The importance of tail risk strategies in uncertain investment markets

The importance of tail risk strategies in uncertain investment markets
Jan 26, 2022
Ian Johnson
The importance of tail risk strategies in uncertain investment markets
After the sharp market declines in March 2020 due to the COVID pandemic, the Victoria Foundation's Investment Committee decided to add "tail risk strategies" to its portfolio in order to stabilize returns and ensure there wouldn't be any constraints on distributions during times of need. 
 
Ian will discuss the importance of tail risk strategies which are designed to profit from a pronounced downturn in the market. Last November, led by Ian via Zoom, the committee had the benefit of expertise in this specialized area from the world’s four leading tail risk managers.  Ian will share some of their insights with us and his talk will be particularly informative for everyone who is interested in mitigating the continued market uncertainty with respect to their own personal portfolios.
 

Ian is the Chief Operating Officer of Oak Bay Capital, a boutique investment management firm.  Prior to joining Oak Bay Capital, Ian was the Chief Risk Officer for SAGE Connected Investing, where he led multiple projects related to the launch of the SAGE Proactive Income Equity Fund (the first pooled fund in Canada launched under the Raymond James umbrella).  Before that, Ian was a Portfolio Manager at Sherpa Asset Management, a top-ranked Canadian hedge fund, where he actively managed multiple portfolios for some of Canada’s most sophisticated institutional investors, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, the Manitoba Teachers’ Society and the Jim Pattison Foundation. In 2012, Sherpa’s flagship Fund, which Ian helped create and co-managed, was nominated as one of three finalists for Morningstar’s Best Opportunistic Hedge Fund award.

He is a graduate of Queen’s University and a CFA charterholder.  He also teaches two investment courses for the Continuing Studies program at the University of Victoria and is a guest lecturer for the 4th year Strategic Investing course at the Richard Ivey School of Business. And he volunteers his time as a member of the Victoria Foundation's Investment Committee.