● House of Fidelity: The Rise of the Johnson Dynasty and the Company That Changed American Investing
Justin Baer
Review via Financial Times
Few companies touch the lives of as many people as Fidelity. The Boston-based financial group directly manages $7tn and administers a total of $18tn, serving an estimated 57mn people, or one in five American adults through retirement plans, investment funds and brokerage accounts.
But the private group is owned and run by a publicity-shy New England dynasty that largely shuns the limelight. That has left customers and rivals to guess exactly what chief executive Abigail Johnson and her team have been up to as Fidelity embarked on a massive growth spurt and pushed well past its money management rivals in terms of employees, revenue and, crucially, profits.
In House of Fidelity, veteran journalist Justin Baer seeks to lift the lid on this enormous company, which employs more than 80,000 people and reported $12.7bn in operating income last year, dwarfing BlackRock, the world’s largest public asset manager.
Monthly Archives: May 2026
Geopolitics, Inflation, and a Bond‑Market Surprise in Favor Of Junk
Diversifying into foreign bonds hasn’t provided much benefit to U.S. investors since the Middle East conflict began, with one exception: high‑yield corporate bonds issued by firms in emerging markets.
Risk-On Returns, but Cracks Still Show Beneath the Surface
A few days before the war with Iran began on Feb. 28, The Capital Spectator reported that “Bullish Momentum Holds Firm in Global Asset Allocation,” based on a set of ETFs targeting multi-asset strategies. The risk‑on profile quickly evaporated as investors ran for cover in the wake of hostilities. But more than two months later, risk appetite is looking resilient once more.
Momentum Factor Roars As War Fears Fade On Wall Street
War? What war?
The effects of the Middle East conflict continue to reverberate through the global economy, but for the strongest performers among US equity factors, the war has been little more than an afterthought.
Latest Middle East Turmoil Revives Inflation Worries
The US–Iran conflict has entered its third month, and the prospects for a quick solution remain low after a fragile ceasefire briefly broke down in the Gulf on Monday. Oil and gas prices remain elevated, all but ensuring that inflation will continue to rise, or at least remain elevated, in the near term.
Total Return Forecasts: Major Asset Classes | 4 May 2026
The long-term performance outlook for the Global Market Index (GMI) edged higher in April. The current 7%-plus estimate for the benchmark’s annualized return is at the top end of recent forecasts. Relative to the trailing 10-year result, however, GMI is still on track to post substantially softer results in the years ahead.
Book Bits: 2 May 2026
● Finishing the Inflation Job and New Challenges for Monetary Policy
Michael D. Bordo (editor), et al.
Summary via publisher (Hoover Institution Press)
How should the Fed finish the inflation-reduction job and prepare for the changing world ahead? And exactly how did one of Hoover’s most influential living economists assist scholars in thinking about where we go from here? Finishing the Inflation Job and New Challenges for Monetary Policy collects essays and discussions from the annual Hoover Institution Monetary Policy Conference, held on May 9, 2025, exploring these themes and considering other big-picture issues that affect monetary policy in this volatile international environment. Each year, the conference brings together academics, policymakers, media members, and others to consider the issues affecting monetary policy, both in the United States and worldwide. In the chapter sharing her welcoming remarks to the conference, Hoover Director Condoleezza Rice sets the tone, stating that the United States is “experiencing an avalanche of uncertainty,” with everything about the international order in question, including the United States’ role in it.
Major Asset Classes | April 2026 | Performance Review
Markets rebounded in April following the selloff in March. In some cases, you have to squint to see a recovery, but April’s gains were broad, lifting all the major asset classes to some degree, based on results for a set of ETFs.