Whipsaws, Drawdowns, and Disbelief | Eric Crittenden on the Best Diversifier No One Buys

In this episode of Excess Returns, Matt Zeigler and Jason Buck sit down with Eric Crittenden, CIO of Standpoint Funds, for a wide-ranging and candid discussion about trend following, risk transfer markets, and what it takes to build a resilient investment strategy for uncertain futures. Eric shares decades of hard-won insights on investor behavior, portfolio construction, performance pain points, and why blending passive equities with systematic macro might just be the future of asset allocation.🔍 Topics Covered:The uncomfortable realities of trend following performanceWhy many investors misunderstand managed futuresEric’s view on the current drawdown and client behaviorSetting expectations with empirical data and simulationsThe case for blending passive equities with trend followingCapital formation vs. risk transfer markets explainedWhat market participants get wrong about futuresThe surprising resilience of cap-weighted equity indexesThe flaws in relying on bonds as diversifiersHow regime shifts and correlation changes affect trend modelsPhilosophical take on risk, regulation, and structural market design