Scott Bessent, CEO and CIO of Key Square Group, is a seasoned global macro investor with an impressive career at Soros Fund Management. He shares insights on high-conviction investing and asymmetric asset selection, discussing the pivotal trade against the British pound that marked his career. Scott reflects on mentorship's crucial role in finance, likening investment strategies to chess, where strategic planning is key. He emphasizes the importance of risk management and position sizing in navigating market volatility, illustrating his visionary approach to macroeconomic factors.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Journalism to Investing
Scott Bessent's interest in journalism led him to the Yale Daily News.
Not getting editor, he found an internship with Jim Rogers via a career notice.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Interning with Jim Rogers
Scott Bessent interned for Jim Rogers, doing research and spreadsheets.
Rogers, George Soros's original partner, emphasized researching major secular changes.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
High Conviction Investing
Only invest in high-conviction trades.
Increase position size as conviction grows, like Ted Williams only swinging at strikes.
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Scott Bessent is the CEO and CIO of Key Square Group and a renowned global macro investor. His 40-year investment career has included two stints at Soros Fund Management, the first for a decade under Stan Druckenmiller and the second for five as CIO. In between, Scott launched a hedge fund, retired, and joined me at Protégé Partners when he learned retirement wasn’t for him.
Following his second tour at Soros, Scott started Key Square with $4.5 billion, one of the largest hedge fund launches in history. Scott has been profiled in two best-selling investment books, Steve Drobny’s Inside the House of Moneyand Sebastian Mallaby’s More Money than God.
Our conversation covers Scott’s investment path learning research from Jim Rogers, short selling from Jim Chanos, global macro investing from George Soros and Stan Druckenmiller, and twice hanging his own shingle. We discuss high-conviction ideas, asymmetric asset selection, position sizing, risk management, a hub and spoke approach, and core challenges of the global macro hedge fund business.
I once told Scott that he could read the newspaper six months ahead of time because I had never encountered someone with his ability to connect dots and imagine investments others had not considered. His interest in improving the country’s economic picture has led him to shed his publicity-shy nature, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to share his story. Take Capital Allocators Audience Engagement Survey
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