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“As you get older, three things happen: the memory goes, and I forget the other two”—Erma Bombeck Being one who can empathize with the late, great humorist Ms. Bombeck, I thought it might be interesting to discuss a segment of the fixed income universe that has served community banking well over the decades. It’s …
Remember the Munis: Don’t go to sleep on a profitable bond sector Read More »
High baseline yields accompany surprisingly wide spreads If your responsibilities include your community bank’s bond portfolio, you’ve been confounded by several elements of its performance in the last 18 months. To the extent your portfolio has mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and government agency bonds, and the clear majority of all bonds owned by banks are …
I really wanted to do one of my “pipe rants” (as Chris likes to call them) and I might, but I wanted to put this idea out there first. Plus…it’s too hot in Memphis right now! Earlier this week, we had Pete Nelson with AgLaunch on our Barret Ag Lending Roundtable for Q2. Pete is …
Realigning Risk Management: What If You’re Wrong? Read More »
A few days ago, I read an article from Yahoo! Finance about AI’s use in providing financial advice for investors. As one would suspect, the younger then age of the investor, the more likely they are to use AI for investment advice. No real earth-shattering news there. There is still a considerable amount of distrust …
“SkyNet”, Investment Advice, and one terrible dad joke Read More »
Buyers of U.S. debt come in many shapes and sizes. I think we can all agree that there has been plenty to be concerned about in the last, say, five years. Some are environmental issues, some are social and, for community bankers, plenty are economic. What gets a lot of play in the business …
I was on a live stream yesterday with my friend, Ben Pankonin from Social Assurance and he asked me a great question about how the recent bank failures will impact what we do at the Barret School of Banking. It’s great question. It’s a timely question. I think it speaks right to the heart of …
What do the recent bank failures mean for banking education? Read More »
Current bond yields have long-term appeal I will be candid with you. Your correspondent is most assuredly not a professional journalist. And, being an accountant by trade, creativity isn’t something that comes naturally. Therefore, when composing these investment columns I often rely on some techniques I’ve learned from listening to the professionals. Among these …
Hybrid ARMs give an investor both features What’s your choice for the term of the decade so far (that is, other than COVID)? In the last three years, a number of expressions have come into fashion, some of which have been worn out, used out of context and deemed by linguists to be a …
Memphis, TN (November 15, 2022) – The Paul W. Barret, Jr. School of Banking today announced the election of its 2022-2023 Executive Committee during its fall Board meeting. Jim Gowen, Jr., CEO of Merchants & Planters Bank in Newport, AR will serve as Board Chair. Joining Gowen, Jr. on the Executive Committee are: Ray …
Some suggestions on how to wrap up 2022 The word “rally” can be used for a number of purposes and in different contexts. For instance, it could mean a long-distance auto race over varying surfaces and involving stages and checkpoints. It could mean a gathering of supporters to generate enthusiasm and momentum for an …
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Phone: (901) 321-4000 • barret@barretbanking.org