We estimate less than 1% of the general population knows what to ask before considering investing in a company. MarketWatch paraphrased Warren Buffett, “Put your money in index funds and move on… Seriously, you’ll do better. That’s what I plan to do with my own money once I am gone.” In short, buy index funds. Ample evidence proves the vast majority of investors would be considerably better off following this advice. Without unique knowledge, active investing is simply a guessing game.

Oscar Wilde is famously credited for the phrase, “A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything but the value of nothing.”  While the-ultra-wealthy are generally clear on both price and value, money cannot buy everything—particularly if it’s squandered by heirs who have no idea what it means to keep it. 

The capital markets are reasonably efficient and more often than not the market values assets accurately. Something must change for the price of an asset to depreciate or appreciate. When it’s the latter, the investor must be able to predict change. Shareholder Activism has a history of creating positive change. This paper explores how changes initiated by Activist investors create value far in excess of general market returns. The statistics show activists do this with significantly less risk than other forms of investment. In this paper, we will define the risks inherent in each stage of the Shareholder Activism process and how investors might profit from each.

An instant is all it takes to destroy a person’s ability to make important decisions. A lifetime of hard work, financial planning and dedication can be eradicated. Illness, a chance accident or cognitive decline over time may impair decision-making—or limit it entirely. One stroke could curtail a person’s ability to communicate, move and live independently.

Whether a global conglomerate, or a successful local operation, distinct challenges face growing businesses—yet for business owners wishing to preserve multi-generational control within their family, they face a particularly unique set of circumstances.  Succession planning can be particularly challenging for any founder, yet multi-generational family businesses must overcome differences of opinion about management and/or succession of power, and disagreements over assets and favoritism.

We estimate less than 1% of the general population knows what to ask before considering investing in a company. Mitch Tuchman paraphrased Warren Buffett for MarketWatch: “Put your money in index funds and move on… Seriously, you’ll do better. That’s what I plan to do with my money once I am gone.” In short, buy index funds.

When it comes to the family fortune, silence is not golden. History has repeated this lesson for centuries as nine out of 10 affluent families have consistently seen their financial legacy destroyed, and family unity right along with it, within three generations. The culprit is rarely bad investment advice, a risk-prone portfolio or economic turbulence.

Roy Williams and Vic Priesser collected data from 3,250 families who had lost their wealth. Less than 3% reported that poor planning and investments were to blame for their reversal of fortune.

Wealth management usually comes in two parts: financial planning to increase and manage your wealth, and estate planning to protect and pass the wealth along to heirs with as few taxes as possible. Unfortunately, 70% of family wealth is destroyed by the second generation, and family unity is destroyed right along with the wealth. After three generations, the loss of wealth exceeds 90%.

A common philanthropic mission can unite a family and create meaningful change in the world. But how does a family, consisting of many generations, personalities and individuals with different values remain passionate about the cause? Take Donald Trump and his children. Among them are: a presidential hopeful, a hunter, a modern Orthodox Jew and an aspiring pop star. Yet, the Trumps are living proof that it’s possible for individuals within a family to be quite different, yet, for a philanthropic legacy to flourish.

Is the financial advisor self-employed? Does s/he work for a firm? Are there financial obligations and quotas to be met on the firm’s behalf?

Why don’t all financial advisors work in their clients’ interest, in a coordinated manner, 100% of the time?  The short answer is—because they can.  And as a culture we have gotten used to this.  Investors who have experienced financial wrong doing at the hands of a service provider who want to right a wrong may, unfortunately, be embarking on a lengthy, expensive—and sometimes futile—process.