The recent stock market news has been downright scary. “Biggest one-day points plunge! Stocks in freefall! Bear market begins!” You’re probably expecting me to say “Don’t worry, everything is going to be fine.” But I won’t — because I can’t. I don’t know if stocks will recover tomorrow or take another big dive. I don’t… Continue reading →

Rich people — really rich people — have an inside joke about spending in retirement: They called it “skiing.” Not skiing as in snow skiing, but “Spending our Kids’ Inheritance.” They use it in reference to splurges, such as pricey wines, cruises through Europe, second homes, or whatever strikes their fancy. They don’t feel bad… Continue reading →

In a funny and timely bit of analysis, a stock reporter at CNBC pointed out that billionaire investing icon Warren Buffett could buy every NFL team. After all, he has $92.1 billion. The combined value of every franchise comes to $80.7 billion. He could write the check and still easily be in the fraction-of-the-1% club… Continue reading →

If you’ve paid attention to the radio anytime after 1972, it’s hard to avoid Carly Simon’s megahit “You’re So Vain.” The song dresses down a former lover for his egocentricity, always checking himself in the mirror and soaking up the admiration of naive young women. Simon reportedly wrote the song about three men, naming only… Continue reading →

Mark Mobius, a fixture in international investing from his perch at the Franklin Templeton mutual fund company, will retire this month after three decades of leading American investors to foreign shores. Like the founder of Franklin Templeton, the late John Templeton, Mobius followed a simple but difficult-to-replicate investment strategy: Be there first. Mobius is an… Continue reading →

To the surprise of nobody, billionaire investor Warren Buffett isn’t interested in Bitcoin, the electronic currency that has zoomed higher in value over the past few weeks. Bitcoin is a complex idea. Simply put, it’s a virtual currency that is created, owned and traded entirely online in anonymous and unregulated settings. In theory, there is… Continue reading →

Mark Hulbert, a fellow MarketWatch columnist and respected observer of the financial advising business, recently wrote a thoughtful critique of the massive rush to index-style investing. I just wish the headline had been different. The opinion article he wrote was titled “Index funds now are part of an investor’s biggest problem.” Widespread index investing is… Continue reading →

Hedge funds get a lot of grief over punitively high fees and low returns, with good reason. Among the most hated are so-called “gated” funds, those with rules that lock up investor money for specific periods of time. The gate is there to protect other investors, and often that includes the manager. If one large investor decides… Continue reading →

Suze Orman is one of those singular personalities in the financial business who seems to be right on the pulse of everyone she meets. She’s written books, starred in her own television show and made innumerable appearances in person. Like Oprah and Bono, she’s nearly a one-name-only celebrity. Say “Suze” and you know who I… Continue reading →