The Financial Modelling Podcast

As most of us are isolating at home during this pandemic, and coffee shops around the world are closed, we still crave a good brew to fuel our financial modelling!  Enter roasteries offering speciality coffee for home brewing.  Whether you're drinking espresso, a cortado, a pour-over or a french press coffee as you tune in, hear some home brewing tips from Dario Scilipoti from BlueBird Coffee Roas...

Season 3 of the Financial Modelling Podcast focuses on the tools and technologies that make financial modellers' lives easier.  It also looks at the Global Excel Summit which was due to happen in April 2020 but was postponed (with all other conferences) due to the global pandemic.  In this episode, I catch up with co-founder Elena to hear the latest Summit news and how they are dealing with this u...

Excel Analyzer gives users the power to clean, optimize and analyze Excel files and financial models.  It is well known that virtually every Excel model contains errors, however, tools such as Excel Analyzer allow us to interrogate our models to ensure they are correct as possible.  In this episode, I chat to podcast regular Lance Rubin and Excel Analyzer creator Maarten Bessems.

OAK is a spreadsheet auditing Excel Add-in that helps builders and reviewers save time and effort getting to grips with spreadsheet structures and formulas. In this episode, I chat to Rui Sobreiros on where OAK came from, how it helps modellers around the world and what the new version holds in store for us.

In episode 5 of the Financial Modelling Podcast, I chat to Zoltan Hegedus about the work he has done to enable modellers to better understand their models.

Gianluca Bisceglie spent time in private equity before founding Visyond.  His time as a private equity deal maker made him realize the inefficiencies in the system, and he set out trying to solve these issues by developing a secure and automated platform for spreadsheet collaboration, analysis and reporting.

In Episode 3 we are joined by Tea Kuseva and Elena Lalovska to chat about what will be happening at the Global Excel Summit in April, why they chose London and what they love about Excel.

In episode 2, Kenny Whitelaw-Jones from season 3 sponsor Gridlines joins the podcast to discuss his highlights for 2020 and how Gridlines have developed a financial modelling technology stack to empower their modelling team.  

Welcome back to the Financial Modelling Podcast!  In this introduction episode to season 3, I outline some of the upcoming guests on the podcast and talk about the Global Excel Summit happening in London in April 2020.

In the finale of the Financial Modelling Podcast Season 2, Lance Rubin, Colin Human, Oz du Soleil, Brian Donnelly and myself discuss the best and worst of Microsoft Excel, financial modelling and what the future holds.  Join us as we take a journey around the world of Microsoft Excel experts!

Skyline AI is an artificial intelligence investment manager for commercial real estate.  In the penultimate Financial Modelling Podcast of Season 2, I interview Skyline AI co-founder and CEO Guy Zipori.  We discuss how AI is helping managers make better decisions, why he chose the real estate industry and the role financial modelling plays in Skyline AI.

How are shopping centres, residential developments and the tallest buildings in the world financed?  At the core of each of these transactions is a real estate financial model.  In this podcast, we chat with Andri Rabetanety, a real estate financial modelling expert.  We talk about the intricacies of real estate models, how banks are facilitating the financing of social housing projects and the em...

What is Project Finance?  What differentiates it from corporate or leveraged finance?  Why does it suit infrastructure projects and what are infrastructure financing models all about?  Find out in this episode of the Financial Modelling Podcast, based on my popular blog post and download.

Can you create a financial model using an Excel add-in?  Is creating a model as easier as selecting a few options from a modelling wizard?  In this episode of the Financial Modelling Podcast, we chat to Alexander Artajaya about how he dived into the world of financial modelling using add-ins.  We discuss the pros and cons of Excel financial modelling tools, and what could soon be the future of fin...

As an investment analyst, should you learn Microsoft Excel or Python?  Will the future of asset management be dominated by Robo-asset managers?  In this podcast, we delve into the world of Asset Management with Dan Page.  He explains why every future financial modeller and investment manager needs to not only know finance, but at least two programming languages!  Find out why in this fascinating d...

Why does every startup need a financial model?  What is the purpose of a financial model, and how can it help a business grow, obtain finance and avoid bankruptcy? Find out in this podcast on financial modelling for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses!

According to Ronak Gopaldas, "the key to being successful in Africa hinges on understanding it properly.  The nuances, the subtleties and the intricacies.  The stuff you don't get from sitting behind a desktop."  Ronak is a director of Signal Risk, an African risk management consultancy, and is a Tutu Fellow.  In this podcast, we discuss how to identify risk and opportunities on the vast African c...

In the summer of 2016, entrepreneur Sam Floy packed up his life in London and took a one-way flight to East Africa.  After a brief tour, he settled down in Nairobi, Kenya to start a few businesses.  He is still there, running a couple of successful companies and experiencing Kenyan life.  In this podcast, I ask him what attracted him to Kenya, what startup opportunities are like there and what the...

As a traded commodity, the price of a kg of arabica coffee has dramatically fallen. For many farmers & producers, this price has fallen to a level below the costs of production.  Thirdspace and SEAM is a coffee roaster focused on connecting farmers & consumers through generous & transparent trade. In this episode, I chat with David Walstra from Thirdspace on what ethically sourced coffee means and...

Debt sculpting is an exceptionally powerful tool to not only match debt repayments with cash flows which may be increasing or varying over time, but also to maximise the debt in a project.  This podcast is the culmination of a three-part tutorial comprising of a downloadable Excel example, a Financial Modelling Podcast blog post and a podcast.  Go through all three to master the art of debt sculpt...

What does it mean to go against the flow and maintain belief in yourself when no-one else does?  In this episode, we discuss the art of contrarian investing - buying and selling against popular opinion.  It may take years for contrarian investors to be proven right, but when they are it is typically in spectacular fashion.  Tune in to find out what contrarian investing means.

What will the workplace of the future look like?  According to Adi Kaimwoitz, it's not necessarily the offices of the firm or client you work for!  Adi Kaimowitz is CEO of Virtual Actuary, a company that empowers actuaries to utilize cutting edge technology platforms, as they apply actuarial techniques to deliver insights which are pre-emptive, precise and practical.  In this podcast, I ask him ab...

He has authored 54 books about Microsoft Excel, Power Pivot and Power View.  He publishes books about Microsoft Office. You will find him on the road doing live Power Excel seminars for 35 events a year. He has over 2000 Excel videos on YouTube.  He is regarded as an Excel master and is known online as Mr Excel.  In this podcast., I ask him what's next for Microsoft Excel.

Hedging is incredibly important, especially for large infrastructure projects which run the risk of being underfunded if currency and interest rates move in the wrong direction!  In this episode, I chat with Lionel Kruger who provides infrastructure hedging strategies.  We discuss the importance of hedging and how it is done.

In this FMP Short Stuff episode, I discuss the DSCR.  Why is the DSCR so important that banks make it a covenant?  Best you do not breach this key ratio which dictates how easily you can service your debt in any given period from cash flow.  The DSCR is a key metric for any deal and shows how capable a project is of paying its debt.