<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After a gloomy March and a proverbially rainy April, May has shaped up to be a – dare one say it – favorable market from a macro perspective.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite the ongoing tragedy of the global coronavirus pandemic, investors appear to be buying. <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/stock-market-news-today-indexes-gain-economic-reopening-hopes-coronavirus-2020-5-1029234981">The S&amp;P 500 broke 3,000 f</a>or the first time in March </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">and the Dow is up broadly on positive sentiment that efforts to reopen businesses in the U.S. – all in the hopes of coaxing back consumers – will be successful. But <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/26/investing/premarket-stocks-trading/index.html">despite the sense of optimism,</a></span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> analysts hesitate to call it a clear win, given the risks.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Block sat down with Jon Stein, founder and CEO of robo advisor firm Betterment, who spoke about the macroeconomic picture in the context of his firm’s clients. Stein remarked that while the first quarter of 2020 was a strong one for signups – April even more so – the company has nonetheless felt the pinch amid difficult market conditions. Betterment currently has more than $18 billion in assets under management.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Our revenue is tied to assets under management. We see our pain, our own accounts are down. You know, my personal account is affected by a downturn in the market. And our customers feel that.” he told The Block. “But overall, our customers are staying the course.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">We also explore:</span></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">How Betterment has fared in a world where remote work is the rule, not the exception</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">How the firm’s customer base reacted to this year’s market turbulence</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">How the first quarter of 2020 was one of Betterment’s best</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Its checking account product</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Staying competitive in a hyper-fast space where all eyes are on the market</span></li> </ul><br /><span class="copyright"><p>© 2023 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.</p> </span>