As an individual investor fully exposed to the business cycle through full-time employment, it is essential for me to manage my overall risk exposure via investments.
Plain-vanilla long-only equity and fixed-income ETFs and mutual funds have a high correlation to economic outcomes and labor markets; for example, nearly all of them crashed during the March 2020 bear market, at precisely the same time that many lost their income due to pandemic restrictions, and in 2009, when massive layoffs occurred due to the global financial crisis.
All individual investors need the ability to access uncorrelated or less-correlated asset classes as a means of protecting our economic security. And we need the ability to freely manage our risk exposure using leveraged and inverse products. Risk management is even more important for individual investors of lower net worth, as we are more exposed to the business and employment cycle.
Existing regulations already present excessive obstacles to me as a well-educated investor -- please refrain from any further restrictions!
Please preserve the freedom to protect myself and my family through intelligent investment decisions.
Erik Haugen Comment On Regulatory Notice 22-08
Dear Regulators,
As an individual investor fully exposed to the business cycle through full-time employment, it is essential for me to manage my overall risk exposure via investments.
Plain-vanilla long-only equity and fixed-income ETFs and mutual funds have a high correlation to economic outcomes and labor markets; for example, nearly all of them crashed during the March 2020 bear market, at precisely the same time that many lost their income due to pandemic restrictions, and in 2009, when massive layoffs occurred due to the global financial crisis.
All individual investors need the ability to access uncorrelated or less-correlated asset classes as a means of protecting our economic security. And we need the ability to freely manage our risk exposure using leveraged and inverse products. Risk management is even more important for individual investors of lower net worth, as we are more exposed to the business and employment cycle.
Existing regulations already present excessive obstacles to me as a well-educated investor -- please refrain from any further restrictions!
Please preserve the freedom to protect myself and my family through intelligent investment decisions.