In 2015, the S&P 500 Index posted a small gain while most global equity benchmarks ended the year in the red. Fixed income markets acted similarly, with lower risk securities flat for the year while their higher risk counterparts declined. For the first time since 2006, the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates, kicking off a new era in monetary policy. While the rate hike was hardly a surprise, it...
During the third quarter, volatility returned and risk assets around the globe declined dramatically as investors’ appetite for risk evaporated. The S&P 500 held up relatively well, declining by 6.4%, while the MSCI EAFE lost 10.2%; emerging markets fared the worst, with the MSCI EM Index declining by 17.8%. Investors’ uneasiness was bolstered by uncertainties surrounding the amount and timing of interest-rate hikes in the US and the prospect of...
Colonial Consulting Director to Speak at Forum for Institutional Investors, Small and Diverse ManagersFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASENew York, NY, June 1, 2016 - Colonial Consulting, LLC, a leading investment advisor with a core focus on non-profits, is pleased to announce that Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer Michael Miller will be a panelist at Blueprint for a More Effective Institutional Investor/Consultant Exchange at the 13th Annual ConsortiumEast held at the International...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASENew York, NY, October 8, 2015 - Colonial Consulting, LLC, a leading investment advisor with a core focus on non-profits, is pleased to announce that Managing Director Michael Miller and Managing Director Amita Schultes, Ph.D. will be presenting at the FAOG Conference 2015 as part of the annual gathering of the Fiscal & Administrative Officers Group for Community Foundations. The FAOG Conference 2015 will be held at the...
Equity markets ended the quarter with modest gains as investors’ attention shifted between crises in Greece, China, and Puerto Rico. During the month of June the aforementioned captured headlines on a nearly daily basis, while discussions about the timing and amount of the Federal Reserve’s first rate hike took a back seat. Undoubtedly, each of these crises has its own set of extenuating circumstances and risks, but long term investors...
Few things can compete with a good book in the summertime. Whether you've migrated to the world of digital ink or prefer something in hard cover or paperback, finding a good book is a treasure, and these next few months offer an extra-special invitation to sit outside and get lost in absorbing stories and characters. One book flying off shelves (and servers) right now is David McCullough’s “The Wright Brothers,”...
Managing Director Brian Crawford recently sat down with Privcap, a media company serving participants in the global private capital markets, to share Colonial’s insights about investing for foundations and endowments and considerations for investing in private capital. During the interview, Mr. Crawford discussed Colonial’s approach and how its unique characteristics help distinguish it from other firms to provide in-depth investment advisory services so that its clients meet their financial objectives...
Following a familiar story, major central bankers’ accommodative monetary policies continued to flood the global markets with cheap capital to cajole investors into maintaining sufficient confidence to contribute to stable, healthy economic growth which occurs in part through acquisition of risk assets. Declining commodity prices and inflation expectations have allowed for even more fiscal interventions across Europe and Asia. Globally, an impressive 17 stock indexes set fresh highs, and another...
Thirty five years - in May, Colonial Consulting will have reached this age. While some on our staff were not yet born in 1980, quite a few of us are now in our third decade with the firm and quite proudly state that we remain consumed with almost child-like levels of curiosity, alongside the more mature recognition, of how much more there is to learn.Amongst the fascinating aspects of the...
It’s wintertime here in New York, and with both the Giants and Jets once again post-season bystanders, and the Knicks and Nets preparing to follow in their footsteps, many New Yorkers are already looking forward to baseball season. For Yankees fans, the upcoming season will be the first in almost twenty years that a recognizable face will not be manning the shortstop position. Derek Jeter played his final game this...