By ShorePoint Advisors’ Jake Rue
Time is an extremely valuable asset—a statement that surely resonates if you, like me, frequently check your Outlook calendar, hoping and praying for an unexpected cancellation. When a conference promises ROI on my time, I’m all in, mostly because I’d rather be anywhere than watching a webinar discussing the thrilling nuances of new Form ADV disclosures.
Sunday
Arriving at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, I was enthused by the new and vibrant venue for the conference. A highlight: bumping into industry colleagues whose names I recognize from the previous years’ Exchange conferences, thus proving my memory isn’t completely shot. Knowing the great speaker that she is, I immediately went to Rita Cheng’s Ethics presentation, helping to fulfill my annual CE requirement. If ethics can be entertaining and interesting, this is where you’ll find it!
Later that afternoon, I enjoyed a parade of like-minded ETF brainiacs: Bloomberg’s James Seyffart, FactSet’s Elisabeth Kashner, Strategas Research’s Todd Sohn, ETF Prime’s Nate Geraci, Astoria Portfolio Advisors’ John Davi and Main Management’s Alex Varner, all offering product and economic insights that were meaningful. Those sessions spilled immediately into the Opening Party, where I met-up with other attendees I had not seen personally in some time.
The evening concluded with Dimensional Funds hosting dinner along The Las Vegas Strip. The Bellagio Fountains did their best to impress, but failed to distract us from discussing Evidence-Based Investing and the Five Factor Model over drinks and barbeque.
Monday
With the time change having me up earlier than usual, I did morning yoga and stretched old muscles I forgot existed. Attending the breakfast hosted by DoubleLine and hearing Jeffery Sherman speak was a yoga session for the brain. Following that invigorating start, I made my way to Dr. David Kelly’s Market Outlook session. As an avid listener of his weekly podcast, it’s great to see him speak in person tying all the current economic and investment themes together.
With Kelly’s insights unlocking new ideas in my mind, I decided to lean into the content. I spent the afternoon focused on portfolio strategy. I heard from Bridgewater’s CIO, Karen Karniol-Tambour, and State Street’s Anna Paglia about everything from active ETFs, international equity, to model portfolios. I also got to learn about the investment philosophies of ETF strategists and CIOs from 3Edge, Carson Group, GLOBALT, and RiverFront, TCW, Cohen & Steers, and BlackRock.
After a Happy Hour session outside at the Virgin, I joined State Street at the Sphere for the U2 Immersive Concert movie, which was just incredible. (Note to self: it doesn’t matter what seat you have – just go to the Sphere!) Upon returning to the hotel, I encountered some of my fellow portfolio managers in full “risk-on” mode - not with levered ETFs but at the Craps and Roulette tables. Knowing the odds were in the House’s favor, I wisely decided my stop-loss had already been triggered and called it a night.
Tuesday
Despite the late night, I slept like a rock and I started my day with a community breakfast. I was able to connect with fellow advisors from around the country, sharing our common professional challenges. Meeting some new people was a great way to start the day, sharing insights from Exchange and building genuine connections with peers all wanting to enhance their clients’ investment experience.
After Monday’s broad look at market outlook and portfolio construction, I wanted to focus on content that was a little more tactical, covering factor investing, thematic ideas, AI, and even a few real life portfolio case studies.
In between sessions, I made sure to walk the expo floor and chat with the investment firm representatives in attendance. While I espouse a particular investment philosophy, I’m always open to new investment ideas; the expo floor is chock full of new ETFs and new technology platforms (and not to mention the swag if you traveled with an extra suitcase!)
The highlight of the day came next, with geopolitical expert and author, Ian Bremmer. Bremmer is known for his work helping business leaders, policy makers, and the public better understand the political landscape of the world. His expertise in political risk can help financial advisors unpack the geopolitical environment and recognize how these dynamics may impact clients’ portfolios. The session was also surprisingly powerful, as Bremmer spoke eloquently to the risks and challenges facing the world.
Exchange 2025 closed with a reception at the Virgin Hotel’s Sky Box. The closing nights of Exchange are always a great final opportunity to solidify new connections and exchange ideas with my peers and colleagues. It wasn’t just about padding my list of connections on my LinkedIn page though - these conversations can be fun and light, or they can change the direction of your career.
Wednesday
As I waited for my flight back to Newark, I found myself in line with Bob Pisani of CNBC—a man whose resume in financial journalism is only slightly longer than the TSA lines. Given his storied broadcast career, getting his off-the-record thoughts on the industry was a rare privilege… and, frankly, preferable to jockeying amongst the boarding groups.
Boarding the plane, I reflected on the unexpectedly meaningful connections and all the conference highlights I’d be bringing back to the office—right up until United’s ever-comfortable seat reminded me that reality, like legroom, is always more confining than you remember.
Why attend Exchange every year? World-class content, CE credits, due diligence on new products, and the rare joy of networking with peers whose names I remember - most of the time. It’s clearly better than binge-watching another ETF issuer webinar at home.
If spotted at Exchange 2026, please say hello—unless you’re in urgent need of Form ADV advice. In that case, do everyone a favor and ask your compliance consultant.
