Welcome to Episode 15 of The Art of Investing - brought to you by IG.

Rich McDonald, Mark “Spice” Holden and Chris Fellingham are joined by behavioral economist Stuart Thompson to unpack one of the biggest questions in finance right now: are we in a market bubble?

From crypto crashes and record equity highs to the psychology driving investor behaviour, the team takes a hard look at what’s behind today’s market confidence - and whether it’s justified.

This Week’s Highlights

💥 Crypto Volatility: Bitcoin drops sharply in a flash selloff - what triggered it, and what comes next?

📈 Equities on Edge: Global indices remain near record highs despite softening data.

💬 Behavioral Economics: Guest Stuart Thompson explains why fear and greed still move markets faster than any algorithm.

🏦 Central Banks: Investors continue to price in more rate cuts as data weakens.

📊 Portfolio Review: The team weigh the balance between risk assets and defensive plays amid talk of overheating markets.

Portfolio Snapshot:

Weekly performance: +0.5%

Total return since inception: +8.8%

Top performers:

🪙 VanEck Crypto & Blockchain ETF - +4.4% this week
🥇 Gold - +4%
⛏️ World Mining Trust - +3.5%

Underperformers:

🇩🇪 DAX - -1.2%
🇬🇧 FTSE 100 - -1.2%
🇺🇸 S&P / NASDAQ - slightly weaker amid mixed macro data

Positioning:

The team discusses trimming crypto exposure, staying long gold, and holding steady on equities as valuations stretch.

Key Takeaways:

“Bad news is still good news” - weak data keeps the rate-cut optimism alive.
Behavior drives markets: emotion outweighs logic in bubble phases.
Crypto remains volatile: sharp moves highlight risk and opportunity.
Gold and miners continue to perform strongly as defensive assets.
Portfolio discipline: staying diversified while sentiment runs hot.

📈 Download the full Portfolio Performance Slides

View the portfolio breakdown

📧 Get in touch: theartofinvesting@ig.com

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Disclaimer

This podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. The content presented is not intended as personal investment advice, financial planning guidance, or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any particular securities or investments. All discussions regarding the model portfolio are for educational purposes only. Past performance is not an indication of future results.

Your capital is at risk. The value of shares, ETFs and ETCs can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in.

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Market Bubbles, Crypto Crashes. Why we aren’t cashing out just yet?

The Art of Investing