Caveat Emptor

ETF opportunities and risks One great thing about studying for the CFA is that you can tie the curriculum syllabus to real life examples and observe the motion in progress. I had a tendency to put in considerably more time and effort to studying certain topics like Real Estate (and REITS) , corporate finance, Equity investing and ETFs compared to the other topics combined.  As an enthusiast in ETF investing, I have significant holdings in STI ETF and is eager to gain knowledge and exposure to global ones. One key limitation about the CFA is that it is only good at explaining historical examples and is backward looking . Elaborate discussions about macroeconomic models and DCF will not be able to explain the implications of QE and negative interest rates, and the appropriate discount rates to apply. Howard Marks Latest <Mysterious> Memo explores the implications of negative I/R on risk seeking behavior, and inverted relationships whereby historical models may no longer pr...

Battle of the titans in the Trade war September is a month of hazy outlook. There is temporary ceasefire of the trade war, and the yearly forest fires from Indonesia added some ambience to the hazy atmosphere. After China and US rediscovered the economic damage they have inflicted to their economy, the Fed and the Chinese monetary authority launched another round of stimulus (interest rate cuts) to repair the damage dealt. As the fearful mood shifted from trade war escalations to negative interest rates destroying the economy, I am staying my course in ignoring prophets of doom and quietly entered another position into Silverlake Axis. SLA evolved from a small entry position in my portfolio to one of the largest position throughout the years and I will be seeking peer analysis / feedback on the validity of the thesis. After discussion of AIT with my community of investors, they are of the opinion that India might be experiencing economic slowdowns and tail risks at the end ...

Things you wished the CFA taught you in plain English   After  spending one torturous year studying for my CFA level 1, I am going back to the pits of hell to attempt for my level 2 exams. The difficulty of the content is unquestioned, and the use of convoluted English in a roundabout matter probably contributed significantly to its high failure rate. To fulfill my objective to become a better investor and learner, I shall attempt to consolidate the fragmented parts of the curriculum into a series of simplified <CFA Series> blog posts. In my onerous quest to attain the charter, I sometimes forget that the lessons gleaned from an applied CFA curriculum are equally important. The purpose of the CFA is to improve my skills as an investor, and one sure way to arrive at the truth is to reject the Null hypothesis and stay away from the obvious traps. Charlie Munger's famous quote < All I Want To Know Is Where I'm Going To Die So I'll Never Go There> ...