Cutting Through the Noise
May 3, 2007
This week Premier Ed Stelmach said that Alberta is not interested in moving towards a national securities regulator. His government supports the current regime and the improvements that are being made to coordinate efforts amongst Canada’s 13 regulators (Yes, 13). At ...
Read MoreApril 13, 2007
In our self-congratulatory posting about our official opening, we noted what a beautiful day it was in Vancouver on Tuesday. That nice spring weather is also symbolic of what is going on in the pension world these days. Thursday’s papers ...
Read MoreApril 12, 2007
RBC Asset Management announced on Tuesday that they plan on changing the way they calculate the MERs of their funds. As a refresher, an MER – the expense that we all love to hate – consists of a fund’s management ...
Read MoreMarch 7, 2007
My future has never looked so bright. I’ve been watching a lot of the big banks’ commercials on T.V. lately, and I’m really excited about my financial future. Apparently, I can send my daughter to med school and buy the ...
Read MoreJanuary 26, 2007
The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published January 26, 2007 Do I follow my favourite manager to a new fund? There are probably a few investors out there who feel like they have a big "L" on their forehead. ...
Read MoreJanuary 22, 2007
Jonathan Chevreau's column in today's Financial Post provides more data on the Claymore ETFs of which I spoke in a recent posting ( ETFs' I've Seen This Movie Before ). The column reinforced some of the views I put forward: ...
Read MoreJanuary 5, 2007
As of this week, there is a new mutual fund on the market called the Mackenzie Founders Fund. The fund will invest equally in four of Mackenzie's oldest funds. It will be automatically rebalanced to maintain an equal weighting in ...
Read MoreJanuary 2, 2007
Compared to the Enron / Worldcom blowups, the options pricing scandal we're going through now is very low key. Enron et al were front page news for a long time. The options scandal is strictly a page 8 item in ...
Read MoreNovember 6, 2006
The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published November 3, 2006 Until recently, I'd never heard of Alex Becks. I thought it was because I lived on the left coast and wasn't plugged in enough to the Toronto investment network, ...
Read MoreAugust 30, 2006
Since my column on principal-protected notes was published in the Globe & Mail on August 1st, I've had lots of e-mails. Almost without exception, they've been supportive of my view. Stuff like: "right on" ... someone needs to take a ...
Read MoreJuly 12, 2006
As I contemplate starting a new investment company, I've had to assess what form it will take. Specifically, I've been trying to decide whether the good ole mutual fund is still a valid investment vehicle, or is it going the ...
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