It's really interesting to talk and think about realized versus unrealized profits or losses.
Cos really... it's psychological.
Let's say I bought DBS when it dropped to $10, then it went up to $27, then dropped to $20.
I never sold it.
I feel, ok, not so bad, I didn't lose money. Cos I bought it at $10. I am sitting on lots of buffer.
But in reality... AUM is AUM.
When it dropped to $20, I did lose AUM.
Think about it this way...
Someone invests $100,000, he manages to buy something with 10x return.
So end of the year, he is sitting on $1 million AUM.
Is he a millionaire?
Most people would say, yes. He is a millionaire.
Why? Cos mark to market.
Turn it around.
Someone invests $1 million and it loses 90% of it's value.
End of the year, he's left with $100,000 AUM.
Is he a millionaire?
No right? No one is going to say he's a millionaire when he's sitting...