Money Maze Podcast

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Today, with great thanks to Rothschild and Co for allowing us to publish this conversation, we are delighted to have the opportunity to talk to Anthony Scaramucci. Anthony needs little introduction, but he is an entrepreneur, investor and political consultant. Having studied at Harvard Law School, he worked at Goldman Sachs, set up Oscar Capital Management, subsequently sold it and later established Skybridge Capital Management. He was appointed the White House communications director in 2017,was dismissed by Donald Trump 10 days later, is now a Biden supporter and a regular on US television. In this timely, if different conversation for the MoneyMaze Podcast, Anthony describes his political odyssey, culminating in working in the Trump transition team and then being appointed communications director. He speaks about Donald Trump’s modus operandi, before discussing the current election situation. The conversation covers the infamous pre-election debate, the respective economic plans of Trump and Biden and given the age of the contenders, the potential Vice Presidents. Anthony discusses who might win and what the might win control of, before discussing some wider related issues, in a candid, engaging and humorous conversation. Recorded on October 20th, 2020 Simon Brewer is a Senior Advisor to Rothschild & Co’s Wealth Management Division.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Today is a first for us, to welcome both a Grande Chancellerie de la legion d’honneur (the highest French decoration to reward the most deserving citizens) and a KBE (Knight of the British Empire, 2015). Sir Xavier Rolet was listed in Harvard’s 2017 Business Review as one of the best 100 CEOs in the world, recorded in Debrett’s as one of the most influential people in finance, was a former Member of PM Cameron’s business advisory group, and previous head of the London Stock Exchange. He describes a career in finance that began with a decade at Goldman Sachs which in turn prepared him to run the European Equity and risk businesses for several major financial institutions. In addition, having been CEO of Lehman Bros France, he offers his views on the reasons for Lehman’s ultimate collapse. Xavier shares his thoughts on the imperative to encourage technology and innovation for those managing businesses and making boardroom appointments, and why he believes Europe’s addiction to debt finance, and discouragement of equity finance has exacerbated its transition to the slow lane of global growth. He talks about the reorientation he undertook whilst CEO of the London Stock Exchange and the succession of transformatory deals which he engineered, propelling the value of the company from under £1 billion to £14 billion in just 9 years. He goes into a detailed explanation of why “the only asset that creates wealth is equities”, why boardrooms are filled with people ill versed in technology and innovation, and why France along with other European countries have failed to grasp the opportunity to develop the Googles and Amazons of Europe. He then discusses why London has a good chance of retaining its pre-eminence as a financial centre, notwithstanding Brexit, because of its global reach in multiple areas of finance. The conversation switches to wine as he discusses Chene Bleu the Super-Rhone he and his wife own in ChateauNeuf du Pape, their top to bottom organic approach and processes, and the challenge for wine makers facing climate change. He talks about racing the Paris-Dakar rally, provides unconventional advice for the young to back innovators, not join mainstream firms and the opportunities that exist in a fragmented but exciting world. This show is full of gems – Formidable!  

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Today’s guest is a Russian-born, Australian-educated management consultant working at the epicentre of the data-driven revolution which is shaking the established corporate and investment orders. Our guests on this show manage businesses and money, and they need to understand where their industry is moving, its likely trajectory and the skills that will be required. In essence, how they should adapt, for as John F Kennedy observed “Change is the law of life, and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future” So in this episode, we discuss the evolving world of management consultancy and how their advice to companies is shifting. The discussion begins with Irene’s escape from Russia, her upbringing in Australia and first employment at Pilkington Glass before moving to consultancy, initially at KPMG, then starting her own firm Molten before selling it to SIA partners. SIA partners today consults with 100 of the Global Fortune 500, specialising in the areas of AI, and data-led consulting, known as Consulting 4.0. Irene talks about changing business practices, the essential need for data to inform and improve decision making, from developing models to advise hotels on Airbnb pricing, to helping the French Alpine meteorological service improve predictions of avalanche dangers. She talks about communication in a zoom-altered world, the office of the future and debates whether younger employees can attain “equity” in their working relationships if done remotely. Finally Irene reflects on the resilience she acquired along the way, the qualities she looks for in hires, how firms can retain female employees more effectively and shares some lessons and advice from running her own business.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Many ambitious people aspire to build a truly successful business, and inevitably, only some succeed. Yet to start with a small buy-out which nearly 40 years later has evolved into one of the UK's largest Asset Management groups with over £500 billion in assets, employing 10,00 people and with offices in 50 cities, as well as being a member of the FTSE 100, is quite an achievement. So in this podcast, to discuss the asset management industry and its future, we’ve gone north to Scotland, which as JK Rowling observed, is “one of the most hauntingly beautiful places in the world” and we are delighted to have as our guest the man who built and ran Aberdeen Asset Management, and which post-merger, became Standard Life Aberdeen. Martin describes his schooling and University in Aberdeen, where he studied law and accountancy, and how within a short space of time, in 1983, he and two other alumnae from Robert Gordon's College  agreed to buy Aberdeen Asset Management. He talks about expansion into Asia, growth by acquisitions and integrating firms and cultures, and how a mix of serendipity and strategy played their parts in expansion. He describes the motivation for Aberdeen to merge with Standard Life and the opportunities he believes it offers. The conversation extends to the future of Asset Management, the need for greater differentiation through philosophy and style, fee pressures, active versus passive, and the qualities he believes make for a great fund manager. We then discuss the current outlook and monetary regime, the future of fossil fuels, and the Scottish independence question that won’t go away, despite compelling economic arguments for the status quo. Martin then discusses being Chairman of Revolut, being on the board of Glencore, and his experience when on the board at Sky during the bidding process. Finally Martin talks about dealing with difficulties when they confronted him, and his perfect golfing day.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Sir Ronald Cohen’s extraordinary story begins in Egypt in 1956 where the Suez crisis has taken place and Egyptian Nationalism is on the rise, forcing his family to leave everything and flee to England, not even speaking the language. Armed only with ambition and hope and hard work,  he gets into grammar school, wins a scholarship to Oxford, then to Harvard Business school and moves on to build one of the largest venture capital  firms in the world, APAX. Over the last 20 years, he has been invited to advise Governments, chaired the G8 task force for impact investment, helping drive the revolution to rethink the way we invest. Along the way he has authored 3 books, the most recent Impact, which has just been released. He has sat on the University of Oxford Investment Committee, been a member of the Board of Dean’s Advisors at Harvard Business School and Vice-Chairman of Ben Gurion University.  He talks about the opportunities created by attending Oxford and Harvard, his journey to help create the UK Venture Capital industry, founding Apax, and the role private equity plays in developed economies, including discussing some of its perceived drawbacks. The conversation moves to entrepreneurship, and his first book,  “The Second Bounce of the Ball – Turning Risk into Opportunity” and the critical role, job-creation will play in the post Covid landscape. This leads to his thoughts on the profound importance Impact Investing must, and will play, and its essential role in the evolution of capitalism.  Specifically he discusses the need to have company accounts properly measure impact and how this sub-sector of the investment management industry is accelerating as evidenced by the growth of the Social Impact Bond (SIB) and Harvard’s impact-weighted accounts. The conversation moves on to discuss how and what Governments should do, the evolution of philanthropy in this environment, and advice for young people thinking about careers and finally his perspectives on an extraordinary journey.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn It’s difficult enough to train to become a Doctor and then practice in some emerging countries with fragile health systems like Papua New Guinea. But then to switch tack completely, give all that up, win a place at Harvard Business School and join Goldman Sachs in asset management before going on to launch your own fund in emerging markets, may be considered brilliance or heresy, particularly when you come from Germany, a country that reveres technical expertise and is less enthusiastic about the merits of finance. So in this conversation I am delighted to unravel an unconventional journey and welcome Dr Christina McGuire, CEO of Elephant Asset Management as our guest. We discuss her upbringing and German attitudes to finance, before touching upon her medical journey, her decision to go to Harvard Business school and then join Goldman Sachs. She discusses working and investing in China, the skills taught and culture encouraged at Goldmans, before she explains her decision to go it alone. She describes the investment approach of her firm Elephant Asset Management, where she manages a concentrated, stock-specific, emerging market equity fund. She explains her philosophy and style, detailing geographic, sectoral and company disciplines as well as the significant opportunities created by the post-Covid world for her domestically-focused companies. She describes the due diligence process, the need to eye ball CEO and CFOs and why she believes company visits and sitting in the staff canteen of investing companies are great ways to gauge culture, and sense the mood. Christina also explains why the S&G in ESG are significantly more measurable in the countries in which she invests. Finally Christina talks about how women should really think about asset management as a career, and offers some other great advice for young people thinking about their futures.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn In a slightly different conversation for the MoneyMaze Podcast, Anthony St John shares his fascinating journey and set of insights. He is a Parliamentarian, Non-Executive Chairman of Yellow Cake Plc the Uranium holding Company, Chairman of Strand Hanson, an independent Advisory boutique with a strong African orientation, and Chairman of IDH, the health care provider in the Middle East and Africa. At the same time, he is one of 90 hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords, is Lord in waiting to the HM the Queen and currently Vice Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Africa Group and former friend of Nelson Mandela. Educated in South Africa and then the UK, he talks of his arrival in the UK to take his seat in the House of Lords and how he was initially hugely inhibited by a stutter that was reminiscent of the King’s Speech. In our conversation he speaks of his journey from Lawyer, to working in China, Oil Analyst, to Chairman of three companies and also managing his Parliamentary duties. Our discussion covers investing in Africa, cyber security, Uranium and its role in the evolving debate about energy sources, and his relationship with Nelson Mandela. Anthony gives some powerful advice to young people thinking about their future and some additional tips for navigating life’s veritable money and other mazes!

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Our guest today is Morgan Stanley’s former chief global strategist and for the last 25 years head of Independent Strategy, a research group who advise Governments, Sovereign Wealth Funds and influential financial institutions about the global investment and geopolitical outlook. His views have long been sought after, are often contrarian but remain typically revered. David’s journey starts with his early years in Ireland, attending Trinity College, then working for ICI in Belgium, before going to INSEAD which provided a springboard for a move into financial services. First at JP Morgan where he rose to become head of strategy and then Morgan Stanley where from its infancy in Europe he became their European and then Global Strategist. David has authored some brilliant & extraordinarily accurate pieces & predictions, Perestroika predicting the collapse of the Soviet Union, Pricing Power to the People about the internet’s revolutionary impact on lowering prices, and more recently his view of the post Covid landscape and a return to National Economics. David describes how his, at-times, controversial pieces of research did not suit large financial institutions and how he established his company, Independent Research, to fill a gap of providing long term, often contrarian, thought-provoking research. The conversation puts the spotlight on China and its geo-political and economic ambitions. Living in Hong Kong for over a decade, David has a ringside seat to comment on the potential “New Cold War”, to discuss why censorship and China’s political model has crushed freedoms of cultural and other expression, and yet why China might also be overestimating its strength. David goes on to discuss implications for the post Covid world. He explains why he expects a changed global architecture to emerge after the pandemic. Big governments, he argues, will supply an increased proportion of demand whilst trying to inflate away debt; Why the world for the Mega Tech platform companies will alter, perhaps in an unexpected way, and why he believes goods will become more expensive as de-globalisation unfolds. Within this, he explains why he sees Europe as a winner. Finally he talks about the big asset allocation decisions he would make and some pithy advice for younger listeners weighing up career options.

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn In this Money Maze Podcast edition, we travel north east from the UK, beyond Norwich, and further than Hamburg, to a country of less than 6mm people, a country which has the oldest national flag, dating from 1219, and is consistently reported as having the world’s happiest people. Home to Lego and with some of the nicest people in the world, it’s Denmark of course. The guest on this podcast is a veritable Viking of the investment management industry, Bo Almar Knudsen, CEO of C Worldwide, formerly known as Carnegie. Bo starts by describing a little of it how it feels to be Danish, and of the respect and trust Danes have for their institutions. He speaks of their intrigue with travel beyond their borders which has been demonstrated with Danes travelling and settling around the world over the centuries, and in some ways mirrored in the global portfolio C Worldwide has managed for 30 years. Bo describes his decision to study in San Francisco as well as Denmark, then starting out at Danske Bank before beginning his own journey at Carnegie Asset Management in 1995. Today, his firm manage nearly $20 billion, and have achieved world class investment returns in their core equity portfolio which has made 60x an investor’s initial investment, outperforming the world equity index by 10 times! Bo details their investment approach, the very long term perspective they adopt, and speaks about the challenge of building a culture that encourages open dialogue and recognition of mistakes, but also of avoiding complacency and being patient. He makes an unusual point that the investment industry is one of the great time-wasters, whilst at the same time the challenge is to gain “lasting knowledge” and not be distracted by daily noise. Finally, as one of Denmark’s top veteran tennis players, he shares life lessons he has learnt from studying Roger Federer, why his favourite book is Sapiens by Harari, and his favourite band unexpectedly, is Depeche Mode. So - back to the 80s!

Sign up to our newsletter for more in-depth insights | Follow us on LinkedIn Goldfinger, Goldeneye, the Man with the Golden gun; James Bond escapism or a guidepost to financial survival? From the Phoenicians to today where China appears to have accumulated the largest Gold reserves of any Government in the world, it may be one of the few defences against the money printing and currency debasement of Governments, yet it continues to divide opinion. To help unravel this, the MoneyMaze Podcast is delighted to welcome Evy Hambro, C.I.O. of Blackrock’s natural resources team and manager of the Blackrock Gold and General Fund, one of the world’s largest Gold and precious metals funds. Evy first discusses going to Newcastle University to take a degree in agricultural marketing. Then inspired by work experience, and the backdrop of a family steeped in gold trading and gold investing, Evy describes joining the legendary Gold investor, Julian Baring, on leaving University. Evy gives his thoughts on allocations to the gold complex, the low current weightings versus history, and why the current environment of zero or negative rates creates a positive tailwind for investing in a mix of gold bullion, silver and related mining companies. He speaks about the balance mining companies must strike between the need to explore with the need to return cash to shareholders and avoid value-destructive projects. The conversation broadens into other metals; Silver, Platinum and Iron Ore and how the portfolio has changed over time. Evy addresses the question as to how mining companies need to recognise their environmental obligations and the challenges of operating in a post Covid world. He also speaks about the sustainability agenda that is increasingly key to Blackrock’s corporate DNA. Finally, he discusses how the mining industry needs data scientists as well as engineers as technology revolutionises mining processes, in a manner which will surprise many of us. In conclusion he talks about his charitable commitments, First World artists and why he particularly loves living in the countryside.