The global investment landscape has shifted dramatically since 2024. In this episode, Pooja Malik, CFA - Founding Partner and CIO at Nipun Capital - returns to Financial Perspectives to discuss the surprising trends of 2025 and 2026 in Emerging Markets, including the "junk rally" in AI-linked stocks and the impact of US tariffs on local policy.

With over 20 years of experience managing $100B+ portfolios at firms like BlackRock, Pooja provides a masterclass on alpha extraction in modern Asian markets. In this follow-up to her 2024 appearance, Pooja discusses how the AI theme has moved beyond the "obvious winners" to impact the entire power supply chain. She also shares her quantitative perspective on why the volatility of Indian and Chinese equities is trending downward, creating a new paradigm for global allocators.

In this episode, we cover:

• The AI Bubble in Asia: Why retail investors are buying anything remotely linked to power and data centers.
• Risk Reversal: Why US debt and political uncertainty are shifting risk perceptions toward developed markets.
• Sovereign Powerhouses: A look at the distinct economic visions of India, China, and Saudi Arabia.
• The Benchmarking Gap: Why EM drives 60% of global GDP but only 10% of equity benchmarks.

In this episode of Financial Perspectives, host Tanya Suba-Tang sits down with Katie Stockton, CMT, Founder and Managing Partner of Fairlead Strategies, to pull back the curtain on the technical signals driving today's markets. As the market navigates a more volatile 2026, Katie explains how technical analysis provides an objective framework for interpreting price action, sentiment, and the significant sector rotations currently underway.

Katie breaks down why the energy sector is seeing a massive breakout while traditional tech leaders are struggling. She also shares her "go-to" toolkit for navigating a corrective tape, including how indicators like the VIX and key support levels help professional investors stay on the right side of a trend. From the breakout in energy to the shifting momentum in mega-cap tech, this conversation is a deep dive into the mechanics of market transitions.

The episode explores:

1. The Dynamics of Sector Rotation: Interpreting the wide performance spread between energy’s long-term breakouts and the recent underperformance in technology.
2. Sentiment as a Contrarian Gauge: How to utilize transactional indicators like the VIX and the Fear & Greed Index to identify market extremes.
3. The Art of Support Discovery: How to recognize potential areas of buying pressure and the technical signals that suggest a corrective phase is maturing.
4. Trend Following vs. Predictive Analysis: Why technical analysis focuses on maintaining alignment with existing trends rather than setting rigid price targets.
5. Intermarket Relationships: Understanding how high-risk asset classes can serve as informational signals for broader equity market posturing.

Whether you are managing risk or looking for the next intermediate-term catalyst, this conversation offers actionable insights into keeping the trends on your side.

In this episode of Financial Perspectives, host Tanya Suba-Tang sits down with Kimberly Flynn, CFA - founder and president of XA Investments - to discuss the rapidly changing landscape of alternative investments. Following a period of disappointing returns for traditional asset classes, institutional and retail investors alike are seeking diversification and yield in the private markets.

Key topics covered include:

1. The Rise of Private Credit: How the disintermediation of banks has created a gap for direct lending and private credit to fill.
2. Emerging Opportunities for 2026: Why asset-backed lending, real estate debt, and infrastructure debt are becoming essential for income-oriented investors and retirees.
3. Breaking the 60/40 Mold: The catalyst behind the 20–25% growth in the interval fund market and the push to include alternatives in 401(k) plans.
4. The "Tangibility" Factor: Why wealth managers are turning to real assets like data facilities and infrastructure to help educate first-time alternative investors.

Whether you’re an institutional investor, advisor, or finance professional, this episode provides a forward-looking perspective on how private markets could transform portfolio construction in the years ahead.

Companies mentioned in this episode:

1. XA Investments
2. CFA Society San Francisco