Inside ETFs CEO, John Swolfs
Now in its 12th year, Inside ETFs continues to attract the brightest investors, largest issuers; thought leaders and, of course, the top advisors from across the country to south Florida for 3-and-a-half days of everything ETF-related. But this year was so much more than just ETFs. With an expanded Advisor Accelerator, closed-door sessions and interviews with the likes of Michael Lewis, Julie Rice and Joe Montana, we covered it all.
The conference kicked off with our world-famous ETF University, transforming the ETF novice to an ETF expert, while making sure to touch on the most pressing issues facing advisors, like how to trade ETFs in volatile markets and how to better understand the role fixed income and smart-beta ETFs play in client portfolios.
The Inside ETFs conference has continued to evolve as ETFs development, usage and exposure has.
Our 3rd annual ETF industry summit was focused on how to build, compete and win in an industry in which fees are racing to zero. The summit was capped off by an illuminating keynote from Ed Robinson, president and co-founder of STASH, on how they’re winning in a zero-fee world.
One of my highlights from the conference was the engagement of the advisors once Robinson got into his talk. At first, many were sceptical, but by the end, we had more questions than time.
Sunday was highlighted by Barron’s top advisor, Ric Edelman as he shared his view of the future and the role of advisors and advice itself.
The room remained packed out as former heads of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Republican National Committee (RNC), Donna Brazile and Michael Steele took the stage for a bipartisan conversation on how the country can moved forward to bridge the political divide.
Things really started to heat up right out of the gate on Monday morning, as Vanguard’s CIO, Gregory Davis shared Vanguard’s economic outlook, thoughts on the bond market and how advisors are in a unique position to be the true voice of reason and the coach’s that clients need.
With a muted economic outlook, advisors will have the opportunity to reinforce why they are vital to their clients’ success.
As the day progressed, we tackled many of the biggest issues in the ETF industry, as the industry’s business leaders gathered to talk about which direction our industry is heading, the challenges ahead, and how the leaders are recommitting to advisors and the industry.
The audience also witnessed history in the making as Stacey Cunningham, the first female president of the New York Stock Exchange, took to the stage to answers questions, giving an insight to the ETFs landscape in 2019.
Of course, day one would not be complete without the annual talk from industry veterans, Matt Hougan and Dave Nadig. They changed their forecast for the time when ETFs will surpass mutual fund assets from 2025 to 2024.
Their talk was not all sunshine and roses, as they discussed the “great unwrapping” of the ETF and how direct indexing could pose a threat to the thriving ETF marketplace.
Monday was punctuated by two amazing interviews, as Barry Ritholtz first sat down with Julie Rice of WeWorks and SoulCycle for a conversation on innovation, brand building and why you need passion to succeed.
Then, Barry again took the main stage to interview world-renowned and critically-acclaimed author, Michael Lewis.
If Monday sessions laid the foundations of a great conference, Tuesday only helped to build on that, as we took time to dive into many of the topics and concerns advisors face when managing assets.
Three sessions come to mind as thought leaders gathered to cover smart beta, fixed income and ESG.
The day did not end there, as RIA legend, Joe Duran of United Capital talked about the client experience and why it truly can help if you distinguish yourself from your competitors.
Building on the momentum of the day, the afternoon was highlighted by the amusing and educational Best New ETF debate. Finally, the day ended with NFL Hall of Fame Quarterback, Joe Montana sitting down with Inside ETFs CEO John Swolfs for a fun and lively interview.
Finally, Wednesday saw the return of our highly successful Big Ideas Day, in which the conference covered a range of topics designed to get our audience thinking, asking questions and sharing new investment ideas.
Advisers were treated to a talk from Josh Brown on why they are not going to be put out of business by software and technology, but instead can thrive and be great. Applause erupted in the auditorium to this proclamation.
Of course, no Big Ideas Day would be complete if we’re not talking about the growing interest in cannabis and how to invest in such a complex industry.
Overall, Inside ETFs 2019 was one for the ages, as we continued to see the event grow and saw talks from the likes Prof. Robert Shiller, Paul Tudor Jones, Jeffrey Sherman, Stacey Cunningham, Kristina Hooper, MaryAnn Bartels and so many more.
Here’s to 2020. More photos of the event can be found here.