Posts From Steven Slezak

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Finance International

Now’s really not the time for a liquidity crisis

Liquidity risk in the global bond markets is peaking at the worst possible time. It’s not simply an inconvenience for Greek bank customers emptying ATMs; a number of other trends

Finance International

Creative destruction, global insurance, and the London Market Group

The global insurance industry tends to focus on the more immediate threats facing it, but its real problems are chronic and lie deep within the structure and strategies of the

Economics Europe

Is London’s insurance market losing its competitive edge?

“It is not that London is terrible in infrastructure and service, it is that the whole industry is terrible.” – European Risk Manager on the insurance industry in London, from

Economics Europe

Big Data analytics will transform London insurance market

Evolutionary and revolutionary changes are aligned to restructure the global insurance industry, including the London Market Group. Can LMG and the industry “read the writing on the wall”? In his

Natural resources and energy North America

End of commodity supercycle puts pressure on US agriculture

With profit margins shrinking, American agriculture faces risk management challenges. One approach would be to make a priority of managing margin risk. The boom of the commodity supercycle is over,

Finance International

Risk management should span the company

Experience shows risk management can be pushed down from top levels to involve front-line staff. Because risk and uncertainty are often too complex for centralized systems to manage, it should

International Natural resources and energy

Is genetic engineering a Black Swan for humanity?

Farming made civilization possible. Does crop technology spell the end of human existence? Some believe doom is a certainty. Fortunately, science is never certain and empirical evidence says no. by

Finance International

There is nothing normal about risk and uncertainty

Much of risk and all uncertainty are inaccessible to mathematical tools. Alternate analytical methods are needed.  Standard models in financial economics – including risk models – are under great scrutiny.

Economics North America

Are low interest rates deflationary?

The benefits of any activity should outweigh the costs. Risk should be commensurate with return. In fact and theory, risk and return are inseparable.  Analysts say the relationship between risk

Finance International

Book Review: The Pillars of Finance

The Pillars of Finance: The Misalignment of Finance Theory and Investment Practice. By Guy Fraser-Sampson. Palgrave Macmillan, 2014; 260 pages Guy Fraser-Sampson’s new book argues Modern Portfolio Theory fails to