INTRODUCING MY BLOG

As I find myself in an exciting phase of developing new opportunities, I am starting this blog to offer my observations and insights on the investments and pensions world in particular.

For the last nearly 20 years I have been in the business of designing, building, directing, programming, selling and moderating conferences for leading asset owning organisations and their advisers globally, most latterly with a concentration on UK pensions.

 In so doing, I have developed some quite strong views surrounding the state of the pensions industry and how it may be improved, as well as on the capital and investment markets in general. Many of these views are rooted in the first stage of my career as an investment manager.

 There are two reasons I have not started this blog much earlier.

 The first is that as a conference professional and frequent moderator, I have heretofore regarded my role as a ‘neutral’. In that setting, it is for me to set an agenda and draw opinions out of others, not to impose my own.

 The second, if I’m honest, has been the result of a kind of blasé inertia. Quite a number of years ago I went, together with a friend, to a Rothko exhibition at the Tate Gallery.  To the untrained and unappreciative eye (mine in this case), many of Rothko’s paintings can be viewed as a canvas dominated almost entirely by one colour, upon which have been painted one or two lines of slightly different hue.  Looking at one of Rothko’s pieces with some incredulity, I remarked: “I could have done that!”. To which my companion pointedly replied: “Yes, but you didn’t, did you?”

 I’ve had occasion to reflect on the powerful and simple wisdom behind that statement many times over the years, yet still without doing anything about it.

So here goes. If you’re remotely interested, please watch this space from here. I’m going to begin by considering the investment strategies resulting from funding procedures for Defined Benefit pensions in the UK, and how I believe that the very best intentions have caused great damage to member outcomes in this area. I have related views on the performance constraints imposed by governance procedures and regulation on Defined Contribution funds. I will draw upon some of the tenets of modern investment theory, risk management and asset allocation practice in commenting upon some of these important issues.

I have no idea how this will unfold nor, of course, how my views will be received. But, per Rothko, I shall lay the first brush upon the canvas in the next few days . . . . .