EP-113 MARY CHILDS on BILL GROSS, THE BOND KING

Few investors become so well known that they earn a nickname. BILL GROSS was known as the "Bond King.". A natural polymath, Bill ascended to the throne with his novel total-return approach to managing bonds and his outsized personality.  He built the PIMCO empire through hard work, ingenuity and cult of personality.  Some say he lost the throne through a mixture of hubris, distraction and bad calls. A new book by former Bloomberg reporter, MARY CHILDS, describes it all. Now the reporter and host of NPR’s PLANET MONEY, Mary has written the book: “The Bond King: How One Man Made a Market, Built an Empire, and Lost it All.”  It's out now via Flatiron Books. https://www.amazon.com/Bond-King-Market-Built-Empire/dp/1250120845 Mary’s Background Where did the impetus to write the book come from? Access to Bill Gross What is he like? "Making" the Bond Market- Take us through his background Duke, Navy, Card Counter, Stamp collector, Golfer, Provoker of neighbors What was the sandbox he played in? Not just using bonds, but options, futures and derivatives Buy and Hold vs Total Return What was going on around him?  (Milken- HY Bonds; Icahn and corporate raiders) How did he use technology to amplify his edge? Building the Empire How did he hit scale? How did his Macro bets work? The 2008 bet Pet theory was that his interest rate calls were inside information- Once he had scale- how did he help bend the markets to his whim. Losing it all What happened? 2014 interaction with Mohamed El-Erian 80s bro culture catching up with him? East Coast / West Coast? Distractions?  Bad Habits? In your final analysis , what do you think of him- How do we keep track of Mary? NPR PLANET MONEY LINKEDIN https://twitter.com/mdc https://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Actually-Intelligent-Decision-Making-1-ebook/dp/B07FPQJJQT/