1. A Two-Pronged Approach To Fight Inflation
Inflation is no longer a passing threat; it's an enduring feature of a world defined by fiscal expansion, supply shocks, and strategic competition. Investors seeking to preserve purchasing power need tools that protect against both realized and expected inflation. A dual exposure to gold futures and Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) offers a balanced, capital-efficient defense. Gold delivers torque to shifting expectations and policy risk, while TIPS anchor returns to the math of inflation itself. Together, they form a modern inflation hedge designed not just to survive volatility, but to thrive in it—a two-pronged strategy for an unstable monetary era. — Christopher Gannatti
2. The Weak Dollar Story Investors Love — and Why It’s Likely Wrong
We noted last week that February tends to be a weaker month for returns. So far, it has certainly lived up to its name. This past week opened with investors selling technology, and particularly software stocks, to buy value sectors. Energy, financials, and industrials continued to attract flows as investors leaned into cash flow, dividends, and near-term earnings certainty. However, as I noted on X this past week, while those sectors may have better earnings “certainty,” the earnings growth rates don’t justify the recent valuation expansions. As shown, the valuations for industrials, staples, energy, and materials are “cheap” compared to the market but very expensive relative to their own history. — Lance Roberts
3. 10 Sure Things Top Advisors Execute Every Single Week
What if the reason your practice isn’t growing isn’t your marketing… or your portfolio construction… or your pricing — but the handful of “sure things” you’re accidentally skipping on your busiest weeks? Here’s the uncomfortable truth: Most advisors don’t lose clients over performance. They lose clients due to silence, friction, ambiguity, and inconsistency—the things that never show up on a statement but always show up in a relationship. — Grant Hicks
4. Crypto Winter Calls for Protected Bitcoin Exposure
It seems safe to say that the crypto winter isn’t showing many signs of warming up any time soon. The price of bitcoin dropped to a new 52-week low on February 5, nearly going below the $60,000 threshold. This represented more than a 52% drop from the cryptocurrency’s sky-high prices in October 2025. — Calamos
5. Single, Solvent, and Overlooked: Why Financial Advisors Should Rethink the “Singles Market”
Single folks might not want to hear it. After all, there old though still lingering perceptions that single people aren’t as affluent as their married counterparts and it’s not up for debate that married get tax breaks their unmarried friends can’t access. For example, the standard deduction doubles for married couples and they get access to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) while also getting the benefit of a more advantageous tax bracket if one member of the couple makes significantly more than the other. — Todd Shriber
6. 2026: The Year of Stimulus?
Multiple monetary and fiscal policies and other external factors on the horizon in 2026 have the potential to stimulate the economy with cash and easier borrowing conditions. While their directional impacts, especially on financial markets, remain to be seen, it’s important to be aware of them. One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act: The new legislation package passed last year will begin to have noticeable impact on consumers and businesses in 2026, as we are expected to see record tax cuts and refunds, putting hundreds of billions of dollars back into the economy. If these extra funds are used quickly, we can expect to see additional business investment and consumer spending. — Nolan Mauk
7. AI Is Reshaping Wealth Management Faster Than Most Firms Realize
Why it's good — and why everyone needs to keep their head on a swivel. Wednesday morning I was driving into Orlando when I got a call from an industry reporter looking for a scoop on an AI and a custodian working together. This was coming off of Altruist's announcement of their Hazel-driven agentic solution that immediately turned heads and dropped share prices at the establishment custodians. Even if I had a scoop, I’m careful to never comment when the news isn’t mine to share. I do, however, always enjoy catching up. — Jud Mackrill
8. AI Isn’t Killing Advisory Fees—Weak Value Is
“The market is moving from seeing AI as a productivity booster to seeing it as a fee-killer,” said Sarah Miller, a senior fintech analyst. “If a $60-a-month AI tool can do the planning that used to justify a 1% AUM fee, the math for traditional firms ceases to function.” — Mike Garrison
9. The Easiest Way to 10x Your Referrals (Almost No One Does It)
The easiest method for anyone to generate and get more referrals and favourable introductions is to GIVE more referrals and introductions. This is just not done as much as it could or should by most professionals, and usually they say it is because they “didn’t think of it”. That begs the question of course: If we can’t think to do it then what makes us think our clients will think to do it for us? — Tony Vidler
10. The Fire Horse Effect: What a 60-Year Market Cycle Might Teach Investors About 2026
The Year of the Yang Fire Horse returns for the first time since 1966. While astrology isn’t investment strategy, the behavioral patterns surrounding high-energy market cycles may offer powerful lessons for HNW investors and financial advisors navigating AI enthusiasm, geopolitical tension, and expanding risk appetite. — David Conti
11. AI’s Wealth Management Shock To Separate Leaders From the Rest
The launch of Hazel, the new AI-powered tax planning tool from US fintech Altruist, has delivered a jolt to financial markets. Within hours, wealth management stocks were marked down sharply as investors digested the implications. Hazel promises to analyse 1040s, payslips and account data and generate personalised tax strategies within minutes. The message absorbed by the market was immediate: if sophisticated planning can be automated at speed, traditional advisory economics face pressure. There's substance behind that reaction. — Nigel Green
