Blog

Thoughts and musings from my desk to you.

Structured Notes Deconstructed

bonds, stock market

We occasionally see portfolios come in for review containing structured notes. There are a wide variety of them, so I will speak generally. Not everything I will say applies to all, but likely most.

A structured note is a bond from a brokerage firm or sponsor which represents an underlying derivative. Most often, this derivative is a set of option contracts. The underlying derivative is what sets the parameters of upside vs. downside and can make them seem like a viable proposition.

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Recession on the Horizon

bonds, economy

In my last musing, I wrote about the current odd situation where the 30-year Treasury bonds yields 2.58%, but inflation is running at 8% annualized. Who would loan their money to the government for three decades while it is currently depreciating at a rate three times that? To add insult to injury, Treasury bond interest is fully taxable as ordinary income at up to a 40.8% tax rate. That’s a great deal…for Uncle Sam.

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Gil's Musings

Learn about the world of investing from an industry veteran. Gil's Musings are inspired by Gil's thoughts on timely finance topics, stock market trends and the psychology behind smart investments.

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