Podcast

Ep. 148: The Future of Investment with AI with Chris Shuba

- Matt Reiner
In this week’s episode of Bridging the Gap, Matt is joined by Chris Shuba to delve into the evolving landscape of investment management. Chris Shuba is the CEO and co-founder of Helios. They explore the significant shift in the correlation between stocks and bonds in recent years, the challenges advisors face due to this change, and how quant 2.0 models are being developed to counter these challenges by harnessing data and AI for dynamic real-time analysis to complement the long-standing knowledge of asset behaviors.
 
Helios’s role in the financial industry sector was a key point of conversation, highlighting its custom asset management services, which effectively create unique models for each advisor. The focus was on the nuances of their offerings, such as direct indexing versus traditional methods like ETFs, and the importance of tax efficiency, scalability, and transparency. Matt and Chris also dive into the psychological impact of presenting clients with extensive portfolios and discuss the value Helios adds. Helios mission to redefine the asset management experience through a suite of services was clear, detailing how Helios assists advisors with portfolio design, communication, compliance, and education.
 
The episode ended with a broader discussion on the impact AI could have on the industry. AI is not just a progressive trend but a transformative force that levels the playing field for smaller companies, enabling them to compete with industry giants by democratizing knowledge. They also shed light on the necessity for a disciplined investment process and decision-making strategy to prosper in a quant-driven world. This episode shed light on insights into the quantitative revolution in investing, the challenges and opportunities it presents, and the strategies companies like Helios are employing to bridge the gap in an AI-enhanced financial era.

 

Timestamps From This Episode

[00:08:47] Advisors struggle with client retention during tough periods. AI and machine learning improve models by analyzing real-time data to minimize underperformance.

[00:22:16] Direct indexing is not seen as a suitable replacement for ETFs due to scalability and ease of understanding. However, there is potential for tax efficiency improvements and evolution in ETFs through new legislation and access opportunities.

[00:32:10] AI enables small, bootstrapped companies like Helios to compete with larger, well-funded counterparts by saving time and resources through the use of neural nets. It allows them to quickly analyze data and find solutions that would have taken years to discover using traditional methods.

[00:35:55] Consistency in investment process leads to success and minimizes regret and fear. Stick to a process you believe in for better returns.

 

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About the Show

Bridging the Gap is a financial podcast hosted by CEO Matt Reiner focused on bringing together leaders from the finance and the technology industries to focus on innovating the financial services industry.

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Host

Matt Reiner, CFA, CFP®

I’ve been fortunate to be around the wealth management business for over 25 years. Along with this, I’m also the CEO of a tech startup. These experiences have given me a bird’s eye view of both the technology and financial services spaces.
Guest

Chris Shuba, Founder and CEO of Helios

Chris Shuba, founder and CEO of Helios; a quantitative asset management firm that provides an outsourced chief investment officer service to advisors.

When Chris began his professional journey, he identified a lack of innovation and high costs in existing services. Wanting to find a solution to these, he started a new category of service - insourced CIO (iCIO) and founded Helios. Helios, an advisory services firm, offers complimentary tools for risk profiling, portfolio risk analysis, performance analysis, and more to enhance the client experience.
This additional value is becoming increasingly important as next-gen clients expect the services they interact with to be seamless and simple. To give clients that totally intuitive experience that they’re looking for, firms should outsource their investment management services.
Helios, for example, offers an array of ready-to-go resources at every step of the asset management continuum. By creating customized quantitative model portfolios and ongoing research support, Helios ensures that advisors are fully equipped to navigate market and economic changes, as well as address specific client inquiries. With this dedicated and personalized service, advisors can confidently provide expert guidance. Leaning into their commitment to enhancing the client experience, Helios added custom sleeving and rebalancing abilities, and integrated machine learning into their quantitative models allowing the firm to analyze hundreds of data sets and market triggers more effectively for better client outcomes.