Stuart Fowler is the anti-guru guru. A seasoned and respected investment professional in both the institutional and retail scene in the UK, he has made a specialty of debunking the myths and monkey tricks on which the investment business thrives. Tough on the industry and regulators, his frequent campaigning on consumer issues in personal finance is marked by an unusual frankness about what customers themselves need to do to avoid inviting harm. The theme of 'personal responsibility' which permeates his writing and campaigning is borne out in his business activities thorugh two companies, one consumer-facing (No Monkey Business Limited provides wealth management and financial planning services to individuals) and the other industry-facing (Lambda Investment Technology consults on business models and develops decision tools).
His personal philosophy, together with a practical guide to how to adopt it in dealing with the markets and financial firms, is set out in his book No Monkey Business: what Investors need to know and why. He writes occasionally in the FT and other journals but also writes regularly on a wide range of investment topics in his personal blog: www.nomonkeybusiness.org - described as a 'no-nonsense clearing in the personal finance jungle'.
My investment rules assume people select professionals rather than try to do it all themselves:
Against the Gods
Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds
Seeing Tomorrow