Swan Global Investments is pleased to announce that the 2017 Swan CIO Summit was a resounding success. With over 80 participants converging in Chicago on April 4th, this year’s Swan CIO Summit was an opportunity for seasoned financial professionals to converse and share ideas. Under the roof of the elegant Kimpton Gray Hotel, institutional consultants, wealth managers, endowment and foundation trustees, liquidity providers, ERISA experts and academics came together to discuss the following topics:
Capital Markets. A lively discussion featuring John Thompson of Aon Hewitt, Gib Watson of Envestnet-Prima, and Jeff Korzenik of Fifth Third Bank regarding the difficulty investors have building a portfolio that will meet their return requirements. Equities, fixed income, and alternatives all have their challenges, and investors might need to temper their expectations.
ETFs. Without a doubt, the exchange traded fund market has grown enormously. Keegan Toci from BlackRock, Dave LaValle from State Street Global Advisors and Eric Pollackov from Invesco PowerShares shared their insight and expertise as to what changes and improvements have been made over the last few years to accommodate this growth and ensure orderly pricing, trading, and liquidity.
Options. Given the challenges traditional capital markets face, Kevin Baldwin from the Options Industry Council, Matt Moran Chicago Board Options Exchange and Dr. Ed Szado, Ph.D., CFA® from INGARM discussed how options and options-based strategies could enhance return, reduce risk, or both.
Endowments, Foundations, and Pensions. Demands on portfolios are increasing while capital market forecasts are decreasing. How does one solve that puzzle? Sam Gallo, CPA, CAIA® from the University System of Maryland Foundation, Glenn Ross from Marquette Associates, and Brent Wright from Regions Asset Management shared what they are doing to keep portfolios funded and still supporting the cash flow demands.
Offloading Beta. With markets at all-time highs, what can be done to address systematic risk? Swan’s team of Rob Swan, Chris Hausman, CMT and Aashish Vyas detailed how customized, bespoke solutions could be used to hedge risks and/or supplement returns on existing portfolios.
Defined Contribution/401(k). Joe Gordon, CFP® CIMA®, AIFA®, CPFA and Todd Zempel, QKA®, AIFA®, CPFA of Gordon Asset Management confronted the problem facing many Americans in self-directed retirement plans: that target date funds appear woefully unprepared for a major market downturn. The CIT solution Swan and Gordon have developed together is designed to help mitigate this risk.
Defined Risk Strategy. As Swan approaches its 20th anniversary, Randy Swan and Rob Swan talked about the birth of the DRS, how Swan Global Investments has evolved over the years, and the long-term strategic vision for the company. In a later session, Marc Odo, CFA®, CAIA®, CIPM®, CFP® shared practical ideas on the many different roles the DRS can perform in a portfolio.
While the event is invite only for research professionals, CIOs, consultants, and portfolio managers, we have been “taking the show on the road” for financial advisors with our 10th Box regional due diligence events. The 10th Box distills the key points from the Summit in to a two-hour luncheon. The portfolio managers of the Defined Risk Strategy are joined by members of the research team in locations across the country. We hope to see you at a 10th Box event, or at the 2018 Swan CIO Summit.
Swan would like to thank BlackRock, State Street Global Advisors, S&P Dow Jones, Invesco PowerShares, and Northern Lights Distributors, as well as, all of the esteemed speakers and attendees for their participation in making the Swan CIO Summit a resounding success.
About the Author: David Lovell, Director of Marketing, is responsible for Swan’s marketing and engagement initiatives. This includes development and execution of marketing programs for Swan’s websites, content, communications, events, and media. David began his career in the financial industry at Mass Mutual, where he held life, health and disabilities insurance licenses, as well as, Series 6 and 63 licenses. David currently holds a Series 65 license.
Swan Global Investments, LLC is a SEC registered Investment Advisor that specializes in managing money using the proprietary Defined Risk Strategy (“DRS”). SEC registration does not denote any special training or qualification conferred by the SEC. Swan offers and manages the DRS for investors including individuals, institutions and other investment advisor firms. Any historical numbers, awards and recognitions presented are based on the performance of a (GIPS®) composite, Swan’s DRS Select Composite, which includes non-qualified discretionary accounts invested in since inception, July 1997, and are net of fees and expenses. Swan claims compliance with the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®).
All Swan products utilize the Defined Risk Strategy (“DRS”), but may vary by asset class, regulatory offering type, etc. Accordingly, all Swan DRS product offerings will have different performance results due to offering differences and comparing results among the Swan products and composites may be of limited use. All data used herein; including the statistical information, verification and performance reports are available upon request. The S&P 500 Index is a market cap weighted index of 500 widely held stocks often used as a proxy for the overall U.S. equity market. Indexes are unmanaged and have no fees or expenses. An investment cannot be made directly in an index. Swan’s investments may consist of securities which vary significantly from those in the benchmark indexes listed above and performance calculation methods may not be entirely comparable. Accordingly, comparing results shown to those of such indexes may be of limited use. The adviser’s dependence on its DRS process and judgments about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of particular ETFs and options in which the adviser invests or writes may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results. There is no guarantee any investment or the DRS will meet its objectives. All investments involve the risk of potential investment losses as well as the potential for investment gains. Prior performance is not a guarantee of future results and there can be no assurance, and investors should not assume, that future performance will be comparable to past performance. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. Further information is available upon request by contacting the company directly at 970–382-8901 or www.www.swanglobalinvestments.com. 287-SGI-071218
