Kepler Trust Intelligence Podcast

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Christopher Berrier, manager of Brown Advisory US Smaller Companies (BASC), and Rob Furlong, equity research analyst, about the investment case for US small-caps. We discuss the drivers of the US small-cap rally, portfolio changes, thoughts on AI and software services and M&A activity, amongst other things. 00:00 Introduction 00:41 Drivers of US sma...

Join Jo Groves, David Brenchley and Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in May, brought to you in association with Schroders.  Before covering the news, David provides a quick update on space stories from last month, including the outcome of Seraphim Space (SSIT)’s C-share raise, and the impact of the impend...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Matt Ridley, partners at Schroders Greencoat and co-manager of Greencoat UK Wind (UKW). Matt explains what UKW invests in, how it invests and how it manages its wind farm assets, and outlines some of the supportive tailwinds for the wind industry - including artificial intelligence. He also discusses the pushback we've seen from some quarters on the rou...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to David Cornell, investment director at Marylebone Partners, which is now a part of Brown Advisory and manages Majedie Investments (MAJE). David explains MAJE’s liquid endowment strategy, talks us through the kinds of investments it owns and how it selects them, before discussing where the team is seeing value today and why he thinks that owning the hayst...

Our monthly podcast brings you big-picture insights from leading investment experts, exploring the opportunities, challenges and risks shaping investor portfolios. This month’s guest is Rebekah McMillan, associate portfolio manager at Neuberger. We talk through cover a wide range of topics including the forces driving gold and silver higher, why copper and uranium could be the defining metals of t...

Join Jo Groves, David Brenchley and guest presenter Thomas McMahon from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in March, brought to you in association with Schroders. In the news, Thomas looks at the prospects for Seraphim Space’s (SSIT) bumper fundraise with plans to raise up to £350m by way of a C share. This leads onto news of Scottish...

Our monthly podcast brings you big-picture insights from leading investment experts, exploring the opportunities, challenges and risks shaping investor portfolios. In this month's episode, our guest is Sharmin Rahman, an investment manager specialising in fixed income for Liontrust and fund manager on the Liontrust GF High Yield Bond fund. We discuss all things high-yield bond and fixed income, th...

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in March, brought to you in association with Schroders. In the news, Ryan looks at the impact of manager changes at the highly successful Golden Prospects Precious Metals (GPM), Geiger Counter (GCL) and CQS Natural Resources Growth &...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Ayush Abhijeet, investment director at WhiteOak Capital Partners, the investment advisor to Ashoka India Equity (AIE). Ayush talks us through the reasons why the Indian stock market has been going through a period of weakness, what catalysts could cause a recovery and why, despite the difficult backdrop, Indian companies remain committed to initial publ...

Our monthly podcast brings you big-picture insights from leading investment experts, exploring the opportunities, challenges and risks shaping investor portfolios. In this month's episode, our guest is Olivia Markham, manager of BlackRock World Mining. We cover a wide range of topics including the forces driving gold and silver higher, why copper and uranium could be the defining metals of the ene...

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in February, brought to you in association with Schroders. In the news, Ryan looks over the corporate activity in the year, including the proposed combination of BlackRock Throgmorton (THRG) and BlackRock UK Smaller Companies (BRSC). Els...

In this month’s episode, our guest is Lucie Majstrova, investment specialist for private companies at Baillie Gifford. We discuss a range of topics including the investment case for private companies, why companies are staying private for longer, her thoughts on Anthropic and the most compelling opportunities across private markets. 00:00 Introduction 00:34 Background to asset management 01:28 Inv...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to SEQI’s Randall Sandstrom about the investment case for infrastructure debt, including recent performance, exposure to data centres and the most compelling opportunities across the sector. 00:00 Introduction 00:43 What SEQI offers investors  06:27 Recent performance 10:03 Exposure to data centres 12:00 Green flags for investment 14:30 Sensitivity to inte...

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in January, brought to you in association with Schroders.   In the news, David talks through what the recent changes in government policy could have on Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) and how this changes their dividend outlook. Elsewhere Ryan r...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Emily Fletcher, manager of BlackRock Frontiers, about the investment case for frontier and emerging markets, including recent performance, portfolio allocations, navigating through geopolitical issue and the most exciting opportunities across the sector. 00:00 Introduction 00:38 How BRFI differs from other funds 02:24 What BRFI offers investors  03:52 S...

Market Matters is a monthly podcast from Kepler Trust Intelligence that delivers big-picture insights from leading investment specialists, exploring the opportunities, challenges, and risks shaping investors’ portfolios. This month, we are joined by Alexandra Jackson, manager of the Rathbone UK Opportunities fund, which invests in UK mid-cap companies. In this episode, Alexandra talks us through h...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Richard Staveley, manager of Rockwood Strategic, about the investment case for UK small-caps, including recent performance, the catalysts for a rally in UK small-caps, the outlook for M&A and the most exciting opportunities across the sector. 00:00 Introduction 00:39 Performance in 2025 05:33 Catalysts for a small cap rally 09:39 Valuations and stoc...

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in December, brought to you in association with Schroders.  In news, David summarises round two in the Edinburgh Worldwide (EWIT) Saba battle, before Ryan provides a quick summary of the aborted HICL/TRIG merger, as well as running the r...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Hiren Dasani, portfolio manager for Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust (AWEM), to talk about the outlook for emerging markets, after a strong 2025, what AWEM’s portfolio looks like today and how AWEM chooses companies in which to invest. 00:00 Introduction 01:14 Why emerging markets had such good performance in 2025 03:37 How AWEM distinguishes true...

Market Matters is a monthly podcast from Kepler Trust Intelligence that delivers big-picture insights from leading investment specialists, exploring the opportunities, challenges, and risks shaping investors’ portfolios. This month, we are joined by Deirdre Cooper, head of sustainable equity at Ninety One. Deirdre co-manages Ninety One's Global Environment strategy, investing in companies enabling...

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in November, brought to you in association with Schroders. In news, Ryan provides an update on the implication of the government consultation on renewable energy subsidies to infrastructure trusts such as Greencoat UK Wind (UKW). He also...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Steven Marshall, Chairman of Cordiant Digital Infrastructure, about the investment case for the digital infrastructure sector, including capturing the AI opportunity, the new Prague Gateway development and the key drivers behind the trust’s outperformance. 00:00 Introduction 00:40 Buy, build & grow philosophy 02:21 Importance of operational control ...

Market Matters is a monthly podcast from Kepler Trust Intelligence that delivers big-picture insights from leading investment specialists, exploring the opportunities, challenges, and risks shaping investors’ portfolios. This month, we are joined by Chloe Smith, fund manager at Sanford DeLand Asset Management. Chloe joined Sanford Deland in October 2021, initially as an investment analyst and is n...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Olivia Markham, manager of BlackRock World Mining, about the investment case for the mining sector, including gold’s record-breaking run, demand for copper, M&A and the most compelling opportunities across the sector. 00:00 Introduction 00:36 Drivers of recent performance  02:00 Outlook for gold prices 03:13 Valuations of gold miners 04:21 Long-term...

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Nitin Bajaj, manager of Fidelity Asian Values, about the investment case for the Asia equity sector, including recent performance, managing political noise and finding the most compelling opportunities across the sector. 00:00 Introduction 00:38 Providing differentiated exposure to Asia 04:07 Evaluating investments  05:54 Narrowing down the universe 08:...