Contents

Guest author: What should investors watch out for in this hiking cycle?

Karen Ward, Chief Market Strategist EMEA at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, looks at rising inflation and why investors should think about the dawning of the new rising interest rate environment.

What is a universal owner?

Laasya Shekaran proposes a radical shake-up in how we address risk within portfolios: by addressing systemic risk and taking responsibility as universal owners. Could this be the way to prevent big financial crises?

Sector spotlight: the future of retail

The retail sector has faced serious challenges over the Covid pandemic. Matthew Bleakley asks whether these accelerated existing trends, how the sector might cope with new threats on the horizon, and what it all means for investors.

Diversity and investing

Nikki Matthews demonstrates how encouraging demographic and cognitive diversity in your team will improve decision-making and could ultimately generate higher long-term returns.

Every passive investor should believe in active management

Matt Gibson tackles a divisive issue: active v passive management. He explores some underappreciated nuances and tough questions to give a framework for choosing between the two.

Is this the start of the battery era?

Dan Mikulskis and Rajiv Gogna introduce us to the next big thing in the world of energy investment: battery storage. Reflecting on recent events in the energy market, they explain how batteries are set to be an integral part of our energy grid.

Blended finance – the perfect blend?

Could blended finance be the key to effectively linking up private and government capital? Shyam Gharial explains how this new concept can structure an investment to facilitate positive impact.

Catastrophe bonds, a genuinely diversifying asset class

Diversification: one of the key pillars of investing. David Garcia describes how cat bonds might benefit investors through low correlation to traditional asset classes.

Shining the spotlight on ESG in synthetic equities

Kate Jones explores the benefits and drawbacks of synthetic equities and how they compare to traditional equities. She also asks whether it's even possible to invest responsibly in synthetic equities.