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This economic cycle has been a long one, seven years without a slowdown. Any other time, people would be near the doors, ready to get out. But this market has been slowly evolving and though many people thought they could outsmart the market over the last seven years, those who took a long-term strategic mindset—measuring success in the capit...

Markets have had a very turbulent start to 2016, and the global economy faces a number of clear challenges. The implications of four interlinked issues—China, crude oil, credit markets, and central banks—are unsettling capital markets. The global economy faces several challenges, but it is continuing to grow, and there are reasons to ma...

Many investors are analyzing how the recent volatility may impact both their public and private holdings. When comparing the S&P 500's performance over the past 32 years with the Cambridge Associates’ median venture capital returns over the same period, you will find an inverse correlation between the two of 28%, implying that as the ...

Overall, the insurance market in Asia remained competitive in 2015, with rates remaining stable or decreasing in most lines of insurance. However, certain lines did experience rate increases and these were generally driven by loss experience, as in the case of the Tianjin explosion in August and its impact on property catastrophe-exposed coverage, ...

Ample capacity and insurer competition generally put downward pressure on rates in most coverage lines in 2015, a trend expected to continue in 2016, barring unforeseen changes in condition. Other significant developments that bear watching throughout 2016 include demand for cybersecurity coverage across all industries, large-scale mergers and acqu...

In the last decade, multinational organizations have undertaken unprecedented international expansion, leaving them exposed to an expanding array of global credit and political risks. And those risks—including terrorism and political violence, armed conflicts, increasingly powerful anti-establishment political movements, the threat of global ...

Despite modest recoveries across most markets in the fourth quarter, 2015 was a poor year for investment returns. While concerns at the end of 2015 continue now—volatility in China’s domestic Shanghai market, rising interest rates in the U.S., falling oil prices, the U.S. dollar’s strength—history has shown that markets ofte...

The markets are off to a rough start this year. Worries about the strength of the world economy caused global stocks to plunge double-digits in January before rebounding slightly. Recent manufacturing data in the U.S. has underwhelmed, the European Commission reduced its Eurozone GDP forecast to just 1.7%, and it’s anyone’s guess as to ...

In nearly every discussion about estate planning, important questions and issues arise. If couples arrive in their attorney’s office having already thought about these issues—including assessing the level of financial management skills their beneficiaries should possess, how to communicate to their children about their hopes and expecta...

Risk has many dimensions and individual investors tend to equate risk with loss of capital. That definition of risk may actually lead an investor astray and hinder his or her ability to meet long-term objectives. Rather than attempting to avoid risk, successful investors embrace and manage it. For private investors, one of the keys to success is se...

The forces of change in the health care and employee benefits environment have grown stronger and more disruptive with each year. But the disruption has also opened up a rich set of options to help family offices and businesses respond to the needs of the workforce, promote the need for behavioral changes, and still generate financial benefits for ...

Identity theft is a risk that continues to grow and change daily. Due to the many forms identity theft can take, including medical, credit, and financial, the threat remains prevalent and affects millions of people every year. Keeping up-to-date with the latest prevention methods is the surest way to protect the assets and identity. There are a num...

All businesses face cyber threats. Almost every company has some kind of network, database or online presence that puts it at risk for a cyber breach. Smaller businesses can be more vulnerable than larger ones as they often use third-party hosting and information processing that can be an entry point for cyber attacks. By following various proactiv...

Each year fraudsters are stealing millions of dollars through sophisticated fraudulent use of Email Compromise Scams targeted at individuals and employees who regularly perform wire transfers. The scam involves a fraudster creating a false email or alternatively, hacking into a real email account of an executive, business partner, employee or finan...

The easy investment returns enjoyed since the end of the financial crisis have succumbed to the pressures of elevated valuations, Federal Reserve tightening and oil price declines, which have created significant volatility, bearish sentiment and losses among investors. This changed investment environment has caused a wave of worries, with many wond...