E32: Ashby Monk, Stanford Professor on How to Become a Billionaire in Private Equity

Ashby Monk, Executive and Research Director at Stanford sits down with David Weisburd to discuss the role and operation of asset owners like pension funds, endowments, and more. They delve into compensation in these fields, the state of pension funds in the US, and their impact on private equity.

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(0:00) Introduction to Ashby Monk and the Stanford Long Term Investing Research Center (2:05) Exploring the $140 trillion asset class with research projects (5:51) The significance of a dedicated research program in engineering (8:23) Examining compensation and the Canadian pension model (15:43) The evolution from defined benefit to defined contribution plans (16:39) Sponsor: Bidav Insurance Group (17:09) Discussing organizational capabilities and asset allocation strategies (22:29) Overcoming bureaucracy and the importance of mission-driven staff (27:22) The billionaire pathway in asset management (30:09) Fund life cycle and the progression of asset investors (34:37) Early adopters and innovation in the endowment and pension fund space (39:09) Evaluating GP staking and venture capital management best practices (44:33) Scaling venture capital funds and track record building (46:42) Technological developments for institutional investors (48:51) Cash optimization strategies for pension funds (50:33) Current entrepreneurial projects and future outlook (52:32) Final insights on the asset owner community and the importance of emerging managers (55:02) Additional resources and acknowledgments