In early December, I had the pleasure of attending a Wealth Management conference in Zurich with some of Europe’s largest asset and wealth managers. There were many interesting discussions for both professional and end-client as we all had one thing on our minds – how to make money in 2016?! There are plenty of issues to keep us concerned and cautious as we actively seek opportunities. It is interesting to see how the entire industry grapples with similar issues of low returns, high levels of uncertainty and volatile markets – I have elaborated more on this issue below.

The last quarter has been a painful one in global markets. August was one of the worst months we have had since the 2008 crises. It is one thing to talk about expected volatility but it is another thing to experience it (professional money managers are human too).

Please be assured that we are watching the situation very carefully to protect your investments and seek opportunities. This volatility has been a long time in the making and we have commented on this expectation in previous quarterly communications, explaining how we position ourselves to optimize the relative risk and return environment.

The consensus is that this volatility is here to stay, so we need to be disciplined and hold the course. We must be very careful not to make the classic behavioral finance mistakes of selling at the wrong time so we need to stick to our long-term plans.

This quarter has seen some relatively exceptional movements in the bond market and the resurgence of the Greek tragedy. The volatility has been a long time in the making and we have commented on this expectation in previous quarterly communications, explaining how we position ourselves to optimize the relative risk and return environment.

The consensus is that this volatility is here to stay, so we need to be disciplined and hold the course. We must do everything we can to avoid selling after a sharp drop in the bond market and stick to our long-term plans.

These are historic times in the wealth management business. On the one hand, I am deeply concerned that the low interest rate environment will strain expectations for higher yielding portfolios, but on the other hand, the role of a financial advisor has never been more important. The market situation, as explained in more detail below, is extremely precarious and the value of independent and frank discussions about risk cannot be overstated. This is a not a Pioneer issue – it is a general issue facing the entire money management industry and clients are encouraged to try to understand the challenges, in order to make the appropriate decisions with their financial planners.