The Grant Williams Podcast

Roger Mitchell, a reflective voice rooted in his Catholic upbringing, discusses the unraveling of the social contract and the rise of materialism. He shares his personal faith journey, emphasizing how disillusionment often drives people back to spirituality. They explore generational pain, the decline of community, and contrast financial nihilism with faith. Roger highlights the beauty of living by parable-based ethics and warns against politicizing religion, urging that faith should remain a personal refuge amidst societal chaos.

Robert Glazer, a successful entrepreneur and bestselling author, joins to discuss his transformative work in leadership and his new book, The Compass Within. He reveals how identifying personal core values reshaped his life and decision-making. The conversation highlights the stark difference between authentic personal values and hollow corporate values. Glazer shares his insights on the importance of lived experiences in uncovering true values, and he addresses how generational shifts influence our principles in both life and investing.

Julien Garran, a macro strategist at MacroStrategy (UK), dives deep into the potential dangers of the AI mania, likening it to past bubbles like the dot-com and housing booms but with greater risks. He critiques current monetary policies for leading to significant capital misallocation, revealing a fragile financial system. Julien highlights the monopolistic behaviors of tech giants and the inherent flaws in large language models, stressing their unsustainable losses and potential to disrupt global capital flows and productivity.

In this long-overdue episode of The Grant Williams Podcast, I’m joined by Larry McDonald, founder of The Bear Traps Report and author of How to Listen When Markets Speak, to explore how extraordinary fiscal and monetary responses have reshaped the investing landscape. Larry argues that the disinflationary era is over, replaced by an inflationary, multipolar world that calls for a fresh approach to portfolios—one that favours hard assets like copper, coal, and natural gas over stretched technology stocks. Our conversation spans the political and structural forces driving this shift, from chronic underinvestment in energy and the policy bottlenecks that worsen shortages, to the rising populism fuelled by inflation. Larry highlights how the makeup of the S&P 500 is set to evolve, with industrials, materials, and energy poised to reclaim influence, while risks mount in areas such as passive investing, private credit, and certain financial stocks. We close by examining the implications of the AI-driven capital expenditure boom, the strain it places on power infrastructure, and what it all means for the dollar, gold, and Bitcoin. The result is a timely, wide-ranging conversation offering investors both a roadmap to today’s shifting market environment and practical insight into how to navigate what lies ahead. Every episode of the Grant Williams podcast, including This Week In Doom, The End Game, The Super Terrific Happy Hour, The Narrative Game, Kaos Theory, Shifts Happen and The Hundred Year Pivot, is available to Copper, Silver and Gold Tier subscribers at my website www.Grant-Williams.com.  Copper Tier subscribers get access to all podcasts, while members of the Silver Tier get both the podcasts and my monthly newsletter, Things That Make You Go Hmmm… Gold Tier subscribers have access to my new series of in-depth video conversations, About Time.

David Fergusson, CEO of Atlas Consolidated, dives into the transformative world of digital banking. He shares his journey developing the Hugosave app, shedding light on the challenges of launching innovative financial solutions in a regulated environment. Fergusson discusses how platforms like HugoHub are revolutionizing traditional banking by cutting costs and enhancing accessibility. The conversation also explores the integration of AI in banking and the ongoing tension between rapid tech advancements and regulatory frameworks, particularly in emerging markets.

In thie latest episode of The Grant Williams Podcast, I’m joined by Michael Oliver, founder of Momentum Structural Analysis, for a deep dive into the powerful undercurrents driving today’s markets. Michael explains why the US equity rally rests on shaky ground, with broken momentum structures in the S&P 500, Nasdaq-100, and leading tech names hinting at sharp declines ahead. He also outlines how weakening bonds, a faltering dollar, and the setup for explosive moves in commodities and precious metals point to a much broader period of market upheaval. From the risk of Bitcoin tumbling back toward $50,000 to the likelihood of central banks turning once more to the printing presses, Michael makes the case that investors are standing on the cusp of a structural rupture that could redraw the financial landscape. Every episode of the Grant Williams podcast, including This Week In Doom, The End Game, The Super Terrific Happy Hour, The Narrative Game, Kaos Theory, Shifts Happen and The Hundred Year Pivot, is available to Copper, Silver and Gold Tier subscribers at my website www.Grant-Williams.com.  Copper Tier subscribers get access to all podcasts, while members of the Silver Tier get both the podcasts and my monthly newsletter, Things That Make You Go Hmmm… Gold Tier subscribers have access to my new series of in-depth video conversations, About Time.

In this episode of The Hundred Year Pivot, Demetri and I sit down with Jonathan Kirshner, a leading classical realist and scholar of international relations, for a wide-ranging discussion on realism, uncertainty, and America’s shifting role in global affairs. Jonathan outlines realism as a descriptive framework for understanding a world defined by anarchy—where no supreme authority exists—and the resulting unpredictability of state behaviour. We explore how changing geopolitical conditions are prompting nations, including the US, to more clearly articulate and pursue their national interests, touching on recent US foreign policy choices, the weakening of the dollar order, and the rise of personalist regimes and pluto-populism. The conversation draws on history to distinguish between risk and uncertainty, while warning of the dangers that arise when societies lose shared truths—making realism an essential lens for navigating today’s turbulent international landscape. This is a conversation that’s simply too good to miss. Every episode of the Grant Williams podcast, including This Week In Doom, The End Game, The Super Terrific Happy Hour, The Narrative Game, Kaos Theory, Shifts Happen and The Hundred Year Pivot, is available to Copper, Silver and Gold Tier subscribers at my website www.Grant-Williams.com.  Copper Tier subscribers get access to all podcasts, while members of the Silver Tier get both the podcasts and my monthly newsletter, Things That Make You Go Hmmm… Gold Tier subscribers have access to my new series of in-depth video conversations, About Time.

In this enlightening conversation, financial historian Edward Chancellor shares his insights on the century-long evolution of money and interest rates. He explores the shift from gold-backed currency to fiat money and the speculative bubbles that have emerged as a result. Chancellor discusses the political and societal ramifications of mispriced money and rising wealth inequality, along with the possibility of returning to sounder forms of money. He also reflects on the cyclical nature of economies and the historical contexts that shape our financial future.

In this engaging conversation, Lawrence Fossi, known as Montana Skeptic, shares his insights as a former litigator and financial writer. He discusses America’s social fabric, touching on the transformation of New York City post-pandemic and the dangers of celebrity-driven populism. The talk dives into the implications of wealth disparity, the controversial influence of figures like Elon Musk and Donald Trump, and the challenges facing democracy in a polarized landscape. With a focus on navigating these turbulent times, it's a thought-provoking listen for anyone seeking clarity in chaos.

After a ridiculously long hiatus, The Super Terrific Happy Hour returns as Steph and I dive back into the rapidly changing world of global finance, exploring how Japan’s decades-long experiment with low interest rates and high debt is no longer unique, as the United States and other developed economies find themselves on a similar path. We unpack Japan’s recent inflation surge, the Bank of Japan’s extraordinary bond holdings, and the risks of major capital flows if Japanese investors start bringing their money home before pivoting to the broader implications of a world where globalization may be reversing—raising questions about reshoring, capital controls, and whether governments might coerce institutions to buy more domestic debt. There’s bundles of skepticism on display as we evaluate policymakers’ ability to manage these seismic shifts and a warning of systemic risks, fragile financial systems, and the potential for a painful redistribution of wealth. Amid the uncertainty, we discuss the enduring appeal of gold, the limits of monetary policy, and the high geopolitical stakes for the dollar and the petrodollar system, offering the kind of big-picture insights and candid cynicism you’ve come to expect from the two of us. Every episode of the Grant Williams podcast, including This Week In Doom, The End Game, The Super Terrific Happy Hour, The Narrative Game, Kaos Theory, Shifts Happen and The Hundred Year Pivot, is available to Copper, Silver and Gold Tier subscribers at my website www.Grant-Williams.com.  Copper Tier subscribers get access to all podcasts, while members of the Silver Tier get both the podcasts and my monthly newsletter, Things That Make You Go Hmmm… Gold Tier subscribers have access to my new series of in-depth video conversations, About Time.