Episode 197: Libby Cantrill of PIMCO: The Intersection of Policy, Politics, Performance and Professionalism

Libby Cantrill is a managing director in PIMCO's portfolio management group. In her role, she analyzes policy and political risk for the firm’s Investment Committee and leads U.S. policymaker engagement and policy strategy for the firm. She also works closely with PIMCO’s Global Advisory Board, led by former Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke. Prior to joining PIMCO in 2007, she served as a legislative aide in the House of Representatives and also worked in the investment banking division at Morgan Stanley.  Our conversation starts with her early interests in policy and politics, and how the seeds were sown as early as in grade school in Colorado. We trace this interest through her time as a legislative aide in Washington DC, and ask what she learned from her time on “the Hill” about conflict and compromise in politics. We move then to her switch into finance and her current role at PIMCO, in which she wears two hats essentially. One is as a political strategist providing political intelligence to the investment team, investment committee and clients, while the other is leading in policymaker engagement. We speak about polarization in politics and what remains at the center, and discuss this at multiple levels, ending in the area of ESG and sustainability investing and how politics is intersecting with this aspect of investing. We then discuss her role with the Global Pimco Advisory Board and I ask what it is like to work with the venerable Ben Bernanke. To find out what this is like and to hear more from Libby about her reflections on the diversity and development of the industry, tune in.  Series 3 of the 2023 Fiftyfaces Podcast is supported by Eagle Point Credit Management. Eagle Point Credit Management is a specialist investment manager principally focused on income-oriented credit investments in niche and inefficient markets. Founded by Thomas Majewski in partnership with Stone Point Capital in 2012, Eagle Point currently manages over $7.8 billion in AUM. Investment strategies pursued by the firm include collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), portfolio debt securities, and other opportunities across the credit universe. Currently, we believe that Eagle Point is the largest investor in CLO equity in the world and one of the largest non-bank lenders focused on providing financing solutions to credit funds. Learn more about Eagle Point at http://eaglepointcredit.com/