Alpha Exchange

• The Alpha Exchange is a podcast series launched by Dean Curnutt to explore topics in financial markets, risk management and capital allocation in the alternatives industry.
• Our in depth discussions with highly established industry professionals seek to uncover the nuanced and complex interactions between economic, monetary, financial, regulatory and geopolitical sources of risk.
• We aim to learn from the perspective our guests can bring with respect to the history of financial and business cycles, promoting a better understanding among listeners as to how prior periods provide important context to present day dynamics.
• The “price of risk” is an important topic. Here we engage experts in their assessment of risk premium levels in the context of uncertainty. Is the level of compensation attractive?
• Because Central Banks have played so important a role in markets post crisis, our discussions sometimes aim to better understand the evolution of monetary policy and the degree to which the real and financial economy will be impacted.
• An especially important area of focus is on derivative products and how they interact with risk taking and carry dynamics. Our conversations seek to enlighten listeners, for example, as to the factors that promoted the February melt-down of the VIX complex.
• We do NOT ask our guests for their political opinions. We seek a better understanding of the market impact of regulatory change, election outcomes and events of geopolitical consequence.
• Our discussions cover markets from a macro perspective with an assessment of risk and opportunity across asset classes. Within equity markets, we may explore the relative attractiveness of sectors but will NOT discuss single stocks.

Our Host

Dean Curnutt is Founder and CEO of Macro Risk Advisors where he oversees the firm's  mission to deliver in-depth global market risk analysis and transaction execution  services that help clients achieve better risk-adjusted returns. The firm has been the  most highly ranked boutique in the Tabb Group’s Survey of Option Research providers.

Before founding MRA, Dean was Managing Director and Head of Equity Sales-trading  at Banc of America Securities where he was a member of the Global Equities  Management Team that set direction for the division. Previously at BofA, Dean was  Head of Institutional Equity Derivatives and Convertible Sales and Strategy.

Dean is a recognized expert on risk and cross-asset volatility. He appears frequently on Bloomberg TV to  share his views on markets and has delivered key-note presentations at the CBOE Risk Management  Conference. He was named a “Rising Star of Hedge Funds” by Institutional Investor in 2012.

Dean holds an MBA in analytical finance with highest honors from the University of Chicago where he  received the Citibank Award for best performance in finance. He earned a BA, Magna Cum Laude, from  St. John's University, where he currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Finance and is a member of the  Board of Governors. He resides in Rye with his wife and 3 children. He is active with a number of charitable  initiatives and serves on the Boards of the Jericho Project and the Blythedale Children’s Hospital.