Banking on trouble

Welcome to the weekend. I'm Phil Rosen. 

Before we get to the news, I'd like to highlight a conversation I had with Katherine Jollon Colsher, the CEO of Girls Who Invest and a former Goldman Sachs exec. 

The program collaborates with UPenn's Wharton business school, and it teaches college women the fundamentals of markets, portfolio management, and finance. 

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Katherine Jollon Colsher is the chief executive officer and president of Girls Who Invest, a nonprofit that aims to help women enter asset management and other careers across Wall Street.

This conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity. 

Phil Rosen: Can you describe the goals of your program?   

Katherine Jollon Colsher: We work exclusively in the buy side, and we do focus exclusively on placing women in internships and frontline investing roles to advance more women portfolio managers. 

With that, our vision is for 30% of the world's investable capital to be managed by women by 2030.

Among students, what's the demand and popularity like for Girls Who Invest?

KJC: We work with over 125 investment management firms, which speaks to the demand and support for our mission within the industry. 

We also have nearly 2,000 alumni in just seven years. To put that into context, our first class was 30 women. This coming summer, our class will be over 550 women. So we're seeing unbelievable interest.

How do you approach teaching new trends in investing or markets, like crypto or AI?  

KJC: All these topics come up in different ways. Using just one example, we have a whole session on AI and Big Data and every year we adapt to include emerging topics across all areas of the curriculum — whether it be our modules, discussions, keynotes, or industry panels. 

This is why it's important for us to have such a strong and dynamic faculty — they help set the tone to encourage dialogue and curiosity about the investment landscape.

Find out more about Girls Who Invest here.

What do you think of Katherine Jollon Colsher's vision and Girls Who Invest? Let me know in the comments.

And here are the top stories from markets this week: 

1. Deutsche Bank is the latest firm to spark banking fears. Shares of the German bank tumbled on Friday, as the cost of credit default swaps linked to its bonds shot higher. Investors are fretting about the health of Europe's banks following a turbulent month in both the US and Europe.

2. Elon Musk said he sees "serious risk" of another Great Depression. The billionaire agreed that a downturn could strike if the Fed doesn't provide assistance to regional banks. Get the full details.

3. These 20 stocks can help you profit from a simple two-part investing strategy. The approach has consistently outperformed during volatile market cycles like the current one, BMO strategists said. Dig into the strategy and stock picks.

4. Morgan Stanley listed three key reasons why stocks shouldn't be rallying in the wake of bank bailouts. Elite strategist Mike Wilson said the financial trouble should hurt stocks, even though they have climbed as investors conclude authorities will help prevent contagion. Wilson broke down why bond investors are correct in being bearish.

5. Russia is using decades-old oil tankers on icy waters to dodge sanctions. The ships don't have sufficient insurance, the Washington Post reported, and they pose safety risks to the environment and ship crews as they navigate dangerous waters. Moscow is deploying the vessels in an effort to prop up its struggling energy exports. 

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This newsletter was curated by Phil Rosen.