Silicon Valley Bank's deposits increased by 238% in two years. Many of its deposits were from IPOs and SPAC deals. Andy Kessler writes that "Most startups had relationships with the bank." Why is that? Kessler explains: Why did so many startups bank with SVB in the first place? Here’s a hint. Apparently, more than half of SVB’s loans went to venture and private-equity firms backed by the borrower’s limited-partner commitments, a legal but slippery way to goose venture funds’ all-important internal rate of return metric, IRR, by investing three to six months before calling investors for … [Read more...]
“Will We Have Enough to Live On Forever?”
Being disciplined is tough. It often entails doing stuff you don’t want to do. Exercise and eating right are at the top of the list. Your career and saving money? Yup. Compounding money? Check. But what about retirement investing? Yes. Most definitely. But here’s the kicker. After years of doing what’s right, you’d think it would get a little easier. It doesn’t. When it comes to money and taking care of it like you would a loved one, it doesn’t get easier with age. It gets tougher and tougher. The pre-retirement years are brutal. “Will we have enough to live on for the rest of our … [Read more...]
Take Action: Don’t Wait for the Best to Save You
Wouldn’t it be a shame if, five years from now, you’re earning peanuts on your savings? That’s a real risk. Because if the Fed backs itself into a corner, the economy gets into a pickle (and who knows what else), it may be forced to cut rates. At least, that’s what the talking heads are saying. You know I don’t like predicting interest rates. Predictions are cheap. Everyone has one. And they’re not a worthwhile endeavor. I’m Your Survival Guy, not “Mr. What If This Happens.” I like to take action based on what’s in front of me. And what I’m seeing now are attractive enough rates that … [Read more...]
When Is the Best Time for You to Do This?
“Life’s short,” my grandfather would say. “You’re only here for a visit.” He didn’t say it to me. I was too young when he passed away. He said it to my dad, who just turned 79. My grandfather would also ask my dad when he was starting out in business, “Do you know when the best time is to plant a tree?” And that got passed down to me. I never liked that one. “Yesterday,” I’d respond, feeling the pressure of not doing whatever it was I was supposed to do yesterday. “That’s right. Do you know when the next best day is to plant a tree?” “Today,” I’d say, feeling like, what’s … [Read more...]
Are You with Someone Who’s Been Cookin’ for Decades?
You may be surprised, dear reader, but Your Survival Guy doesn't spend much time thinking about how much "I" can make in the markets. I spend my time thinking about how to hide. How to protect my assets. Because I know a swooping black swan is looking to take them. And yet, time and time again, it's the investor, like the frog in a soon to be boiling pot, who is lulled to sleep in the good times only to be whacked when markets turn down. And they are always picked off. Picked off out of nowhere, wondering what in the heck just happened. "But I was diversified in an index fund," they … [Read more...]
When the Black Swan Swoops In for You
A word of caution, dear investor, about money market funds: they’re not all created equal. In fact, when it comes to your lazy cash, you want to treat it with kid gloves. There’s a reason it’s on your couch. The world’s a dangerous place. Yes, you want to get it into the big wide world to do something productive with its life. But you also don’t want it coming home one day saying: “I gambled, and I owe Mr. Big $20k. Can you help?” Back when the financial crisis unfolded, Lehman Brothers failed, panic set in, and money markets “broke the buck” (trading below a net asset value of $1). But … [Read more...]
How Long Have You Been in the Investment Business?
“How long have you been in the investment business?” he asked. “Most of my adult life,” I said. “Did you know when you were my age (18) what you wanted to do?” “Not really. I went to business school at Babson College, worked at Fidelity Investments, and I’ve been here for 25 years.” “That’s cool,” he said. “My grandpa and grandma tell me all about you guys.” ………… Here’s the longer version. Growing up, we always talked about business at home. But it wasn’t about money. My dad would talk about interactions with customers he’d had that day, and because this was pre-internet, … [Read more...]
Yes, Your Children Are Listening to You
Dear reader, You may not realize this, but your kids/grandkids are listening to you. How does Your Survival Guy know? Because they tell me. More on that in a minute. Yesterday, for example, I spoke with a daughter and son-in-law of yours and, later in the day, a grandson. The first conversation was focused on traveling along the road to saving for retirement, while the other was about starting out a lifetime of saving and building a career. “But we don’t have enough to meet your minimum,” they always say. “There is no minimum for you,” I say. “Once a member of your family is in the … [Read more...]
What Your Survival Guy Invested in Today
You Survival Guy made a not-so-insignificant six-figure investment this morning in a mix of stocks and bonds. It’s a balanced approach, with roughly one-third stocks and two-thirds bonds yielding close to four percent. This is the type of mix I like for my retired clients, and for me, at age 50, it’s time to have more bonds in my portfolio, and this accomplishes that. The other motivation is you need to strike. You must take action when opportunities are right in front of you. Don’t fall victim to inertia. Whenever I have a large pile of cash to deploy, my first question is, “What can I … [Read more...]
Biden Administration Destroying Retiree Fiduciary Protections
The Biden administration is undermining fiduciary protections created by the Trump administration to protect retirees from money managers who would use their wealth to push the radical progressive agenda rather than to secure the savers' retirements. Now, 25 state attorneys general are suing to stop the Biden administration. Keith Griffith reports for the Daily Mail: The Republican attorneys general from 25 US states have filed a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration's plan to allow retirement fund managers to make 'socially conscious' investment decisions. The federal suit filed on … [Read more...]
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