The Exchange by EW&L Private Wealth

In today’s episode, Managing Partner, Tim Whybourne caught up with Jack Neureuter from the Fidelity Digital asset team based out of Boston. They discussed everything from how he got started in the space, the level of institutional demand for Crypto, the investment case for Bitcoin and Ethereum and why they shouldn’t be ignored to debunking some of the most common myths we hear about crypto assets.Jack Neureuter is a Senior Research Analyst for the Fidelity Digital Assets team. He spends his day-to-day researching, writing, and speaking with institutional clients about macroeconomics and the digital asset ecosystem that is emerging, hoping to help increase comfort levels and bridge the knowledge gaps that exist between traditional asset managers and the digital asset space.Prior to his current role, he spent time working on the curriculum team for the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association (CAIA) and with Fidelity’s Prime Brokerage team creating portfolio analytics tools for hedge fund investors. Jack graduated from the Honours College at the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a degree in finance and economics.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

Our longer lives and increased wealth have taken the traditional area of estate planning to a whole new dimension. When you add other layers of life, including superannuation, blended families, family trusts and businesses, downsizing, aged care, later life singlehood and disinheriting, just to mention a few, what used to be a neat and tidy landscape is now far more abstract.  Confronting our future and planning for, and documenting, it has never been more important. Doing nothing about it is an option. If you choose this option, at least understand what it means for your family after you’ve departed. It’s not just what it means for the passing of your wealth but, far more significantly, the effect on relationships within your family. That can be the real legacy of avoidance.In this Webinar, Brian Herd from Hopgood Ganim will bring his over 40 years of experience in the field addressing the downsides of doing nothing and the upsides of doing something and how to do that something well. He will explore what makes a good will as opposed to a bad one, how to deal with related entities like trusts and the importance of other documents, such as the Enduring Power of Attorney. It will be riveting and motivating.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

In this episode, Ryan speaks with Matt Vitale the CEO and co-found of Birchal. Birchal is Australia’s leading crowdfunding platform, which has supported approximately 200 businesses in raising the capital they need to scale.Crowd or community funding platforms are providing a new source of growth capital for entrepreneurs and in the process, are playing a critical role in supporting next generation of Australian businesses.Today’s start-ups could be tomorrow’s Titans. Great ideas need early funding to scale, and often this is out of reach for businesses who cannot appeal to venture or growth managers.Some of our own clients, were able to grow their business on the back of successful community funding campaigns and went on to become leaders in their respective industry. Similarly, top-tier VC funds in Australia have also participated in community rounds via Birchal, reflecting the developing ecosystem. Equally, on the investment side, Crowdfunding can democratise access to an asset class that is otherwise limited to professional or institutional investors.This episode is an invaluable listen for founders of high-growth businesses, and investors with an interest in supporting early-stage, Australian companies.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

In today’s episode, we catch up with Saxon Phipps from Year13, one of the portfolio companies of Future Now Ventures. We discuss everything from how the business started whilst they were all moonlighting as bartenders, how it got to where it is today to how important it is to have a good team of mentors around you. Year13 are solving a huge problem for our kids, so we hope you enjoyed the insights into one of the leaders of this groundbreaking education tech company.Saxon Phipps is one of the founders and CEOs of Year13, an Australian EdTech powerhouse, committed to upgrading the school-to-work transition and empowering individuals to embrace a future of hope, security, and productivity. Since experiencing the loss of a friend as a result of the insurmountable pressures that young people face when finishing school, Saxon, along with his Co-Founder, Will Stubley, has dedicated over 15 years of their lives to supporting young people, striving to close the gap on a 20th-century approach to career-related learning and transition to a skills-based economy. Saxon and the team at Year13 have been able to successfully apply this process to work with over 1300 schools across Australia and create several youth engagement strategies and programs for the likes of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, the Digital Skills Organisation, Engineers Australia, and Westpac. Year13 also have active partnerships with the likes of NSW, ACT and SA Governments. Saxon regularly speaks at events about youth issues such as The Australian Financial Review - Higher Education Summit, Australian Davos Connection - Future of Education Summits, and is also on the advisory board to the National Careers Institute - an initiative of the Federal Governments Department of Education Skills and Employment.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

In today’s episode, Managing Partner Tim Whybourne chats with Ben James from Ballie Gifford about the opportunity in disruptive technology and how Baillie Gifford has a different approach to most managers. We discuss everything from how to identify stocks that could be the next Google or Amazon to the opportunity in crypto and autonomous vehicles.Baillie Gifford & Co is an investment management firm that is wholly owned by partners, all of whom work within the firm. It was founded in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1908 and still has its headquarters in the city. It has corporate offices in New York and London. They have around 270 bn $USD under management. Ben is a Director and Investment Specialist for the equity strategy and Scottish Mortgage. He is a member of the US Equity Product Group. He joined Baillie Gifford in July 2015. Before his career in finance, Ben was an Infantry Officer in the British Army for eight years. During his service, he completed two combat tours of Afghanistan. Prior to this, Ben spent four years working as a professional musician. Ben graduated with a master’s in international development with a focus on sustainable investing and a BMus (Hons) in Music, both from The University of Birmingham.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

Our partners, Craig, Tim, and Ryan regroup after staging their mid-year leave. It’s been another eventful financial year, with Wall Street analysts forced back to their drawing boards. Equity markets have rallied strongly, particularly year to date - despite lower earnings, and challenging economic conditions. Indicators increasingly suggest that inflation has, or is about to peak, with the potential for 1-2 rate increases locally and in the US before settling. What does this mean for markets? We cover the US Credit rating downgrade, China’s slowing growth, opportunities in fixed income, household financial health, SEC vs. Crypto developments, and personal investment interests.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

Today’s podcast is a recording of a webinar we hosted for clients in late July 2023. On the recording, we discussed everything from what is Bitcoin and Ethereum, how they translate to investment opportunities in the real world and the significant investment potential they offer to a balanced portfolio by adding their institutional-grade Digital Asset Fund.Trovio is a diversified business founded in 2017 offering three main services. The first being technology solutions, this actually allows them to consult with industry and government and be at the forefront of change in the digital sector for Australia. The second being physical digital asset management and the third being strategic investment in digital asset businesses.We were joined by both Vimal Gor and Thomas Ciszewski. Vimal is one of the Co-Portfolio Managers for the Digital asset fund and has over 28 years of asset management experience. Prior to joining Trovio, he spent 13 years at ASX listed Pendal Group as the Head of Bond, Income & Defensive Strategies (BIDS). At Pendal he raised over $10billon in FUM to manage a total of $22billion in assets. Prior to Pendal, he spent 10 years at Aviva Investors in London and Scottish Mutual and Murray Johnstone in Scotland. Thomas is the Co-Portfolio Manager for Digital Asset Fund. He has over 25 years of experience in portfolio management and strategy development, having previously worked at Pendal Group, SouthPeak Investment Management, Macquarie and Deutsche Bank.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

In this episode, we have a special guest Dan Roberts, the co-founder and co-CEO of Iris Energy. Iris Energy is one of Australia’s first crypto mining and infrastructure plays having listed on the Nasdaq in November 2021. Iris Energy is a unique player in the market in that they only use renewable energy during off-peak periods to mine their Bitcoin resulting in what is referred to as “green Bitcoin”. They play a very important part in the renewable energy network as they take and pay for the energy when no one else wants it which brings down the cost of production and increases profitability for renewables. We discuss everything from what is bitcoin and bitcoin mining to the opportunity in the space and what else can be done with the infrastructure they are building.Daniel has 15 years of experience across finance, infrastructure, and renewables, he was previously the 2nd largest individual shareholder in Palisade investment partners which has 6bn in assets across direct infra projects. Dan has extensive board experience spanning from airports, ports, gas pipelines, bulk liquid storage, waste treatment facilities, and wind and solar farms. Prior to founding Iris Energy Dan worked for both Macquarie and PWC.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

The Year was 2022: No asset class globally escaped the enormous price resetting created by the most aggressive tightening cycle seen in history. Fixed interest markets felt the most pain: US 10-year bonds fell 39.7% for the year. If we were lucky enough to be Marty McFly and set our dash clock back to 28 December 2021 (the market high), how would you manage a bond portfolio differently?During this podcast, Craig discusses topics such as how Anthony and Western Asset Management adopt such a hugely successful fixed interest strategy to remain ahead of the market. How do you position fixed interest during an economic cycle? How do you reshape a bond portfolio given the frequently changing central commentary? Most importantly can bonds still act as a core defensive asset class – for all investors?Craig sits down with Anthony Kirkham, the Head of Melbourne Operations and Investment Management for Western Asset Management. Anthony personally manages in excess of AUD$18 billion in fixed interest, spanning across more than 33 years of experience. Anthony is the Head of the Australian Investment team, Head of Australian Operations, and Portfolio Manager at Western Asset since 2007. Mr Kirkham holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Melbourne, a Master of Applied Finance from Macquarie University and a Graduate Diploma from the Securities Institute of Australia. Anthony also holds the CFA designation.Founded in 1971, Western Asset Management is one of the world’s leading fixed-income managers. With a focus on long-term fundamental value investing that employs a top-down and bottom-up approach, the firm has nine offices around the globe and deep experience across the range of fixed-income sectors. Western Asset Management’s parent company, Franklin Templeton, operates in 155 countries. Franklin Templeton offers boutique specialisation on a global scale, bringing extensive capabilities in equity, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternatives. With offices in more than 32 countries and approximately 1,250 investment professionals, the California-based company has 75+ years of investment experience and approximately A$2.1 trillion in funds under management as of 31 March 2023. Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.

In today’s episode, we speak with Todd Warren, a Portfolio Manager of Tribeca’s 2050 fund, which invests its focus on decarbonisation beneficiaries such as carbon credits, green chemicals, green metals, green food and industrial innovation. As a senior member of the Tribeca Global Natural Resources investment team, Todd also leads research coverage of key sectors such as energy and bulk commodities, drawing on over two decades of specialist research and portfolio management experience in the natural resources sector having previously worked with Colonial First State Global Asset Management (CFSGAM) in London and Sydney. We dive deep into what Carbon Credits are, how to invest in them and the huge investment opportunity that they present.Disclaimer: The information in this podcast series is for general financial educational purposes only, should not be considered financial advice and is only intended for wholesale clients. That means the information does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider if the information is appropriate for you and your needs. You should always consult your trusted licensed professional adviser before making any investment decision.