The discipline of cross-border allocation

Start with obligations, not forecasts

Cross-border portfolios are often discussed as a search for the best market. A more durable starting point is the geography and timing of future obligations: where money will be spent, taxed, gifted, or reinvested.

That framing does not remove uncertainty. It gives uncertainty a structure, allowing allocation decisions to be reviewed consistently rather than rewritten with every market headline.

Treat familiarity as a bias to measure

Holding assets in a familiar market can feel prudent while quietly concentrating political, currency, and sector risk. The useful question is not whether a home bias exists, but whether it is intentional and sized against the rest of the plan.