Update on Our Company

About 4 years ago, we got the thumbs up from the Ontario Securities Commission (“OSC”) to start a business on February 1, 2022, in what is called the “portfolio manager category”. Unlike a doctor or lawyer – who can practice medicine or law – managing money is a bit more complicated. It’s somewhat like a […]

Things We Won’t Do as a Portfolio Manager

In the world of behavioral finance, there is a well-documented phenomenon known as loss aversion. Nobel Prize-winning psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky found that the pain of a loss is psychologically twice as powerful as the joy of an equivalent gain. Statistically, most investors require at least a 2-to-1 gain to offset the emotional […]

Questions from Prospective Clients

Over the past few months, we’ve met with many prospective clients who often share similar questions. We’ve collected the most common ones to provide a clear view of how we operate. When did you start the company? We were first registered on February 1, 2022. Currently, we are registered to do business in Ontario, Alberta, […]

Is Bitcoin Digital Gold or a Digital Tulip?

I have trouble keeping up with the reasons why Bitcoin moves in either direction. It seemed correlated with the Nasdaq coming out of the pandemic; then was compared to “digital gold”; and recently it was a hedge against government mismanagement. Its bull case seems to change each day and I’m not embarrassed to say that […]

Stock Prices Historically Get Sent to Detention in September

September has historically been a weak month for stocks, and this year’s sentiment will hinge on Jay Powell’s speech tomorrow at Jackson Hole Students aren’t the only ones uneasy about September—stocks often dread it too. Historically, it’s the worst month for the market. Since 1930, the S&P 500 has fallen about 55% of the time […]

Why Mutual Funds Often Benefit Banks More Than You

Mutual funds are marketed as safe and simple. But in reality, they often accompany hidden costs and conflicts of interest. We recently reviewed a portfolio managed by another institution. The Management Expense Ratio (“MER”), which is the total cost of owning a mutual fund and is embedded in its price, was much higher than its […]

Don’t Put All Your Bricks in One Basket

Canadian real estate prices took off during the last two decades alongside ultra low interest rates. Many people sought to buy a second property in a real estate market that once seemed invincible. Lately, however, many regret that decision as prices have come back down to earth amid higher borrowing costs. As a portfolio manager […]

Lost in Translation: How Currency Can Wipe Out Your Wins

The financial crisis of 2008 was a defining moment for me as an investor. Watching the panic unfold on Wall Street, with banks teetering and markets swinging wildly, solidified my philosophy to buy when others are selling. One of my purchases during that period was Apple. In December 2008, I bought shares around $3.36 (adjusted […]