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Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the latest advancement in the ongoing evolution of the blockchain market. Putting this phenomenon into context, a series of papers will examine NFTs from various perspectives, including the legal issues arising from this new technology. This paper is part one in the series: introducing NFTs from the technological and market perspectives.

The challenging market environment and the fear of several interest rate increases by the U.S. Federal Reserve in 2022 has led to a sell-off in global equities. Concurrently, the U.S. is facing inflation rates not seen in more than 40 years, adding to investor concerns. The Dollar's resilience continues to negatively impact Non-Dollar investment returns for U.S. investors.

Many of the challenges the fixed income market has experienced are part of the natural long-term economic cycle. While volatility is likely to remain in 2022, diversified fixed income portfolios can benefit from the rise in interest rates and wider credit spreads.

Decades of globalization have led to the developed world relying more on foreign nations, sometimes with competing interests. The pandemic and recent geopolitical events have shifted attention to the challenges inherent to an increasingly connected world. As nations—and companies—reconsider their cross-border relationships, how does this impact investors?

The tailwinds that greeted commodities in 2021 have moderated, but they are not gone. Faced with strong economic growth and high inflation, the market expects the Fed to run down its balance sheet and begin hiking interest rates. In addition, a shift in consumer habits has left most commodity markets priced for a deficit, which may require an extended period of high prices and could lead to continued strength from the asset class.

In this segment of The Market in Five Charts, Chief Investment Officer Rick Pitcairn addresses the Ukraine crisis and its impact on capital markets through the following lens:

The ESG-labeled bond issuance has been significantly growing and is likely to persist, along with investor interest in this segment of the fixed income markets. What can responsible investors in this market expect in the year to come? Sustainable bonds should play an increasingly important role.

Investors rode the wave of strong equity returns in 2021. While public equity fueled impressive investment returns, private equity and venture capital performance took portfolios to the next level. Although there was a lot to celebrate with private capital funds, all was not rosy at the end of 2021, with two-thirds of IPOs trading below their IPO price. While the sell-off in equity markets in early 2022 dipped lower, the private equity allocations remain an important component of a diversified portfolio.

In this 12th annual survey, the focus was on the back office areas and internal fund operations. The results highlight other trends and key insights in the hedge fund industry: growth in assets and funds; an opportunity for smaller, newer managers; investors boosting their hedge fund allocations; how traditional hedge funds are coping with cryptocurrencies; and the fee models in a post-‘two and twenty’ world.

Overall, the results of the 2022 10-year capital market assumptions are mixed depending on the asset class when compared to last year’s assumptions as the global recovery gains traction. We see weaker equity market returns due to slowing growth rates and stretched valuations. Fixed income asset class returns will once again be extremely limited given how low global bond yields are today.