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Global equity markets maintained their upward momentum in May for a fourth month in a row as the progress of the ongoing vaccine rollout around the world allowed many economies to steadily reopen. Most major equity indices made gains over the month, with the S&P 500, Euro STOXX 50 and the FTSE 100 up 0.7%, 2.5% and 1.1% respectively. However, markets were constrained by concerns of rising inflation due to increased consumer demand and rising input costs. In the US, the Federal Reserve acknowledged it may need to consider tapering its bond purchases at some point but advised it believes the recent jump in inflation will prove to be transitory. In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's roadmap for lifting lockdown restrictions progressed to the next stage with the reopening of indoor hospitality. The yields on UK and US 10-year bonds decreased by 5 and 3 basis points respectively. The pound was up 2.8% against the US dollar and 1.1% against the euro.

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Whether you're a believer or a sceptic, the growing popularity of cryptocurrencies is impossible to ignore. Please join Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo Wealth, as he chats to Professor Campbell Harvey about DeFi and his upcoming book on the space. If you're curious to learn about the world of decentralised finance, be sure to join us for this conversation.

Date: Wednesday, 23 June 2021
Time: 3:00 PM (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Campbell and Ainsley to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, recently featured in an Afrikaans podcast on Biznews Radio, discussing his approach to investing with an emphasis on international diversification - those who understand the language can listen to it via the below button.

Can one take the risk of being underweight a value strategy, in the face of a normalisation of interest rates? Or even worse, an inflationary environment where the Fed has to aggressively step in. Growth strategies do not react well in inflationary or rising interest rate environments, particularly coming off such high valuations (as they are now). Jarrod Cahn, Credo Global Equity Fund Manager, was featured in Citywire following participation in the recent BCI Global Investment Conference.

The well-known author and FT columnist Simon Kuper was the special guest in the latest Fireside Chat hosted by Credo Wealth.

Simon chatted to Deon Gouws (Credo's Chief Investment Officer) about a range of topics, including money in football, the role Oxford University has played in shaping British politics and the question of national identity.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

This April, we celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the inception of the Best Ideas Portfolio (BIP), a significant landmark in the life of Credo's oldest and largest equity product. We are pleased that, as of the 30th April 2021, the portfolio has returned 12.3% per annum, which exceeds the return of the MSCI World Index over the same period. The practical implication of this rate of return over 10 years, is that...

Facebook is a company which divides opinion like few others: whilst many people continue to say that they'd like to leave its various platforms, there are still some 2 billion subscribers around the world who are active on a daily basis.

In his latest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth), shares some thoughts about the investment case.

Global equity markets continued to perform strongly in April supported by the gradual re-opening of many economies around the world and the continued progress in both the UK and the US with their vaccine programmes. Most major equity indices made gains over the month, with the S&P 500, Euro STOXX 50 and the FTSE 100 up 5.3%, 1.9% and 4.1% respectively. In the US, President Joe Biden outlined plans for two further stimulus packages: the $2.3 trillion "American Jobs Plan" and the $1.8 trillion "American Families Plan", as well as extending many tax credits from the original "Rescue Plan". The yield on US 10-year bonds decreased by 11 basis points, while the yield on UK 10-year bonds was flat. The pound was down 0.3% against the US dollar and down 2.2% against the euro.

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Plans to create a European Super League shook the football world recently. Sport has indeed become big business... but is it a good one? Please join Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, as he chats to Simon Kuper, renowned columnist for the Financial Times. Mr Kuper lives in Paris but is a true global citizen with much to offer on a variety of topics, in addition to his unique insights into football and other sports.

Date: Wednesday, 26 May 2021
Time: 3:00 PM (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Simon and Deon to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

Jarrod Cahn, lead manager of Credo Global Equity Fund, was one of the speakers at the recent Investment Week Global Equities Market Briefing. In this accompanying Q&A, he explains how Credo's Value based investment style has led to strong returns for investors. He also examines how the portfolio is positioned, the characteristics he looks for in stocks and where he is currently seeing attractive opportunities.

Bitcoin has outperformed most other investments over the past few years and last week saw the successful listing of Coinbase, a leading platform for transacting in cryptocurrency.

In his latest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth), shares his own limited experience with bitcoin and Coinbase.

The USA is the largest military spender in the world. It thus stands to reason that seven out of the ten largest defence companies in the world are also American. The US Department of Defence's (DoD) decision on how much to spend, is therefore a driving factor for both allies' and foes' military budgets as well as the performance of defence stocks. Since President Biden's election, concerns...

The latest Fireside Chat hosted by Credo Wealth was a thought-provoking conversation between Deon Gouws and Cullen Roche.

They discussed a wide range of topics, including the role of the US Federal Reserve, the outlook for inflation and its impact on interest rates, Bitcoin, and the myth of passive investing.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

US and European equity markets maintained their positive momentum in March, supported by the progress made by the UK and US on the vaccine rollout and further US fiscal stimulus. The S&P 500, Euro STOXX 50 and the FTSE 100 were up 4.4%, 7.9% and 4.2% respectively. In the US, President Joe Biden signed a $1.9 trillion "Rescue Plan" into law, which will provide stimulus cheques of $1,400 to most Americans. Brent Crude oil was down 1.3% over the month on the back of both growing concerns over increasing coronavirus cases in Europe and OPEC's failure to reach a deal on oil supply cuts with Russia and Saudi Arabia. The yield on UK and US 10-year bonds increased by 3 and 34 basis points respectively. The pound was down 1.1% against the US dollar and up 1.8% against the euro.

Click below for the latest factsheets.

In normal times, the oil price is predominantly supply-driven. Changes to the supply status quo, such as the shale oil glut of 2015 and 2016 and the resultant price collapse, were eventually countered by production cuts from OPEC. Meanwhile, demand dynamics tend to be much more stable, related to the steady rise in global GDP, albeit overlaid with some cyclicality related to economic...

The US Federal Reserve (Fed) is one of the most important participants in financial markets. Please join Deon Gouws, Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth, as he chats to Cullen Roche, a true expert when it comes to the role of the Fed and its impact on global investments. Mr Roche is based in California and has the unique ability of explaining complex concepts in layman's language, always couched in good humour and intellectual modesty.

Date: Wednesday, 14 April 2021
Time: 4:30 PM (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Cullen and Deon to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

The latest Fireside Chat hosted by Credo Wealth was an insightful conversation between Ainsley To and Alex Edmans.

They discussed the pitfalls of ESG investing, the social responsibility of business, the nuances in interpreting data & research, and many other topics. A must watch for those curious about the ways conventional wisdom is misguided when it comes to how companies serve investors and wider society.

Please note that any views expressed are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect Credo's views.

The best performing share in the world over the past year has been that of electric motor vehicle manufacturer, Tesla.

In his latest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth), counts the opportunity cost of having sold out his own speculative position in this company years ago.

In the Offshore Supplement of MoneyMarketing, Jarrod Cahn shares some valuable insights on how the Credo Global Equity fund is positioned. A pragmatic approach to investing with conviction.

February was largely a positive month for global equity markets with the S&P 500, Euro STOXX 50 and the FTSE 100 up 2.8%, 4.6% and 1.6% respectively. Markets responded well to the continued decrease in new coronavirus cases and the progress made by the UK and US with their vaccine programmes. In the US, the House of Representatives approved a $1.9 trillion "Rescue Plan", the first of at least two spending bills by the Biden administration, and is expected to be passed by Congress in March. Brent Crude oil was up 17.5% as the continued vaccine roll-out supported the outlook for a strong recovery in global growth. In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his roadmap for the gradual re-opening of the economy, starting with schools on 8 March. In the fixed income market, the yields on UK, US and German 10-year bonds increased by 49, 34 and 26 basis points respectively. The pound was up 1.6% against the US dollar and 2.2% against the euro.

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There continues to be much hype surrounding ESG Investing and corporate social responsibility. Please join Ainsley To, Head of Multi-Asset at Credo Wealth, as he chats to Professor Alex Edmans, a thought leader in the space. If you're curious about how conventional wisdom is misguided when it comes to purposeful business, be sure to join us for this conversation.

Date: Wednesday, 17 March 2021
Time: 3:30 PM (UK)
Duration: 45 min (plus 15 min for previously submitted questions)

Please send any questions you may have for Alex and Ainsley to events@credogroup.com no later than midday (UK time) on the event day.

Once registered, you'll receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the live event. For a smoother experience, the recommended browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

Covid-19 has been making headlines for over a year now. In this piece, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth) shares his personal experience of the illness

In October 2020, days before the planned IPO of Ant Financial which is set to be the biggest in history, Jack Ma, co-founder of Alibaba and controlling shareholder of Ant, gave a speech at the Bund Summit in Shanghai. Despite the presence of the Vice President of the People's Bank of China, Ma took aim at China's financial system, or lack thereof, as he determined. He also...

Ben Newton, Co-Manager of the Credo Dynamic Fund, recently spoke to Investment Week about the opportunities available in the UK property sector. He examines the emerging trends and challenges and illustrates how selective exposure has proved rewarding for investors in the fund.

Stock markets around the world are trading near all-time highs and there's growing talk of a bubble in financial assets... is a correction or a crash imminent?

In his latest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth), makes the point that even experts find it difficult to time the end of a bull market.

After a bright start to the year, most US and European equity markets performed poorly in January, with the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and Euro STOXX 50 down 1.0%, 0.8% and 1.8% respectively. Optimism relating to the vaccine rollout waned as new coronavirus strains were discovered and concerns over the ongoing economic impact of continued restrictions took hold. In the US, the Democrats won control of the Senate, giving them control over both houses of Congress. President Biden's new administration announced their plans for a new USD 1.9 trillion stimulus package, the 'American Rescue Plan'. Brent Crude oil was up 6.3% over the month, as Saudi Arabia agreed to cut its oil production as the coronavirus forced economies back into further lockdowns. The yields on UK, US and German 10-year bonds increased by 13, 15, 5 basis points respectively. The pound was up 0.3% against the US dollar and 0.9% against the euro.

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Credo's Chief Investment Officer, Deon Gouws and Director: Equities, Jarrod Cahn, provide some valuable insight into Credo's view of the global economy and how we are positioning the Credo Global Equity fund.

Over the past few months, we, alongside many others, have tried to imagine what the world will look like after the successful rollout of a vaccination programme. There are inevitably some changes that we have made to our lifestyles which will stay, but also many which we will all be pleased to get rid of. There will be some activities that we gladly and quickly return to and others where...

At the beginning of a new year, strategists typically share their forecasts about the twelve months ahead.

In his eleventh guest column for leading South African publication Financial Mail, Deon Gouws (Chief Investment Officer at Credo Wealth), illustrates how most forecasts boil down to a waste of time.

Louise Usher profiles some of the key features of the Credo platform in January's edition of Money Marketing. The key message being the value that the platform provides across the spectrum from trading; reporting and access to whole of market investment instruments.

Global equity markets continued to climb through December, prompted by the news of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines being approved. All the major equity indices made gains over the month, with the FTSE 100, S&P 500 and the Euro STOXX 50 all up 3.3%, 3.8% and 1.8% respectively. In the US, the markets responded positively to the election result, but attention has now turned to the upcoming Senate runoff elections in Georgia, which will decide whether the Democrats or Republicans control the Senate. Gold was up 6.4% over the month, bolstered by the weakening US Dollar and Brent crude oil prices increased 8% as OPEC and Russia reached a deal to modestly increase oil production. In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that a Brexit deal had finally been agreed with the European Union. As a result, the pound was up 2.6% against the US dollar and 0.13% against the euro. Yields on UK 10-year bonds decreased by 11 basis points whilst yields on US 10-year bonds increased by 7 basis points.

Click below for the latest factsheets.