Canterbury Consulting, an independent investment advisory firm overseeing approximately $38.2 billion in assets as of December 31, 2023, hosted its Annual Forum in Newport Beach, California, on March 19, 2024. Canterbury hosts this annual educational event for endowment, foundation, healthcare, and family office clients to hear from renowned speakers and network with peers.

The forum featured presentations from industry experts such as Ron Temple, Chief Market Strategist at Lazard Asset Management; Abigail Glerum, Principal at GoldenTree Asset Management; Barry Eichengreen, Chair and Distinguished Professor of Economics and Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley; and Yaniv Tepper, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Angeleno Group.

Ron Temple discussed where he sees opportunities and risks in global financial markets and how investors can best position themselves for the years ahead. "I am quite optimistic about a soft landing in the United States, and it is my base case scenario for 2024 and 2025. Now, to be clear, there could always be exogenous shocks or something that goes wrong to derail this positive story, but when I look at the U.S. economy, I think the Fed has largely accomplished what I would call an immaculate disinflation."

Abigal Glerum explored opportunities and risks in the high-yield credit market during the forum. "The high-yield credit markets really offer some of the most attractive opportunities we've seen in a long time. Although spreads are at tighter levels, yields are at some of the widest levels we have seen historically." Ms. Glerum also shared, "The loan market is the area of the market that presents the greatest risk, but it is also likely to be one of the more interesting opportunity sets over the coming quarters and years."

Professor Eichengreen presented on geopolitics and the global economy in the 21st century. "Globalization is being reconfigured, and the direct links between China and the U.S., in particular, are being loosened in favor of other emerging markets."

Yaniv Tepper presented the evolution of the investment landscape in clean energy and sustainability over the past decade. Mr. Tepper shared, "I think that a lot of the benefit of the early venture players that came into the market and tested some of the early markets around solar, wind, and electric vehicles created business models that the newer entrepreneurs can see what worked and what didn't work. And today, we see a much deeper, healthier pipeline of growth companies that are paying a lot more attention to early profitability."

The Annual Forum provided attendees with valuable insights, networking opportunities, and engagement with Canterbury professionals. For exclusive videos featuring speakers from Canterbury Consulting's 2024 Annual Forum and key insights shared at the event, click here.