Christine Ji

Sat, May 24, 2025, 3:00 PM5 min read

• While some retail investors are rushing to buy the dip, others are sitting it out.

• Angelo Sibilio and Matt White are increasing their cash allocations to de-risk their portfolios.

• Sibilio and White shared how they're feeling about the market volatility.

While some retail investors are scrambling to buy the dip, "cash is king" has emerged as the mantra for some others in 2025's tumultuous market.

That's the investing strategy Angelo Sibilio is adopting amid current market conditions.

The 35-year-old quantitative analyst felt uneasy about President Donald Trump's tariff rhetoric after Inauguration Day and decided to derisk accordingly, moving half of his portfolio to Treasurys and cash on April 4 — two days after Trump announced his "Liberation Day" tariffs, which sent the S&P 500 tumbling about 12% in the span of a week.

"I can't cash out my 401(k), so I went with a Treasury index," Sibilio said. "In my other accounts, I put half of my money into a money market fund."

Since then, the market has recovered its losses. But Sibilio doesn't feel like he's missed out on much.

"Not having to go through a couple of weeks where everything was going to hell gave me more peace of mind," Sibilio said. "I missed a little bit of upside, but that's not the end of the world for a long-term investment."

Matt White, a 33-year-old epidemiologist, also doesn't like the market's Trump-induced volatility and has increased his allocation to cash.

"I've never done this before, but I actually sold around $30,000 about 30 minutes before Trump started his Liberation Day speech," White told BI. "It was in my Roth IRA because I didn't want to create a taxable event, and I put it in the money market."

In addition to tariff volatility, White feels that many parts of the market, especially in the tech sector, are still quite overvalued, so he's content to keep a higher allocation to cash than usual.

"I still expect the market to drop," White said. "I think we're at a very irrational stage right now."

Sibilio and White didn't feel like they panic sold. They're not scrambling to buy the dip either. They see the move to cash as a way to de-risk their portfolios in the face of elevated volatility from the trade war.

For some who are uncomfortable with the uncertainty in the market, reducing risk by holding more cash might not be a bad idea, as it creates a buffer if large market pullbacks occur. With the Federal Reserve holding off on cutting rates, investors can receive over 4% on money market funds and 10-year Treasury bonds. Increased cash levels also give investors dry powder should they wish to take advantage of a sell-off.