From Quarterback to CIO: John McArthur on Alts, AI, and the Future of Wealth at Krilogy

<p>In this episode, Jeff Malec sits down with John McArthur of Krilogy to trace his path from backup quarterback at Mizzou and Northwestern to CIO of a nearly $6 billion independent wealth management firm. John talks about how college football shaped his views on timing, opportunity, and accountability, then connects those lessons to building a planning-first advisory culture outside the wirehouse world of AG Edwards and Morgan Stanley. The conversation dives into how Krilogy builds portfolios using a mix of active and passive tools, daily-liquid alts, private markets, and fixed income, with a particular focus on left-tail risk, crisis alpha, and why diversification still matters in a market dominated by mega-cap tech and AI narratives. John explains how the firm thinks about private equity, private credit, secondaries, and interval funds, emphasizing liquidity trade-offs, client education, and realistic expectations around distributions in a higher-rate world. Jeff and John also tackle the economic and market implications of AI, both as a powerful productivity engine and a potential source of labor disruption and how that overlays with client fears about geopolitics, inflation, interest rates, and elections. They wrap by getting practical on college savings strategy when markets are at all-time highs, the behavioral side of advising (part therapist, part portfolio architect), and close on a lighter note with John’s football roots and his personal Mount Rushmore of gridiron stories, including a nod to Bo Jackson’s legendary 30 for 30.   SEND IT!</p><p><strong>Chapters:</strong></p><p><strong>00:00-01:20= Intro</strong></p><p><strong>01:21-05:25= NIL Millions, Teenagers, and the Trouble With “New Money”</strong></p><p><strong>05:26-14:26= From Backup Quarterback to CIO: Building Krilogy and Planning for the Next Left-Tail Shock</strong></p><p><strong>14:27–24:47 = Beyond “Alts”: Private Markets, Secondaries, and Whether AI Fuels Boom or Bust</strong></p><p><strong>24:48–33:08 = Buffered Notes, Interval Funds, and De-Risking College at Market Highs</strong></p><p><strong>33:09–43:17 = Fear, Euphoria, and the CIO as Therapist: Coaching Clients Through the Next Shock</strong></p><p><strong>43:18–51:45 = Bo, Ball, and Balancing Risk: From Two-Sport Legends to Two-Sided Portfolios</strong></p><p><strong>51:46–54:32 = Bo, Bars, and Bill Simmons: McArthur’s Mount Rushmore of Football Flicks</strong></p><p><strong>From the Episode:</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.rcmalternatives.com/2026/05/painting-corners-to-protecting-portfolios-former-mlb-pitcher-scott-karl-on-how-athletes-blow-the-money-alts-the-mental-side-of-performance-and-the-nil-era/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong>PODCAST: Scott Karl episode: Painting Corners to Protecting Portfolios</strong></a></p><p><strong></strong><a href="www.rcmalts.com/golf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferer"><strong>RCM Golf Clinic Sept 25th Sign-up</strong></a><strong></strong></p><p><br></p><p><strong>Follow along with</strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-crittenden-b344b71/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong> </strong></a><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-mcarthur-cima%C2%AE-284aa33/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong>John</strong></a><strong> and </strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/krilogy-financial/posts/?feedView=all" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong>Krilogy</strong></a><strong> </strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/standpoint-asset-management/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong>⁠</strong></a><strong>on LinkedIn, and be sure to check out</strong><a href="https://www.standpointfunds.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong> </strong></a><a href="http://krilogy.com" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer"><strong>krilogy.com</strong></a><strong> to learn more about what they are up to.</strong></p><p>Don&#39;t