Enterprising Investor

In Episode #327, Omar Selim, founder and CEO of Arabesque, an ESG quant asset management firm, sits at the nexus of ESG, machine learning, and big data. In this interview, Selim tells viewers why he believes Arabesque is "the Tesla of finance," what he thinks finance will look like in the next decade, and what it means to build a values-based asset management firm.

In Episode #326, Roberto Rigobon describes the Billion Prices Project, an alternative measure of inflation he developed with a colleague at MIT. He discusses the inspiration behind the Billion Prices Index, its composition and correlation to the US Consumer Price Index (CPI), and the practical implications of this work for policymakers and asset managers.

In Episode #325, John Wilson explains how to integrate key tenets of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing into the equity research process. He also offers insights into the outlook for ESG investing, including the opportunities and challenges it offers, as well as the prospects for improved ESG-related disclosure by firms.

In Episode #324, Christine L. Todd, CFA, shares her outlook for infrastructure spending in the United States and explains both the benefits and risks associated with investing in infrastructure through US municipal bonds.

In Episode #323, Heather Brilliant, CFA, Managing Director, Americas, at First State Investments, explains what it will take to make that shift and what needs to change for the industry to routinely act in the best interests of the client. She also discusses why we need to rebuild trust in the industry and the importance of assembling diverse investment and leadership teams.

In Episode #322, Elizabeth Corley, non-executive vice chair of Allianz Global Investors, a global asset manager owned by  Allianz, has worked in the financial industry for 40 years and helped steer her company through the global financial crisis. In this interview, she discusses why it's critical that investment firms create a culture of accountability and inclusivity. She also explains why it's i...

In Episode #321, Dr. George Friedman, founder and chairman of Geopolitical Futures, a firm that specializes in geopolitical forecasting. Dr. Friedman also discusses immigration in Europe, the ramifications of secession movements, and much more, including his view of China five years down the road and why he draws inspiration from Hegel, the German philosopher.

In Episode #320, Andrea Turner Moffitt, a co-founder of Plum Alley Investments, a private investment platform that supports promising women entrepreneurs and gender-diverse teams, provides an overview of early-stage investing — how much was invested in 2016, what is getting funded, and who is making the decisions — and discusses why certain ideas and founders stand out, some of the challenges of b...

In Episode #319, Wesley Gray delivers a thorough discussion and analysis of factor investing. Gray explores the limits to arbitrage, making a compelling case for investing using opportunities that others hypothesize should not exist.

In Episode #318, Russell Napier, ASIP, discusses global financial risks. He explores central banking, emerging markets, and global asset allocation. In particular, Napier hones in on the fragility of today's global debt situation and suggests that the present monetary system may not make it.

In Episode #317, Teresa C. Barger discusses her firm's approach to successful emerging market investing. Her approach might be best characterized as influential activism, in contrast with adversarial activism. She tries to work with her target companies to persuade them to adopt practices that she believes will unlock hidden value.

In Episode #316, Randall S. Kroszner, Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business, discusses his views on fragilities faced by emerging market economies and recommendations to counter them.   

In Episode #315, Ming Shu, CFA, partner at Lingfeng Capital and former chief strategist of Ant Financial, shares his thoughts on the subject with us. Ming Shu's unique experience of having worked with many aspects of the FinTech ecosystem makes his views particularly interesting. He will discuss how artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, and big data are finding applications in the...

In Episode #314, Jean Brunel, CFA, gives advice and insights for setting up a goals-based wealth management practice.

In Episode #313, Michele Wucker, author of The Gray Rhino: How to Recognize and Respond to the Obvious Dangers We Ignore, discusses the duress being suffered by the twin paramount institutions of the 20th century, capitalism, and democracy. Wucker provides reasons for why these institutions' wounds are both self-inflicted, and a matter of misfortune. Will the institutions survive until the end of...

In Episode #3012, Larry Cao, CFA, spoke with Robert P. Browne, CFA, EVP and CIO of Northern Trust, about his team's investment process. From quantitative approaches and factor analysis to more fundamental approaches, such as macroeconomic and valuation analysis, Browne shares his perspectives on the pertinent topics and, more importantly, on how to tie them together. Browne also spoke on their mar...

In Episode #311, Frank Lu, Director of the Blockchain Department at Ping An OneConnect, a former IBMer, and co-author of the HyperLedger white paper, lays out his view of where the true value of blockchain lies. He will discuss hurdles of blockchain adoption, as well as how the business models may evolve for blockchain.  The interview was conducted by Larry Cao, CFA, at the LendIt China 2017 confe...

In Episode #310, Willis Sparks, director of global macro at Eurasia Group, argues that geopolitics is an important subject deserving of the attention of all investment professionals. Sparks believes an understanding of geopolitics is both a source of both alpha and an important consideration in risk management. Additionally, Sparks takes viewers around the globe to discuss the geopolitical hot spo...

In Episode #309, Elizabeth Ostrander, CFA, discusses some of the common approaches to managing such concentrated positions, including a recent "stock protection fund" innovation that involves investors pooling a cash buffer to diminish or negate losses over time. Whether the result of equity-based compensation from employment at public companies, or the rewards of a liquidity event borne of entrep...

In Episode #308, Daniel S. Meader, CFA, founder and a managing partner of Trinity Private Equity Group, discusses his firm's investment philosophy.

In Episode #301, Joel Bruckenstein, an expert on applied technology for financial professionals and publisher of Technology Tools for Today (T3), discusses cyber-security, improving the client experience, the rise robo-advisers, what's in store for financial technology in the near future, and more.  

In Episode #306, Adrienne Penta, executive director of the Brown Brothers Harriman Center for Women & Wealth, discusses this problem—explaining what women clients want from their financial advisers and how advisers can better serve this important segment of their clientele. Women control more wealth than ever in the United States, tend to outlive men by about 15 years, and make or contribute to 90...

In Episode #305, Keisuke Ito, CFA, head of investment technology at Mizuho–DL Financial Technology, shares his perspectives. Robo advice is all the rage in wealth management, particularly in developed markets such as the United States. What is the potential for robo advice in Japan and the rest of Asia? Will robo-advisers replace all human advisers, or will they peacefully coexist? And how do such...

In Episode #304, Anthony Serhan, managing director of the Asia Pacific Research Strategy at Morning Star, will provide his insights into these important questions that will shape the "future of investment advice." The need and demand for attention toward the end client has never been higher. Investment advice is one of the high impact areas within financial services where this need has been growin...

In Episode #303, Mebane Faber, co-founder and chief investment officer at Cambria Investment Management, takes a quantitative approach to investing. In this brief interview, he shares his views on common behavioral pitfalls, active management, shareholder yield, and the exaggerated impact of asset allocation on returns.