Category Archives: Ethics in Investing
A huge loss to the investment world…
John “Jack” Bogle passed away on January 16, 2019. To those who don’t know his name, he is the founder of Vanguard and the person most responsible, by far, for bringing the wisdom of index investing to us all. His … Continue reading
The Scourge of Investment Costs
Several years ago I wrote a paper on the various costs of investing, how controllable they are for investors and how important this issue is to your long term wealth. While I encourage you to read the paper in its … Continue reading
Active vs. Passive Investing
This is the first of two posts on this subject. Here I want to tackle why understanding this debate is not just relevant but crucial to all investors. In the follow-on post I will ask you to rethink whether active … Continue reading
Some Perspective on the Upcoming Fiduciary Rule
On June 9, 2017, the Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule goes into effect. In short, it requires that anyone providing advice to tax-deferred or tax-free retirement accounts for a fee must put the investor’s interests before their own. While the … Continue reading
Calculating advisory fees fairly for both client and advisor
Most investors who have their portfolios managed by “fee-based” investment managers should wish the second quarter of 2012 ended a day earlier. Today, the last day of this quarter, the global equity markets are up over 3%. Since the vast … Continue reading
Vanguard founder Jack Bogle is an icon, but he needs to refine his rant…
I can’t say enough good things about Jack Bogle, who has been THE paragon for prudent and sound investing for the last four decades. He has, to my knowledge, been completely consistent in speaking out about the negative impact of … Continue reading
Judge Rakoff, I salute you!!
I haven’t seen a lot of commendable decision-making over the last few years, but a recent decision of U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff gives me hope that all is not lost. As reported in The Wall Street Journal yesterday (Nov. … Continue reading
Review: “Inside Job”
I recently saw Charles Ferguson’s documentary, “Inside Job,” about the current financial crisis and I have a few thoughts to record. The movie was thoughtful, provocative, compelling, and sobering, and it did a tremendous job explaining some very difficult concepts … Continue reading
A few thoughts using Goldman as a backdrop…
I just came across this article (Goldman’s secret bets) and thought it illustrated a few things we all should be thinking about if we aren’t already. The article is about Goldman Sachs and, while beginning as a story about how Goldman crosses … Continue reading