Category Archives: Risk and risk management

New Study Slams Public Pension Funds’ Alternative Investments as Drag on Performance, Identifies CalPERS as One of the Worst “Negative Alphas”; Shows Folly of CalPERS’ Desperate Plan to Increase Private Equity and Debt and Go Bigger Using Leverage

A new paper shows that public pension fund investment in “alts” like real estate and private equity hurt returns and failed to lower risk.

Beneficiary Uproar Over CalPERS Fraudulent Investment Strategy Claims in E-Mail Blast

CalPERS latest beneficiary e-mail had misrepresentaions that even the toothless SEC would sanction.

Risking Nuclear War for Dollars

Why the risk of nuclear war has been and remains much higher than you realize.

Three Strikes against the Fed

Until the results of new stress tests are known, the uncertainty principle calls for extreme caution in the regulator’s approach to the capital adequacy of systemically important banks (and indeed of banks in general).

How Largely Hidden Trends Are Shattering the Global Trade System

Howy national conflicts, new concerns about security and supply chain risk, and technology are reshaping trade networks to be closer to home.

Board Member Margaret Brown Sues CalPERS, Board President Over Gang-Style Retaliation for Efforts to Oppose Its Incompetence

Board member Margaret Brown has finally had it with CalPERS’ dirty tricks.

CalPERS Plans to Blow Its Brains Out: Seeks to Increase Risk by Boosting Private Equity, Private Debt, and Leveraging the Entire Fund

CalPERS latches on to new, really bad investment ideas.

Wall Street’s Useful Idiot: Financial Times Shills for CLOs….as Fed Hasn’t Bailed Them Out

A major story on the CLOs chooses not to address the key questions.

The Invisible Business Risk of the Covid-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered unprecedented changes in employment levels and the values of stocks, bonds, commodities, and currencies.

Universa Debunks CalPERS’ Defense of $1 Billion Tail Hedge Miss; Insider Accounts Expose Additional Misrepresentations

CalPERS efforts to ‘splain away its $1 billion tail hedge fiasco backfire as one of the tail risk managers, Universa, shreds CalPERS’ claims.

Fed Drastically Slashed Helicopter Money for Wall Street. QE Down 86% From Peak Week in March

Keeping tabs on Fed munificence.

More Public Pension Fund Pain: LACERS Reports Hit to Liquidity from Private Equity Capital Calls; Are Fund Managers Exploiting the Dumb Money Yet Again?

Private equity firms are sucking cash out of their limited partners at the worst possible time, exposing public pension funds in particular to liquidity crunches and fire sales.

Press Ferrets Out More Falsehoods by CalPERS CIO Ben Meng, Evidence of Poor Leadership, in Giving Up >$1 Billion Hedge Payday

CalPERS’ embattled CIO Ben Meng digs his $1 billion hole deeper with not-credible defenses. Tell the board not to cede more authority to him.

CalPERS Staff Seeks to Strip Board of Remaining Authority Even as Press Exposes Multi-Billion Cost of Lack of Supervision; Elected Board Members Thumb Nose at Public by Seeking to Be Paid for Doing Almost Nothing

CalPERS staff is up to more dirty tricks. Push back by e-mail in public comments. Bad press already has them on the back foot.