The long and short of investing

LONG AND SHORT OF INVESTING

Real risk is not about Greek symbols; it is about losing money. It is not about tracking error or weighting reports - it is something that is offensive and hurts

Writing about any subject that has been in fashion for the past 18 months is always fraught with danger. Indeed, too much has probably already been written on long-short investing. Advisers have been left with an array of mixed messages from different interest groups. However, far too much of the debate has been taken up with talk of structure, domicile and legislation and far too little about the important things that affect clients. As a student of risk measures I learnt to cover a page in Greek symbols, analyse portfolios to three decimal places of accuracy and optimistically feel ...