Sorry, I don’t think I have permission to call it the S**** B***. I mean the “Big Game”! Don’t want to get a cease and desist from Roger Goodell! Iansbnr’s favorite reckless gambler Mattress Mack, fresh off his disastrous World Series’ bets on the Astros, is now seeking some NFL Continue Reading
Is the SECURE Act a Trojan Horse?
Trojan horse (noun): 1. a person or thing intended secretly to undermine or bring about the downfall of an enemy or opponent. 2. an act where a government allows private insurers to sell annuities to retirees as a means to create a future dependency that could ultimately lead to expropriation. Continue Reading
The “Position of Strength” Reserve Charge
Summary:Year-End Reserve charges are coming.Companies need to “spin” why they took a charge after claiming their reserves were better than peers.Hence, the “Position of Strength” reserve charge! The Three Rules of Pain Management For those who don’t remember, let’s recall the three rules of when companies admit a reserve problem. Continue Reading
AI Is Amoral: What’s the Risk to Markets?
It’s been a rough start of the decade for quantitative investing shops. High profile firms like AQR and Worldquant have made significant layoffs this month. I suspect the problem with quant performance is the AUM has scaled up faster than the machines can which means marginal $ are invested in Continue Reading
Quantum Computing: The True Disruption Threat
Add quantum computing to the futuristic list of things insurance CEOs should lose sleep over. All that money you spent updating your systems? Useless. All your “proprietary AI” underwriting? Outdated. All the security practices your cyber insured use? Vulnerable. Stop worrying about insuretechs or even self-driving cars. The real threat Continue Reading
Why You Shouldn’t Trust An Uber Driver’s Rating
So this post is more public service announcement than an on topic finance take. However, you’ll see there is also a lesson here about how statistics can be misleading which is certainly applicable to many other areas such as corporate earnings, reserve estimates, valuation metrics, etc. Are Uber Ratings “Fake Continue Reading
Ian’s Brief #3: Year In Review
Yes, it’s the obligatory end of the year post! Frankly, you could just read the “Best Of” page instead, but if you want a somewhat longer version, here you go… I’ve grouped together the various themes that tended to repeat over the year and many of which you can expect Continue Reading