Other People's Money with Max Wiethe

Cullen Rose and Raj Shah, co-founders of Stoic Point Capital Management, dive into their journey of capitalizing on the SPAC boom and adapting their investment strategies. They discuss the significant impact of AI on their research methods and cost structures, revealing how technology reshapes finance. The pair also highlight the complexities of maintaining investor relations amidst evolving market dynamics and the shift towards small-cap investments, all while emphasizing the need for transparency and adaptability in a competitive hedge fund landscape.

Join Brett Caughran, founder of the buyside training academy Fundamental Edge, and David Plon, CEO of Portrait Analytics, as they dissect the AI revolution in the investment world. Discover how AI is transforming decision-making and influencing the roles of portfolio managers and analysts. They explore the current state of AI adoption among hedge funds and the importance of clear communication when using AI tools. With insights on the challenges and opportunities AI presents, this conversation is vital for anyone in finance.

In this insightful discussion, HF Reflections—an anonymous expert from the FinTwit community—shares his transformative journey from analyst to hedge fund founder. He highlights the importance of balancing passion with compliance in finance and offers valuable lessons on personal branding. The conversation touches on the challenges of AI in investment research, as well as the intricate dynamics of launching a hedge fund. HF emphasizes the significance of perseverance, authenticity, and building investor relationships in a competitive landscape.

Tor Svelland, CIO and Founder of Svelland Capital, shares insights from his successful journey in commodities trading, having achieved over 18.5% annualized returns since 2017. He discusses the thrilling current landscape for commodities, fueled by new market entrants and structural undersupply. Svelland highlights the challenges of ESG ratings, the impact of geopolitical factors, and the importance of understanding global supply chain shifts. He emphasizes the need for seasoned traders and offers advice for emerging commodities professionals.

Donald Zilkha, founder of Zilkha Investments joins Other People’s Money to discuss how his deep-rooted DNA in banking and deal making has evolved into an investment strategy focused on deep research and engagement with management to affect change without upsetting the apple cart. He discusses how this strategy has evolved from single name SPVs to the commingled strategy he has today, case studies like Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, and why this classical style resonates with investors. Follow Max on X: https://x.com/maxwiethe Follow Other People’s Money on: Apple Podcast https://bit.ly/4e7QJ1M Spotify https://bit.ly/3Yhaazi YouTube https://bit.ly/3C63VXR X https://x.com/opmpod Timestamps 00:00 Intro 00:34 The Birth of Modern Banking in the Middle East 10:27 Evolution from Venture, to SPVs, to Drawdown, to Vanilla Equity 19:09 Engagement vs. Activism 27:17 Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs Case Study 33:05 Take Private Opportunities 35:55 Investing in a "Classical" Style 38:43 Talking About Process Instead of Positions 45:02 Value Investing in Tech and Old-Line Businesses 50:05 Team Continuity & Incentives 54:18 Marketing After 10+ Years

David Steinberg, founder and CIO of Marlowe Partners joins Other People’s Money to discuss why he believes the operational and capital raising side of the investment business is the most important factor in determining success. He also discusses how he is navigating the capital raising process with a focus on weeding out investors who are not a fit for his concentrated long-term investing style, how that long-term style affects his ability to use AI in the research process, and why it is important not to be too innovative with your investment terms. David would also like to highlight the importance of high quality service providers and has shared three service providers he would highly recommend to other investment professionals. For accounting services David uses: https://rsmus.com For outsourced compliance services David uses: https://www.salusgrc.com For legal services David uses: https://www.akingump.com/en Follow David on Twitter: https://x.com/PeterLakeSounds Follow Max on X: https://x.com/maxwiethe Follow Other People’s Money on: Apple Podcast https://bit.ly/4e7QJ1M Spotify https://bit.ly/3Yhaazi YouTube https://bit.ly/3C63VXR X https://x.com/opmpod 00:00 Intro 00:30 The Most Important Aspect of Investing 10:16 The Market for Concentrated Investing 13:47 Staying in the Game 17:45 Non-Standard Structures Are a Risk 19:41 New Structures for Individual Investors 27:11 Communicating Investing Process 34:28 Using AI to Cut Investment Research Costs 49:04 The Mission of $1B to $100B

This Other People’s Money episode is brought to you by VanEck. Learn more about the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH): http://vaneck.com/SMHMax Learn more about the VanEck Fabless Semiconductor ETF (SMHX): http://vaneck.com/SMHXMax Jon Caplis, CEO and founder at PivotalPath joins Other People’s Money to discuss how underreporting of data by the top tier of hedge funds is skewing the data that institutional investors use to make allocation decisions, resulting in undeservedly poor perception of the asset class, and significant underinvestment from institutional investors relying on allocation models. He argues that the top firms’ absence from most data sets has dragged industry wide return metrics down by approximately 400 basis points annually. Caplis also discusses how PivotalPath is combatting this data issue, the performance of hedge funds in 2025, and the mistakes many hedge funds make in communicating with institutional LPs that make up PivotalPath’s client base. Learn more about PivotalPath at https://www.pivotalpath.com/ Follow Max on X: https://x.com/maxwiethe Follow Other People’s Money on: Apple Podcast https://bit.ly/4e7QJ1M Spotify https://bit.ly/3Yhaazi YouTube https://bit.ly/3C63VXR X https://x.com/opmpod An investment in the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) and VanEck Fabless Semiconductor ETF (SMHX) may be subject to risks which include, among others, risks related to investing in the semiconductor industry, special risk considerations of investing in Taiwanese issuers, equity securities, small-, medium and large-capitalization companies, foreign securities, emerging market issuers, foreign currency, depositary receipts, issuer-specific changes, market, operational, index tracking, authorized participant concentration, new fund, no guarantee of active trading market, trading issues, passive management, fund shares trading, premium/discount and liquidity of fund shares, non-diversified, and index-related concentration risks, all of which may adversely affect the Fund. Small, medium and large-capitalization companies may be subject to elevated risks. Emerging market issuers and foreign securities may be subject to securities markets, political and economic, investment and repatriation restrictions, different rules and regulations, less publicly available financial information, foreign currency and exchange rates, operational and settlement, and corporate and securities laws risks. Investing involves substantial risk and high volatility, including possible loss of principal. An investor should consider the investment objective, risks, charges and expenses of a Fund carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus and summary prospectus, which contain this and other information, call 800.826.2333 or visit  vaneck.com. Please read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before investing. © Van Eck Securities Corporation, Distributor, a wholly owned subsidiary of Van Eck Associates Corporation

This Other People’s Money episode is brought to you by VanEck. Learn more about the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH): http://vaneck.com/SMHMax Learn more about the VanEck Fabless Semiconductor ETF (SMHX): vaneck.com/SMHXMAx Warren Pies, strategist and co-founder at 3Fourteen Research joins Other People’s Money to discuss how the market and economy are transitioning from a deflation to a debasement mindset. He explains why he’s bullish equities, expecting continued disinflation despite his longer-term debasement view, and expecting the Fed to cut 3 times before the end of the year while the economy avoids recession. Pies also looks back on his launching his first year as an ETF fund manager. Follow Warren on X: https://x.com/WarrenPies Follow Max on X: https://x.com/maxwiethe Follow Other People’s Money on: Apple Podcast https://bit.ly/4e7QJ1M Spotify https://bit.ly/3Yhaazi YouTube https://bit.ly/3C63VXR X https://x.com/opmpod An investment in the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) and VanEck Fabless Semiconductor ETF (SMHX) may be subject to risks which include, among others, risks related to investing in the semiconductor industry, special risk considerations of investing in Taiwanese issuers, equity securities, small-, medium and large-capitalization companies, foreign securities, emerging market issuers, foreign currency, depositary receipts, issuer-specific changes, market, operational, index tracking, authorized participant concentration, new fund, no guarantee of active trading market, trading issues, passive management, fund shares trading, premium/discount and liquidity of fund shares, non-diversified, and index-related concentration risks, all of which may adversely affect the Fund. Small, medium and large-capitalization companies may be subject to elevated risks. Emerging market issuers and foreign securities may be subject to securities markets, political and economic, investment and repatriation restrictions, different rules and regulations, less publicly available financial information, foreign currency and exchange rates, operational and settlement, and corporate and securities laws risks. Investing involves substantial risk and high volatility, including possible loss of principal. An investor should consider the investment objective, risks, charges and expenses of a Fund carefully before investing. To obtain a prospectus and summary prospectus, which contain this and other information, call 800.826.2333 or visit vaneck.com. Please read the prospectus and summary prospectus carefully before investing. © Van Eck Securities Corporation, Distributor, a wholly owned subsidiary of Van Eck Associates Corporation