</li>
<li>The case for bond investments becomes even stronger when considering that the correlation between equity and bond returns is remarkably high, diminishing diversification benefits.</li>
</ul>


The recent rise in interest rates is leading to a further shift in cross-asset valuation.
The volatility-adjusted yields of equity-related asset classes have become even less attractive than those of bond-related asset classes.
The case for bond investments becomes even stronger when considering that the correlation between equity and bond returns is remarkably high, diminishing diversification benefits.


Risk-Adjusted Yields and High Correlation Make Equities Unattractive!

Research from Water Tower Research, Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research

Research from Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research is a leading equity research firm that provides research on micro, small and mid cap companies.

Water Tower Research was founded by Wall Street veterans after witnessing a fundamental shift in the investment research industry with the result being a declining knowledge base among investors, a lack of awareness and a shrinking pool of fundamental research being conducted on companies across the small-cap and micro-cap spectrum. The same issues are now increasingly occurring in the mid-cap space. This sea change within the investment community is impacting not only the companies themselves but also current shareholders and potential investors. With significantly less active sell-side sponsorship by Wall Street, a substantial information gap has developed between companies and various constituents in the financial community. The net result is fewer channels for insight and information to flow between companies and investors.

Equity Research Firm

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<div><div><div><div><ul style="list-style-type: disc;"><li><p>Global equities slipped this week, with the MSCI World Index down 0.28% and the S&amp;P 500 down 0.26%.</p></li><li><p>The MSCI World and S&amp;P 500 are down 2.85% and 2.65% in August, respectively.</p></li><li><p>After a strong rally from March through July, markets are taking a breather. </p></li></ul></div></div></div></div>

Global equities slipped this week, with the MSCI World Index down 0.28% and the S&amp;P 500 down 0.26%.The MSCI World and S&amp;P 500 are down 2.85% and 2.65% in August, respectively.After a strong rally from March through July, markets are taking a breather. 

The Highlights - Cannabis News for the Week Ending August 11, 2023

Managing Partner, VRS (Valuation & Research Specialists)

VRS (Valuation & Research Specialists)

Managing Partner

Valuation & Research Specialists (VRS) is a boutique financial advisor with more than 17 years of experience in Corporate Valuation and Finance, and a diversified client base including some of the largest Companies in Greece.

Since 2002, VRS has completed more than 200 engagements in the areas of business valuation and financial analysis for more than 100 clients in a wide range of industries.

VRS has been honored to work with small and large private and publicly traded companies in Europe and overseas.

Boutique Financial Advisor

<ul><li>The re-emergence of AI as a topic of hype, caution and investment contains, in equal parts, the re-discovery of a pre-existing technology, but now on steroids, plus all the excitement of the race among the top 5 techs to invest enough in order to dominate the field .</li><li>The 2000 Dot.com boom involved hundreds of IPOs of start-ups, all with the word “internet” in their names, except now the AI boom involves mostly buying up existing startups by the big Techs.</li><li>The re emergence of AI will undoubtedly change a lot of the ways in which data are used and monetized, it will make Google search far more client-friendly and it will step up the capacity of software to program themselves. </li></ul>

The re-emergence of AI as a topic of hype, caution and investment contains, in equal parts, the re-discovery of a pre-existing technology, but now on steroids, plus all the excitement of the race among the top 5 techs to invest enough in order to dominate the field .The 2000 Dot.com boom involved hundreds of IPOs of start-ups, all with the word “internet” in their names, except now the AI boom involves mostly buying up existing startups by the big Techs.The re emergence of AI will undoubtedly change a lot of the ways in which data are used and monetized, it will make Google search far more client-friendly and it will step up the capacity of software to program themselves. 

The “ AI Revolution” : A Cautionary Tale and Its Investment Consequences

United States

The MSCI World Index is a free-float weighted equity index. It was developed with a base value of 100 as of December 31, 1969. MXWO includes developed world markets, and does not include emerging markets. MXWD includes both emerging and developed markets.

MSCI World Index (MXWO INDEX)

The Weekly Market Monitor – Spending Pressure, Labor Lull, and Bitcoin Fatigue

Wage growth vs. excess savings. Will the US labor market start to weaken and cause a recession? Grayscale vs. the SEC and what it means for Bitcoin.

Jeroen Blokland

Seasonality: September Is a Bad Month for ALL Risky Asset Classes

September returns for Equities, High Yield, Corporate Bonds, and Bitcoin tend to be weak, while Treasury and Gold returns are solid.

Jeroen Blokland

Risk-Adjusted Yields and High Correlation Make Equities Unattractive!

Volatility-adjusted yields are much lower for equity-like asset classes than for bond-like asset classes, which does not bode well when correlation...

Jeroen Blokland

The Highlights - Cannabis News for the Week Ending August 11, 2023

Global equities slipped this week, with the MSCI World Index down 0.28% and the S&P 500 down 0.26%. The MSCI World and S&P 500 are down 2.85% and...

Water Tower Research

The “ AI Revolution” : A Cautionary Tale and Its Investment Consequences

The re-emergence of AI as a topic of hype, caution and investment contains, in equal parts, the re-discovery of a pre-existing technology, but now...

VRS (Valuation & Research Specialists)