Looking back to 2025, looking forward into 2026
2025 was again a year in which investors faced unexpected turns. Political shifts, technological acceleration and changing interest rate expectations generated volatility — and with it, confusion. In such an environment, RAMM offers no predictions, but a process. No promises, but an approach. This review is intended to provide context: how did RAMM navigate 2025, and why is this form of calm discipline more valuable than ever?
Looking Back at 2025: A Year of Contrasts
The U.S. economy remained notably resilient, particularly compared with Europe and emerging markets. AI and productivity growth lent tailwinds to U.S. equities, even as political uncertainty contributed to market nervousness. Gold recorded a second strong year in a row, supported in part by central bank activity and geopolitical tensions. At the same time, inflation remained contained, leaving room for rate cuts — although consensus expectations on that front wavered at times.
For RAMM, 2025 was a year in which discipline once again proved its value. Not because we predicted every movement — but precisely because we did not need to.
RAMM in 2025: Choices, Not Predictions
RAMM builds positions based on relative strength, risk and trend. Within the RAMM Global Assets Fund, 2025 began with a defensive positioning: in the first half of the year, combined allocations to EUR and USD cash regularly exceeded 40%, with occasional peaks near 60%. During this period, there was a clear preference for EUR cash against a backdrop of US dollar weakness. From February onwards, gold (GLD) assumed another central role, spending several months at or near its maximum allocation of 40%.
Mid‑year, the profile shifted toward risk assets, with increasing exposure to U.S. equities (SPY), developed markets ex‑U.S. (EFA) and emerging markets equity (EEM). No single region dominated; the strength came from the combination of equities and gold, which together helped drive a resilient recovery for the fund.
Figure 1. Allocation RAMM Global Assets Fund, 2025
RAMM Global Equities displayed a more concentrated profile. As an alternative to a traditional equity mandate, this strategy reached higher peaks in equity exposure, particularly to the U.S.: in July, the allocation to SPY rose to nearly 70%, within the allowable band of up to 80%. In the fourth quarter, the focus rotated toward emerging markets, while gold remained a stabilizing presence. Cash was used tactically in response to heightened uncertainty. Where RAMM Global Assets maintained broad diversification, Equities rotated more sharply within the equity universe. Both approaches share the same core: a systematic methodology that transcends narrative or currency effects, and that moves with where capital is truly flowing.
Figure 2: Allocation RAMM Global Equities Fund, 2025
What Contributed to Returns?
Returns in 2025 did not arise from any single move, but from the combination of trend, timing and discipline. Gold played a central role — not just because of its price trend, but as a reflection of deeper forces: currency erosion, geopolitical fragmentation and a growing demand for non‑fiat store‑of‑value assets. In a year in which major fiat currencies lost purchasing power, gold provided a rare form of stability — and thus persistent momentum. RAMM followed that trend consistently.
U.S. equities also contributed positively — not because they were the strongest market overall, but because their relative strength at specific junctures was compelling enough to be included.
Not all rotations added positively. Within RAMM Global Assets, commodities and developed markets ex‑U.S. at times weighed on results. In RAMM Global Equities, an early rotation toward EFA produced a negative contribution, despite that region’s strong performance over the full year. Such deviations are inevitable in a strategy that does not choose direction, but follows — and precisely because of that remains robust over longer horizons.
Attribution shows not only what worked, but how it worked. Not every rotation needs to be perfect for the whole to remain balanced. RAMM follows dynamics, not the illusion of control.
Consensus 2026: The Herd Instinct
Major global asset managers and investment banks are almost unanimous in their outlook for 2026: a continuation of U.S. dominance. Optimism around U.S. equities, AI‑driven productivity and a soft landing remains widely held. Yet 2025 was also a year in which non‑U.S. markets and gold — when measured in hard currencies — structurally outpaced the U.S. Those who focused solely on dollar‑based returns missed this shift. Risks such as ‘sticky’ inflation and geopolitical frictions are acknowledged, but the prevailing takeaway remains: “Buy America.”
For RAMM, this consensus is not a guide. A widely held market view is neither a signal to follow, nor a reason to be contrarian. It is context. Where predictions are about what people think will happen, our models focus on what is actually happening. As long as trends and data point us away from the U.S., we follow that path. We act not on expectations, but on reality.
Why Now: Order in the Chaos
RAMM’s strength lies not in avoiding uncertainty, but in structuring it. RAMM investors do not need to speculate on gold or equities, AI or real estate, rates or currencies. They choose a process that continuously optimizes allocations based on data, dynamics and discipline.
Especially in times when sentiment is positive and consensus feels reassuring, an adaptive strategy proves its worth. Not because we claim to know that markets are wrong, but because we are prepared for the scenario that markets are wrong.
RAMM does not claim to explain every dynamic, but it follows them without friction, without emotion. It offers a framework in which volatility is met with reason rather than reaction.
Further Information
For those interested in the numbers: current fund performance can be found on our website or in the relevant factsheets.
