Diversification Is Misunderstood: Alex Shahidi on Inflation Risk, Portfolio Balance, and Investing Into 2026

In this episode of Lead-Lag Live, I sit down with Alex Shahidi, Managing Partner and Co-Chief Investment Officer at Evoke Advisors, to break down why markets heading into 2026 are forcing investors to rethink diversification, risk, and portfolio construction.

With inflation remaining sticky, political uncertainty rising, and stocks and bonds often moving together during inflation shocks, Alex explains why the traditional 60/40 framework falls short and what true diversification actually looks like in an environment defined by wide-ranging macro outcomes.

Throughout the conversation, we discuss how his work around balanced asset allocation and risk parity has evolved from theory into practice, including the thinking behind the RPAR ETFs available at RPAR Risk Parity ETF. , the broader research and conversations he hosts each week on Insightful Investor , and how this framework is implemented in real client portfolios at Evoke Advisors . Alex also shares perspectives he’s written about through his Forbes Finance Council contributions and the ideas explored more deeply in his book: Risk Parity: How to Invest for All Market Environments and Balanced Asset Allocation: How to Profit in Any Economic Climate.

In this episode:
– Why inflation uncertainty changes how diversification actually works
– How stocks and bonds can fail at the same time during inflation shocks
– What investors misunderstand about risk parity and balance
– Why assets like commodities and gold need meaningful weight to matter
– How to think about portfolio construction when outcomes are highly uncertain

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