So far in 2025, silver has climbed over 20%, breaking through $36 per ounce in early June for its highest price in 13 years, while gold has also soared, reaching a record $3,500 in April and gaining nearly 28% year to date. Both metals have attracted investors seeking safety amid global uncertainty, with gold up 47% from June 2024 to June 2025 and silver rising 23% in the same period. 

Analysts see reasons for silver to potentially outperform gold later this year, pointing to strong industrial demand, ongoing supply deficits, and its status as a leveraged monetary hedge. 

Bank of America forecasts silver reaching $40 and gold $4,000 by year-end, while other experts predict silver could even break $49 per ounce by 2025. However, risks remain, including a possible global recession reducing industrial demand, a stronger dollar, and the impact of high interest rates that could hurt all precious metals. 

Finsum: While gold’s rally might be priced in, silver’s combination of industrial and monetary appeal could help it close the gap in the coming months.

The SEC’s Office of the Investor Advocate announced it will examine the increasing use of private equity and other alternatives in retirement accounts as part of its fiscal 2026 objectives. The office has warned that adding private market products to 401(k)s and 403(b)s can pose risks for retail savers, especially in target-date funds and managed accounts. 

Concerns include limited liquidity, incomplete disclosures, and a higher risk of fraud or losses, which the agency will evaluate in relation to fiduciary duties under ERISA. This move follows Senator Elizabeth Warren’s letter to Empower Retirement questioning its plans to offer private equity in its 401(k) products. 

Beyond private equity, the investor advocate’s 2026 agenda will also prioritize improving retail investor disclosures, analyzing China-based VIE structures, collaborating with the SEC’s crypto task force, and using investor research to support rulemaking. 

Finsum: Advisors should aim to ensure retirement plan participants understand the trade-offs of these complex and often opaque investments.

Capital Group and BlackRock both launched new active ETFs this week, reflecting how demand from advisors and asset allocators is pushing active ETF innovation into fresh territory. 

Capital Group unveiled three funds — a large-cap growth ETF, a large-cap value ETF, and a high-yield bond ETF — as it expands beyond its traditional mutual fund business and deepens ties with RIAs seeking tax-efficient, actively managed building blocks for their model portfolios. These new ETFs build on Capital Group’s push to support advisors with tools like its RIA Insider platform and its recent rollout of active ETF model portfolios. 

Meanwhile, BlackRock introduced the iShares Global Government Bond USD Hedged Active ETF, managed by its Global Tactical Asset Allocation team, to help diversify global bond exposure while protecting against currency swings. BlackRock’s new offering taps into growing advisor concerns over concentrated U.S. Treasury allocations and fits within its broader suite of institutional-grade active ETFs. 

Finsum: These launches highlight the shift in advisor priorities toward portfolio construction and model-based solutions, with active ETFs increasingly serving as the core tools for delivering customized, fee-based client strategies.

Closed-end funds (CEFs), around since 1893, function much like pooled mutual funds but differ in that they have a fixed number of shares trading on public exchanges after their IPO. 

Unlike mutual funds, which create or redeem shares daily to match investor flows, CEFs trade like stocks, meaning their prices can swing above or below the fund’s actual net asset value (NAV). This market pricing dynamic allows investors to potentially buy a dollar’s worth of assets for 90 cents, creating attractive opportunities to purchase CEFs at discounts. 

In addition, CEFs can use leverage to amplify returns, which often translates to higher distribution yields than traditional funds. However, investors should generally avoid paying a premium above NAV, just as they wouldn’t pay $1.10 for a dollar. 

Finsum: CEFs trading at reasonable discounts with strong yields may offer a compelling addition to income-seeking portfolios, combining discounted asset value with robust payouts.

There’s something uniquely magical about playing golf in the fall, when the crisp air and vibrant foliage transform each round into a sensory celebration. 

• At The Equinox Golf Resort & Spa in Vermont, brilliant reds, golds, and ambers create a postcard-perfect setting against the backdrop of the Green Mountains. 

• In Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains, Jack Frost National Golf Club combines dramatic elevation changes with fiery autumn leaves for unforgettable panoramic views. 

• Arcadia Bluffs in Michigan pairs Lake Michigan’s sweeping shores with a kaleidoscope of colors that makes every fairway feel like an artist’s canvas. 

• Farther south, Linville Golf Club in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains offers golfers a spectacular blend of mountain terrain and rich fall hues, turning each hole into a living painting.

•  Finally, Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club near Portland, Oregon, wraps players in misty mornings and a colorful tapestry of evergreens and deciduous trees, creating an almost mystical experience. 

Finsum: Together, these destinations prove that fall golf is more than a game—it’s a journey into nature’s most beautiful season.