Clarice Olivieri is a senior managing director in Mesirow Institutional Sales and Trading She focuses on municipal sales and trading serving as regulatory branch manager for the New York Santa Monica and San Francisco offices  Clarice has more than 30 years of experience in the financial industry Before joining Mesirow in 2012 she worked on both the Municipal and Corporate Bond Desks at Bear…

January 17 2024 | By, Mesirow Currency Management, While passive hedging can effectively lower currency risk in international portfolios the negative interest differential between Switzerland and the United States has hurt Swiss investors as US investments typically dominate foreign allocations This has led to a need for innovative strategies within hedging to alleviate carry penalties while managing currency risk One such approach where Mesirow…, Currency risk in international portfolios, With Switzerland allocating most of their equity and bond investments overseas currency risk continues to be a major source of risk for pension plans Currency overlay managers such as Mesirow have the expertise to manage this risk for Swiss investors For risk averse investors passive hedging offers a solution that effectively reduces currency risk in the international portfolio, Challenges with passive hedging for Swiss Investors , Due to the negative interest differential between Switzerland and the US passive currency hedging inflicts a carry penalty for Swiss investors hedging US dollar With the current rates of Switzerland and the US at 175% and 55% respectively (as of this articles publication January 2024 the carry penalty associated with hedging the US dollar is not insignificant Therefore while passive hedging is a…, Tenor management for enhanced returns and risk control , While maintaining the prescribed level of currency risk in the portfolio remains the priority the structure of hedging allows for choice of forward contract length ie tenor selection Fixed interval value dates are often used to simplify operational complexities eg fixed 3M contracts result in settlements and cash flows on a fixed quarterly interval For investors who have high cash flow and…, Explore more currency insights, The future for hedged share class investors Futures overlays, Grappling with the coming (T+1 security settlement cycle Read article, USD and the BRICS threat, Sanctions on Russia lead to a call for a new currency to compete with the USD Is a common currency likely Read article

Clint Fyffe is a Managing Director and Wealth Advisor in Mesirow Wealth Management He is responsible for conducting comprehensive wealth planning services using extensive qualitative and quantitative research for affluent individuals corporations and institutions Clint serves on the Wealth Management Investment Management Committee Clint joined Mesirow in 2007 and has 17 years of experience in…

Sending your young adult off to college or university can be both scary and exciting even in the best of times These tips may help you help your child navigate some important financial planning and life issues, Establish a Health Care Power of Attorney (POA, For the first 18 years of your child’s life you played a key role in making medical decisions But when your child legally becomes an adult at 18 you could be effectively estranged from important decisions regarding their health care According to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA” a medical provider can choose not to disclose protected health information to…, Evaluate college health insurance, Most colleges and universities offer a student health plan In many instances parents don’t realize they are paying for this coverage and/or that it is available However before you opt out of the school’s health plan consider the following If your child is attending a college in a state outside of your residence ensure that you are aware of how your current coverage may apply in the respective…, Gain access to your child’s student portal, This may not be a popular decision from your child’s perspective but gaining access to their student portal allows you to keep an eye on the status of tuition payments financial aid grants available credits for meals and much more A second set of eyes never hurts to make sure that all is as it should be especially with freshman who are often challenged with meeting these types of financial…, Set up bank accounts and establish credit, Before your child goes away to school we often recommend that your child establish their own bank account and credit card They may have already done this when they worked during high school but once they get to college they will most likely be bombarded with offers to sign up for credit cards better to nip that temptation in the bud before it happens If you can link your child’s accounts to your…, Think before you sign that lease, Many students decide to partner with friends and rent an apartment either on campus or off They will sign a lease that obligates them to its terms But as we all know life happens and often the four best friends and roommates who start out the year don’t always finish the year together Then what Consider a twofold approach Make sure your child reads and understands the terms of the lease Create an…

Heading off to college can be exciting and scary at the same time For some it may be the first time they are moving away from home and managing their personal finances more independently These tips may help prepare students heading off to school as they navigate life away from home , 1 Make sure you have signed a Health Care Power of Attorney (POA, Once you turn eighteen you are officially considered a legal “adult” as it relates to making health care decisions According to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA” a medical provider can choose not to disclose health information to anyone if they determine it is not in the best interests of the patient including your parents  To avoid this potential issue you…, 2 Establish a budget, Being on your own also means overseeing your own finances It is important to get a sense of what your cost of living is as a student in college and make sure you can stick to a budget This will make sure you are set up for success in college and beyond , Understanding fixed and variable expenses, One helpful way to build out a budget is to determine how much you are spending on fixed expenses and variable expenses Fixed expenses are items that do not typically vary month-to-month such as rent Wi-Fi/cell phone bills groceries and other recurring charges Variable expenses might include things like restaurants concert tickets and other expenses that do not stay the same month-to-month  Once…, Take advantage of student discounts , As a student you may be entitled to perks and discounts at stores Movie theaters subscription streaming services and other retailers often offer some discounts for students enrolled in college It never hurts to ask , Build loyalty with an airline if you are going to school out of state, If you are going out of state for school consider signing up for the various free loyalty programs offered by airlines This will help you start to earn miles that can be useful in the future , 3 Open a bank account and establish credit , You may have already opened a bank account in high school but if not now is the perfect time Make sure to use a reputable bank such as one that your parents use and recommend Opening a checking savings and a credit card will help you start to establish good credit if you are responsible and pay your credit card statement in full each month This is where it is important to have a budget in place , 4 Consider a summer internship, While summer break is time away from the workload of classes it is also a great time to start working towards building your career after college Consider an internship like a sample of what a job might look like full time Take advantage of the opportunity to work in a field that you are interested in Even if you find that you are not as enthused by the work as you thought still make sure to build…, 5 Start saving for retirement, Saving for retirement while in college sounds like an oxymoron But if you have earned income you may be eligible to save in a Roth IRA Roth IRAs are retirement accounts that are funded with after-tax dollars At retirement distributions from the account are tax-free Investing in a Roth IRA can be beneficial for younger investors since that money can grow tax-deferred for many years until…