(Jeff Carter) – Every state treasurer crows about all the great returns they are getting. Unfortunately, most of them are just surfing the rise in short-term interest rates.
They aren’t managing the portfolio like a banker or investor. Most are career politicians who don’t actually know how to do it.
Nevada’s current treasurer, Zach Conine, is a prime example. Nice guy with fans in both political parties, but not a hard finance guy.
The good news about him is he had some business experience before taking the job.
Both of the current candidates for state treasurer have no experience or clue about investing or finance.
They have never actually participated in finance. Look at what they talk about in their campaigns. It’s all bullshit that legislators do, not what bankers do.
Scholarships and government programs aren’t finance. There is very little difference between them in both academic and professional experience. Neither has had real-world jobs or run a business.
You can’t watch this video enough with Drew Johnson. He’s right.
The way he invests, you don’t have to be that smart. Just crafty and loose with reporting.
For what it is worth, if Nevada’s treasurer gets .25 better return, it’s worth $30MM to Nevada taxpayers.
Contrast Nevada with North Carolina. Brad Briner is NC State Treasurer. He was in pro-investment circles before becoming treasurer. His last stint was helping to run Michael Bloomberg’s family office.
His target return on investment: 6.5-7%! It’s a good target given the rate of inflation and how his portfolio has to serve its constituents.
He manages the state pension fund and has it humming. Its total asset value is up over $150B and has made more than $25B during his tenure.
He embraced artificial intelligence, and he knew how to integrate it into processes.
Yes, I know Nevada’s treasurer doesn’t manage the state pension fund, but the chasm in experience between someone like Briner or Mario Oaks in Utah and Nevada is huge.
Instead of trying to come up with a plan to seize private property to pay for politically expedient programs, he’s using AI on unclaimed property.
He’s embraced artificial intelligence, launching a 12-week pilot program with OpenAI, N.C. Central University, the State and Local Government Finance Division—which monitors the financial wellbeing of more than 1,100 local government units and public authorities—and the state’s Unclaimed Property Division, which operates a database trying to find the owners of $1.7 billion in bank accounts, insurance policy proceeds, and contents of safe deposit boxes that have been abandoned.
For sure, Nevada has different constraints on the treasurer. But I hope you see the gist of this post. As the state’s chief banker, neither candidate will increase returns for Nevada taxpayers unless they are lucky.
It’s become a meaningless race unlike other executive offices in Nevada.
This article was originally published via JeffreyCarter.substack.com on 10/1/2026. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. Digital technology may have been used in the research, writing, or production of this article. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
