Decades are often defined according to the dominant themes they are perceived to embody – think of the “roaring ‘20s” and the “swinging ‘60s” as perhaps the most iconic examples.

Low interest rates for more than ten years have made it possible for companies to refinance their borrowing at very cheap rates and, if central banks continue on their current trajectory, it is likely that will continue to be the case.

The Pensions Regulator (tPR) has issued its annual funding statement , the content of which is particularly relevant to schemes with actuarial valuation dates between 22 September 2018 and 21 September 2019 (referred to as Tranche 14 reviews).

There are four “dark side” traits that are usually responsible for the failure and derailment in fund management and other careers, writes Adrian Furnham.

In December 2018 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued its final report into the investment consulting and fiduciary management market (CMA Final Report).  We are generally supportive of the report’s findings and its remedies.

Factor investing (or smart beta) has developed into one of the hottest investment trends in recent years.  It has proved particularly popular among investors in search of a new investment paradigm, whether in pursuit of additional sources of return, enhanced risk management or tactical allocation strategies. 

This letter sets out Stamford’s views on the provisional findings and remedies detailed in the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) report titled “Investment Consultants Market Investigation – Provisional Decision report” (the Report).

The costs of leadership failure and derailment are high for all stakeholders and the consequences considerable. Yet, management failure, as opposed to success, has only been studied for the last thirty or so years.