12/16/2025
Many people believe the biggest risk in retirement is stock market volatility.
New peer-reviewed academic research suggests something very different:
The greater long-term risk may be not owning stocks at all.
When risk is defined properly — as the loss of purchasing power, independence, and optionality over decades — globally diversified equities have historically done a better job protecting real wealth than bonds or cash.
Volatility is uncomfortable.
Running out of money is permanent.
That distinction matters more than most people realize.
How We Define Risk — Not as the movement of markets, but as the possibility of losing the life you’ve worked so hard to create - Cogent Strategic Wealth Cogent redefines risk: It's not market moves, but the chance of losing your life's dignity and independence to inflation. Learn how to protect your purchasing power.