Albion

We build bespoke centralised investment propositions for our clients, provide ongoing governance, and deliver a programme of client communication and education.

[Alan Smith @AlanJLSmith]

𝗦𝗼, 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼𝘀 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱?

After the Great Financial Crisis of 2007–2009, my colleagues and I embarked upon a complete review of our investment strategy and the advice we offered to clients.

Before that, we had been recommending active managers and discretionary fund managers, believing that the 'experts' would be able to use their skills and resources to successfully navigate the volatile markets.

The reality was that none of them did, and many funds fell even further than the broad market.

We knew there had to be a better way.

So, we spent a year reviewing the academic data, conducting independent research, and undertaking detailed analyses to build our own in-house model portfolios.

We were meticulous in our approach and relied upon empirical data from impartial sources, not from the investment industry, which has a vested interest in maintaining the status quo.

An advantage of being independent is that we have access to the entire market for products and services and do not have to recommend in-house funds.

Our only focus is on what's best for our clients based on the evidence.

We launched our portfolios in 2011 and have been recommending them to our clients ever since.

So, how have we stacked up against our competition?

Independent investment consultancy, Albion Strategic Consulting has audited our performance and compared it with 127* leading managers in the UK, including;

- Brooks MacDonald
- Cannacord Genuity
- Fisher Investments
- Quilter
- Schroders
- St James Place
- Tilney

(*The full list is in the image below)

The analyses confirmed as follows;

- 𝗖𝗔𝗠 𝟲𝟬/𝟰𝟬 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼 - 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝟵𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀

- 𝗖𝗔𝗠 𝟴𝟬/𝟮𝟬 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼 - 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝟴𝟲% 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀

- 𝗖𝗔𝗠 𝟭𝟬𝟬% 𝗘𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼 - 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝟵𝟭% 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀

How is it possible that a boutique financial planning firm can consistently beat the giants of the industry with all their research teams, armies of economists and sophisticated technology

Simple;

It's not because we’re smarter than them.

It's because we avoid doing dumb things such as timing the market, overtrading, and paying excessive fees,

That's why we call it Intelligent Investing™ and why our clients have enjoyed outstanding investment returns for many years as we guide them to financial freedom.

To learn more about accessing an independent, world-class investing philosophy, download our free guide to Intelligent Investing using the link in the next tweet ⬇️

[Ben Edwards, CFA @Albion_Ben]

Keep your eye on the golden ball. How many reruns until we feel the ball is ‘skilfully’ above average?

Short term (eg 3 or 5yr) performance provides no indication of active fund manager skill. Don’t be fooled by the noise.

App credit (it’s free!): https://t.co/KmPPqTiPyp

[James Baker @Albion__James]

1/ Shoutout to @AlanJLSmith and Keith Butten CFPcm for the reference to our Global Active Manager Evaluation (GAME™), two of the best in the industry!
@AlbionStrategic

[Ben Edwards, CFA @Albion_Ben]

Great to attend @AdviserPodcast at #TRAPLive this evening, and good to meet some of the supporting community. Top work 🎙️

[James Baker @Albion__James]

$NVDA's position in the S&P 500 on 24/02/14 (0.1%) and again on 24/02/2024 (4.6%), 10 years later.

The winners of tomorrow are extremely difficult to spot without the benefit of hindsight, somewhere in the bottom right of the 2nd image lurks the next NVIDIA, which is the one truly skilled judgemental managers ought to be looking for - they are also difficult to identify without the benefit of hindsight!

For the rest of us, as the late, great Jack Bogle put it - "Don't look for the needle in the haystack. Just buy the haystack!"

#NVDA #Investing #Bogle

[James Baker @Albion__James]

The year is 2004, Apple is 301st on the Fortune 500, Amazon is yet to launch Prime, Tesla and Facebook don’t exist, Google has only just IPO'd, nobody has heard of NVIDIA as it trades for <$2/share.

Things change, no company is too big to fail, that’s capitalism! #investing

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

Thank you for the shoutout @AlanJLSmith, we consider ourselves fortunate to be a small part of @capital_tweets’ ongoing success!

Fantastic content on @AdviserPodcast, invaluable insight and guidance for the community, keep up the great work!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#TRAP #investing

[TRAP: The Real Adviser Podcast @AdviserPodcast]

EPISODE 38 IS OUT!

The latest pile of TRAP has dropped! Besties @nicklincoln @CarlWidger @AlanJLSmith @MavenAdviser chew the FS-fat..

Question for the TRAP team? Click on the link in the pinned Tweet at the top of our timeline.

https://t.co/Yt4zvFOjpH

[James Baker @Albion__James]

Amazing piece by Jordan Brooks of @AQRCapital - "a repeat of the past decade’s (US) equity market performance would require a heroic set of assumptions".

https://t.co/5yIxcs6QfS

Stay diversified, there's plenty more on the menu than the S&P 500!
#investing #diversification

[James Baker @Albion__James]

@benjaminfelix 1. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

2. Start early, compounding is your best pal.

3. If you thought of it, chances are so has the market.

4. Diversify.

5. Pay as lower fees as logistics allow.

6. Listen to @RationalRemind!

To name a few!
#investing

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

New blog | Investment momentum: myth or money-maker? 🤔🎢

Our newest team member, @Albion_Euan, digs into the nuts and bolts of momentum - "the biggest challenge to the theory of financial market efficiency” (Fama, 2007)

Enjoy!

https://t.co/SrJQBSafZk

#investing #momentum

[James Baker @Albion__James]

Steps to giving yourself a better chance of a successful investing outcome:

1. Read Smarter Investing 4
(https://t.co/w3sNufuwku)

2. Listen to @RationalRemind podcast
(https://t.co/JqAEnsj558)

3. Accept that the market works well, and stop 2nd guessing it!

#investing

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

An honour for our MD, Tim Hale, to be invited on the @RationalRemind podcast to chat with @benjaminfelix and @CameronPassmore.

Thanks to the RR team for all the fantastic work you do spreading the word on sensible, evidence-based investing.

https://t.co/GKGZvOYKB6 (1:23:11)

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

@Albion_Ben and @Albion__James were lucky enough to join @Totalitywealth for launch day today at @AVFCOfficial.

Brilliant day hosted by a brilliant firm, putting clients at the heart of everything they do.

An honour to meet the inspirational @AmarLatif_ too!

#Launch 🚀

[Brett Davidson @brettdavidson]

A must read for every financial planner imo.

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

A morning brew and a good read. Delighted to get our hands on #smarterinvesting v4, authored by our very own Tim Hale and available now.

🔗 Smarter Investing: Simpler Decisions for Better Results https://t.co/UgPbFz3T3D

Foreword by @RobinWigg of @FT and author #Trillions.

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

New blog | Jargon-busting: Return "As an investor it is useful to know the context in which the data are presented to you. Stay alert!" 🧐
@Albion_Ben

https://t.co/ex1fRpgSlY #investing

[James Baker @Albion__James]

I was asked in May-21 if it is worth paying attention to 'star rating' systems that many data providers use to assess fund/ETF performance. The screenshot attached is taken from my response at the time... (1/3)

#investing #performance #shortterm

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

Thrilled to be part of the @LifeAtLonghurst family, thank you for the kind words!

https://t.co/kORZ1SHpGh

[Albion @AlbionStrategic]

Diversification is a powerful tool! #investing101

[James Baker @Albion__James]

The US stock market has sat in the right tail of equity market returns for over a century.

Elroy Dimson (@elroydimson), Paul Marsh and Mike Staunton’s (DMS) latest @CreditSuiss Yearbook digs into the numbers

🔗 https://t.co/sQoJiHTupZ (1/10)

[James Baker @Albion__James]

Last time we had opening 5Y rates like 2023 (3.6%), Gilts delivered 5.6% (2010) when yields fell 0.4% and 2.2% (2003) when yields rose 0.7%.

Markets will go up, down or sideways, but higher starting yields are materially beneficial for longer term investors.

#bonds #investing