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Protecting your money in today's unpredictable market
“When things are going fine, nobody really tests the skills and talents of their financial advisor, but this is a moment where really good advice can be extraordinarily powerful,” says Margaret Franklin, CFA Institute's CEO and President.
In conversation with GZERO’s Tony Maciulis, Franklin describes the current financial climate as “maximum uncertainty,” rating it a 10 out of 10 on the risk scale. Recent unpredictable US trade policies have sent market volatility soaring, leaving many people and investors uncertain about their financial and portfolio management decisions. The usual conditions of predictability and reliability have been upended, making it more important than ever to seek guidance from a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Franklin recommends. She warns that the most “common destructive behavior” for a portfolio is abandoning a sensible program just when you need to stay the course.
Franklin also highlights growing concerns about “finfluencers” on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, who often lack proper qualifications and required disclosures. To address this, the CFA Institute is working to provide the public with reliable financial education and resources, helping people better understand the complexities and risks of today’s unpredictable environment.
This conversation is presented by GZERO in partnership with Microsoft from the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington, D.C. The Global Stage series convenes global leaders for critical discussions on the geopolitical and technological trends shaping our world.
Nuns and faithful attend a rosary for Pope Francis, following the death of the pontiff, in St. Peter's square, at the Vatican, April 21, 2025.
World bids farewell to Pope Francis, awaits conclave’s choice
Preparations for the funeral of Pope Francis are underway after the Holy Father died from a cerebral stroke early Monday – as are those for the secretive election to choose his successor.
The funeral date has been set for Saturday. Tens of thousands attended the funeral of Francis’ predecessor, Benedict XVI, in 2022, who had retired in 2013. When John Paul II died in 2005, some four million people paid their respects. This time, leaders from around the globe are expected to attend, including Donald Trump, who is set to become the first sitting US president to attend a papal funeral since 2005.
Francis will be dressed in red regalia, and his ring of office will be ceremonially destroyed, but much of the proceedings will break from tradition: He ordered that he be laid to rest in a simple coffin and interred in Santa Maria Maggiore, not the Vatican grottoes.
Choosing a successor. Within 20 days, Catholic cardinals under the age of 80 (135 out of 252) will gather in the Sistine Chapel to choose the next pope. The conclave – from a Latin root meaning “with keys” – is shut off from the wider world, a measure deemed necessary after medieval interregna lasted months or years due to secular political meddling.
There are no guarantees, but the electoral math points to a potentially short contest: 108 of the 135 eligible elector cardinals were appointed by Francis and may quickly assemble the necessary two-thirds consensus around a successor with similarly progressive values.